How often do you use your intuition? Do you think you even have intuition? Or are you frustrated because you force yourself to often go against what you know in your heart is right?
Many people ignore their intuition because it’s not valued; thought, reason, and rationality are what is valued, and those certainly have their place. But sometimes we need to step back and reconnect with that part of us that simply knows; we need to trust that there is no rational reason and that instead, our truth is there to guide us.
A word of clarification here: Wouldn’t it be fantastic if we could do whatever we wanted? This is not what I mean when I encourage you to tap in and use your intuition. The point is to take the time to listen; listen to the messages that might seem a little beyond reason, a little disconnected from what is deemed to be right or true or like everyone else, and then hold those up against what your rational mind says you “should” do.
Why We Don’t Listen
We ignore our intuition for a variety of reasons. First and foremost we ignore it because we feel we’re being led astray. Someone may judge us if we do something different and exile us from our friend or peer group. Other times, we ignore it because what our inner voice is telling us is so outrageous that we just can’t imagine trusting it.
We also ignore our intuition because we have not been taught to honor it; we’ve been told to only trust the rational and the known, the things we know to be real. We also sometimes forget. We feel that unknowable feeling, but it’s jumbled in with so many other feelings we don’t recognize it as our truth. Lastly, we ignore it because we may have followed it in the past only to be burned and that’s too big a risk to take again.
It’s time to change the conversation about intuition and allow it to take its rightful place in our lives. It’s time to listen and consciously choose to act in new ways that honor both ourselves and others and help us develop trust in ourselves. In short, it’s time to tune in to power up.
Tune In to Power Up
There are four reasons why tuning into your intuition is beneficial. Tuning in helps you:
- Honor your health
- Develop bravery and courage
- Discover and reveal hidden talents
- Honor yourself as your own true north
Stress and anxiety are at epidemic levels throughout our world, and though we sense this, we often push ourselves beyond our limits. The result is a sick and worn out you, with a compromised immune system and a mind that is easily discouraged and sometimes even depressed. By learning to listen to your body, and then crucially, heeding that call, you can take small (or large) steps towards improving your health.
Listening to our intuition and going against the grain helps us develop bravery and courage. When you’ve listened to your body, and it is telling you it needs rest thanks to having a cold, suffering from chronic fatigue, or feeling like you’re ready to fall asleep at 5 pm each night, you will make the brave decision to choose differently; you may start eating a little better, start going to bed a little earlier, and start limiting the time you spend on outside activities. By continuing to follow your intuition whether by listening to your body or by setting other limits on your time and energy, you will become more courageous and take better care of yourself in the process.
One of the bravest things you will ever do is follow what you consider to be an outrageous hunch (intuition talking again) and do something completely unexpected. This may mean taking an abrupt left turn and changing career fields, writing a book, or taking off to travel for several months. Along the way, you’ll discover that you have hidden talents and voila, it’s time for you to unveil those to the world. Listening to the voice inside that says “you can do this” is key to allowing yourself to recognize and then share your newfound skills. If you want to take the Band-Aid “rip it right off” approach and go whole hog into something new, go for it! But if you don’t, please honor that inkling about that “something new” and at least try it on the side. By listening to your inner voice, you are helping yourself, but in many ways, you’ll be helping the world as well by allowing your light to shine.
The culmination of all this intuition honoring and inner listening is that you realize you do not need to look outside yourself for real answers. Yes, we all need guidance from time to time, but deep inside, you will over time, come up with the solution you need. Most of the time it’s just about asking the right questions and then listening to your gut. You know when you need to set hard limits around your time and energy to get well if you’re sick. You know what to do when that little voice keeps telling you to figure out a way to take that trip to Indonesia, even if it’s only for a few days. You also know you have talents you want to develop and you can, it’s just a matter of figuring out when and how.
Learning to listen to your intuition is a skill that can be developed by simply learning to be present. When you’re present with how you feel and what you’re tuning into, you then have the opportunity to make the right decision, at the right time. Managing the fear of judgment and allowing yourself to trust your inner voice may be your biggest challenges. By heeding the call of the inklings tickling inside you, you honor yourself, build courage, shine the light on your true talents and ultimately learn to trust that you are your own best guide.
