Intuition is not just for professionals. It’s something everyone has—even you. And the more you get to know yours, the stronger it will be.
Oh, but you’re not intuitive, you say? Maybe you don’t think of yourself that way, but your intuition has been working for you all your life. It’s been in every hunch you followed. It’s there when you text a friend who answers saying she was just thinking about you. It’s the funny sensation that inspires changing your route or departure time or plans. It’s behind any strong reaction you have when you meet someone (especially if you immediately think of a person you had a bad experience with).
There are many ways intuition may communicate with you. They are not mutually exclusive, and you might be stronger at some types than others. You might hear. You might see images or visions. You may get feelings. You might simply know.
The form doesn’t matter; what’s important is an open and trustworthy line of communication between your mind and your intuition. You can shore up this line and build trust. The more you act on your intuition, the stronger the link will be.
An easy way to pump up your link is to follow through on even the simplest messages. Try this for a few days: When a simple idea comes to you out of the blue, act on it. Does a particular coffee shop cross your mind? Go to it. Don’t try to force anything; don’t expect a magical event in flashing neon lights. Just go, and be open. You may never know why dropping in was important. That’s not the point; showing your intuition you’re listening is.
Or you’re driving down a street and wonder about turning right when you’d normally continue ahead? If you’ve got the time, turn right. Change your route. Once when a friend of mine did this, she ended up at a store filled with buckets and buckets of her deceased mother’s favorite flower – her way of saying hi.
Another easy way to build your link is by actively monitoring your energy and listening to it. The second part is essential. Suppose you get a weird or anxious feeling in your core. In that case, that’s a warning signal to tread lightly or, better, turn back, even if what you’re walking toward makes sense logically. The most recent time I ignored this, I was trying to clean up my end of a misunderstanding. Unfortunately, I walked into a minefield from which the relationship never recovered.
Your energy can tell you how to proceed. Excitement or enthusiasm means “This way, please!” A sick or weird feeling, dread, or anxiety means “No!” (See my earlier example.) If you’re neutral, that could mean “not worth it” or maybe just “not now.”
Paying attention to your energy will also help you learn to distinguish your thoughts from your intuition. If something is running through your head again and again and again, check how it feels. How it makes you feel? Are you anxious? Worried? Tense? Obsessed? That’s probably not your intuition.
Do you feel calm? Do you have a strong sense of knowing independent of logic or empirical evidence? There you go; that’s your intuition. Here are some other ways it may show up. Does a notion fall into your head that has nothing to do with what you’d been thinking? Sure smacks of intuition. Does an idea or impulse wash over you? Bubble up from deep in your body? (I once heard “This isn’t going to work” rise up from my core and knew instantly my new live-in relationship was hopeless. Which it was.) Again, not your thinking; your intuition.
Don’t assume intuition is always quiet, though. Sometimes it comes with a fierceness that makes sure you pay attention. Does it call out your name? Listen to that, tout suite. Do you have an urgent impulse? Definitely not your mind, but your intuition. Hop to it!
All these approaches, little or big, respect your intuition and encourage it to grow. Think of them like watering a plant. Have fun with the process. You’re building a tool for life that may end up amazing and amusing you.
