I know, I know, I know, but I keep forgetting.
~Unknown
I was recently reminded how often we already know the answer long before our minds catch up. Yet when faced with an important decision, many of us still look outside ourselves for guidance before consulting our own inner wisdom.
Life always presents options for our growth. Whether or not we heed them is up to us. When a situation perplexes us, we have a choice. Every choice teaches us something. There may not be a wrong choice, but some choices move us more directly toward growth.
How do we determine if the chatter in our brains is the best decision? How do we decide the direction to follow when we are on the fence? How do we see or hear the signs of what to do next?
Many will hash it out with friends or colleagues, yet we all have the power to discern it on our own.
Our intuition, or what some call instinct, is natural. Although the two are slightly different, instinct is a natural-born tendency, the primal intelligence that has allowed our survival. Intuition, on the other hand, can be further developed throughout life. Regardless, every one of us has experienced it. Some may call it a hunch, or others notice a bodily reaction: the hair on the back of our necks stands up, we feel a knot in our stomachs, our hearts may race, our breath may quicken, or we may get goosebumps, which I call confirmation chills.
Unlike the mind’s constant chatter, intuition tends to speak quietly. It rarely argues its case or demands attention. It simply waits for us to notice.
Our conscious mind is constantly reminding us of our obligations, the should-haves, could-haves, and would-haves. However, our intuition is connected to the greater good of who we are. It is our higher self speaking, the knowingness of who we are.
Perhaps the challenge is not learning how intuition speaks, but remembering that it has been speaking to us all along.
Intuition rarely arrives as a loud proclamation. Learning to recognize these signals is often the first step toward trusting our inner guidance.
Listening to our gut feeling is vital to hearing our intuition. The gut is often called our second brain, and many of us experience intuitive messages first as physical sensations in the body. The answer is to quiet ourselves enough to let our intuition speak, while also considering our conscious and rational minds’ input. Our gut feelings alert us to the dialogue of our subconscious mind; intuition may be the voice through which that wisdom speaks.
To utilize our intuition, we must first recognize how it communicates.
Numerous signs alert us that something wants to be heard: It may come in the form of emotions, fear, anxiety, confusion, unidentified tensions, uneasiness, trouble concentrating, or a visceral feeling of suspicion, the heebie-jeebies. All these are your subconscious alerting you; it may be to danger or the next step in your growth.
Once we acknowledge these signs, the next step is to trust them.
Start with baby steps.
Move into a mindset of being rather than mindlessly doing. Before you act, ask yourself whether what you are doing is driven by genuine desire or people-pleasing. To unearth our motivations, we must tune in by quieting down and engaging in soul-nourishing activities. Tune in to ourselves by quieting down and engaging in soul-nourishing activities.
In a culture that rewards constant productivity, we often mistake movement for progress. Intuition does not compete with noise. It waits patiently beneath it. Where we create moments of stillness, even brief ones, we begin to hear the wisdom that has been quietly waiting for our attention.
Taking time for ourselves is not selfish. It is imperative for our overall well-being. Flipping the script on how we label self-care allows us to become more harmonious within.
As children, we innately can read our parents’ or caretakers’ emotions and feelings. We were tuned into the family vibe. Did something happen that made you turn that off? Take some time to travel back to when you felt more connected to your inner voice.
As a child, I was told to be less sensitive and needed to toughen up. Over time, I came to see sensitivity as something to hide rather than honor. Looking back, I no longer believe I was overly sensitive. I believe I was deeply connected to my intuition. Like many people, I learned to quiet that inner voice and trust logic and reason more. It has taken years to remember what I once knew naturally.
As I have grown wiser, I have come to understand the value of intently listening to my intuition. I no longer challenge it. Instead, I question why I choose not to heed its voice. I follow my intuition even when I do not fully understand why, and I have rarely been led astray.
Looking back, many of these moments that shaped my life began as nothing more than a quiet feeling I chose to trust. Perhaps intuition is not something we need to learn so much as something we need to remember.
The quote at the beginning of this article, “I know, I know, I know, but I keep forgetting,” is something a psychic said to me as a child. She told me that one day I would begin to remember.
Thankfully, that inner voice never gave up on me. It keeps guiding me back to myself whenever I am willing to listen. It is never too late to tune in.
The intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift.
