During the last couple of months, I’ve been reading a lot about how to tap into your intuition (aka. gut instinct). Intuition can be defined as your “immediate understanding of something”. It describes those times when, without any logical explanation, you know, deep within you, that something is, or isn’t right. It sounds simple, no?
The issue is, however, that since the very day we are born, we are taught not to trust our intuition, and instead, to follow what society deems acceptable and right. I know I’ve personally felt it so many times; being pushed to do one thing, when in fact, I want to do the complete opposite. Unsurprisingly, it is precisely those times, when I ‘force’ myself into doing something that doesn’t feel right, that I burn out, things turn out wrong or I feel miserable inside. Instead, when I take some time to be still and really feel the direction I want to go, everything flows, things are easy and I have inner peace. These are two steps that have helped me, and I know, can also help you, to tap into your intuition:
Step 1: Become conscious of the societal expectations guiding your decision-making
We’d all like to think we make our own choices and design our future, but that’s hardly the case. Our family, friends, culture, teachers…they place pressure on us to act a certain way; a way that is aligned to beliefs other than our own. And it is just so easy to follow along, that we end up doing it most of the time.
The result?
Once we do it often enough, we lose our ability to distinguish between our own and other people’s desires for our life. We convince ourselves we want what others want just because that makes it easier to fit in. It means we avoid the risk of being different. However, it also means we end up suppressing our intuition in favour of following the status quo.
Thus, the first step to tapping into your intuition is to actually become conscious of the societal expectations you’re conforming to. Ask yourself: who says? Why are you doing what you are doing? How did you end up where you are?
Common societal expectations that dictate our behavior and opinion of ourselves include going to school and achieving top grades, getting a corporate job with a high salary, getting married, buying a house, having kids, etc. There is nothing wrong with these things, but the issue arises when you feel pressured to do them out of fear of what might happen if you don’t. The issue arises when you do them by default, without realising you have a choice to do something else that may be more aligned to who you truly are. This takes me to step 2.
Step 2: Take time to connect with yourself.
It is no wonder that we’ve lost our ability to tap into our intuition in a world where busyness, notifications and flashing lights fill up every second of our day. Connecting with our instincts requires slowing down and really feeling the emotions that arise from a particular situation or decision. Try clearing your mind and giving yourself space via yoga, mindful breathing, walking in nature, journaling or even just lying in bed in silence (no music, no texting).
Importantly, remember not to place too much pressure on yourself. It’s fine if, after meditating you still don’t have full clarity. The key is consistency and patience, and if you continue to start trusting yourself in the little things, you’ll realise that, slowly, you feel more free because you won’t need anyone else to approve your choices.
So, how do you know when you are on the right track?
Personally, I know I’m making the right choices when I feel light when the thought of doing/not doing something feels expansive, it could even be scary, but it has to feel expansive. This is when I know I’m free to let go of the outcome and any specific expectations; this is when I know that I am fully supported and can be/achieve whoever/whatever I want.
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