How to Know When Your Intuition is Talking to You

Intuition is something I’ve always felt drawn to and guided by in this life.  What I am finding is that the more I travel along my own personal growth journey the more I find myself guided, and the more intrigued I am by my own intuition.  I believe the reason I am here writing these blogs is because I trusted my intuition.  I trusted my quietly persistent voice within.  Do you have the same relationship with your intuition?  Or, are you still wondering how to identify intuition?

I am fascinated by the unseen world that is a bigger part of our lives than we like to admit.  One of my past blogs was about about signs from the universe.  But, I haven’t dedicated a blog to intuition, although I bring it up regularly in other blogs.  To me the combination of the two is like a double dose of guidance from the universe.  With both of them it involves tuning in and learning to trust that we are guided.  Sometimes there is a direct link between them as well because your intuition can lead you to the signs.  For the sake of this blog I want to look at the beautiful nudge that is intuition!

Where Does your Intuition Show Up?

Your intuition shows up way more than you realize.  It shows up when you feel that walking down a particular alley way wouldn’t be a good idea, or when you get the feeling that helping someone with their groceries is a good idea.  It shows up when you choose to say no to a job offer even when you need the job because something ‘doesn’t feel right’.  You don’t need to know the why in situations like this, all you need is to recognize the message and listen to it. Really, your intuition is part of your every day decision making process, even if you don’t realize it.

We know about our emotions.  We know that when something doesn’t sit well with us that it causes an emotional response in us, a warning.  What we don’t realize is that often these emotions are triggered by our intuition.  Now, I’m not saying that ALL emotions are linked to intuition, let’s be clear on that.  When someone you love dies, your emotions are pure grief and there is no connection to your intuition.  But, there are countless other emotional times when your intuition is correct.  Like, for example, the butterflies you get before taking a pregnancy test when somehow you now it’s positive.  That’s intuition!

More About How it Feels

If you are wondering how to know when your intuition is talking to you, it’s all in the subtle physical and emotional responses.   When you are making decisions, for example, learn to tune in and listen to your body’s responses.  Most of us are so used to listening to the thought process buzzing in our heads, looking for the answers there. If we focus more on our emotional reaction to the situation we will get our answers faster and with way more clarity.

Another way to recognize how your intuition feels is when you have one of those internal tug-of-wars going on.  It goes something like this:  ‘I really feel like I should go to that party’ (your intuition says) followed by ‘It’s too much hassle, plus it’s cold outside tonight’ (the overthinking mind).  We need to stop thinking that the mind is always right.  We think of it as our logic.  We’ve been taught to believe that all common sense comes from the mind and your intuition leads you astray.  That couldn’t be further from the truth.  Our minds are notorious for overthinking everything, leaving us uncertain.  When we trust our own bodies and intuition instead of what may work for someone else, in some other scenario, we are far better off.

The Bad Feels

One last point on how it feels.  It’s important to note that intuition doesn’t always feel good.  What we have to remember is that it is guiding us to what is best for us.  It may come up as a warning, in which case it’s not going to feel good. For example when your intuition makes you ‘feel’ negatively, telling you not to get into that car, but the decision made from your intuition absolutely feels right.

This is really all about learning to trust ourselves.  To sum it up: we learn to listen to the little nudges and less to the voices in our heads.  We realize the nudges and ‘feels’ are more in tune with our needs, as both a soul and a human being, than those voices and we learn to trust.  This strengthens our relationship with ourselves, and leads to a happier version of us.

Yes, your intuition can guide you to an empty parking space or a winning lottery ticket, but that is not the main or most important agenda for your intuition.  Your intuition is there to guide you through life.  How to live it, which road to choose, who to steer clear of and who to stick to like glue.  Look at it like a built-in magnet that will let you know what is right or wrong by the magnetic field it produces in you.

Mindfulness, Meditation and your Intuition

So, I’m sure you’re wondering how to tap into your intuition.  What I’ve realized is that there is a strong connection between your intuition and being present in the moment.  When you meditate and practise mindfulness you are essentially learning to listen to your inner being, and your intuition.  Most people live a life that is very disconnected from their own truth.  They are so busy looking outside of themselves for answers when in actual fact when looking at how to develop intuition the only way to find the answers is to look within.

Through the practice of meditation, you learn how to still your mind, not only while meditating but in everyday life.  It is the best tool to help a) develop a mindful approach to life and b) open you up to listening to your intuition.  I always recommend easing into meditation, not to feel overwhelmed if it’s new to you.  See it as shutting out the noise of the outside world.  In fact, you can apply this without meditation, by being present as you stroll through the woods!  All we are doing is allowing ourselves to disconnect from everything ‘out there’ and reconnect with ourselves.

Stop Tripping Yourself Up

There is always that voice that will pop up in your head, questioning your authority to trust your intuition.  ‘I can’t just sign up for that course on a whim, that’s irresponsible!’.  Or, ‘I only just met him yesterday, I should play it cool instead of calling him today.’  These are the types of situations where we have the opportunity to really pay attention.  Who’s calling the shots here?  Are you fighting internally to either make yourself do something you don’t feel comfortable with, or to stop yourself doing something you feel drawn to but are afraid of?

Think carefully about this.  This is when you need to shut out all the voices and tune into how you are feeling about the decision without the outside influences.  This is your intuition.  That quiet voice, that magnetic pull inside your energy field that draws you to or from something.

Here’s another way of looking at it.  If you don’t take that course or call that person, how will that make you feel?  Is there an immediate reaction in the way that you feel?  A strong reaction emotionally or a change in your energy is an indication, again, of what you should be paying attention to.  Take some time to think about examples from your own life.  Are you using your intuition to guide you, or pushing it away?

What Happens when we are Disconnected

Our intuition is so fundamental to us living our authentic, purposeful lives that when we are disconnected from it we feel lost.  Why?  Because, when you don’t trust your intuition you effectively don’t trust yourself.  You are not listening to the voice of your own being/higher self/ inner truth.  You are denying yourself the happiness you have available to you in this life.  Not only that, you are denying yourself what is meant for you.

It feels like life gets in the way of your happiness when in actual fact you are the only one getting in your way.  This is why awareness is so important.  When we become aware of the power of listening to our intuition, we give ourselves the tools with which to navigate life.  Do you consider yourself aware?  Aware of who you are, what matters to who, who power you have to create your own life?  Really think about this because everything starts with awareness.

Exercise Your Intuition

There are playful ways that you can exercise your intuition.  Choose which one works for you, this is about having a bit of fun with it.  Here are some examples.

Oracle cards

Oracle cards are both fun and revealing.  Focusing on receiving an answer to a burning question, and then letting your intuition guide you to the message intended for you.  I think its important to mention, the intention needs to be there for you to be open to the experience.  Give it a try, and have fun with it!

Signs from the Universe

Yes, the signs are from the universe, but there is an element of intuition in the finding of the signs.  There’s that magnet again, pulling you to ‘look at me!’  There are many signs, from repeated numbers and butterflies to feathers and dreams.  Look out for these signs.  The most wonderful thing happens when you start to look.  You will quickly begin to see them everywhere!

Other Ideas

• Guessing who is on the other side of the phone before answering
• Guess the colour/number etc. of something someone is holding behind their back
• Predict the outcome of a coin toss
• Use a Pendulum to ask questions

Make a game of it.  And remember, every time you try to use ‘reason’ you keep reverting to that inner voice that is giving you a different option or answer.  The more you relax and don’t overthink the process the more you’ll be surprise by the results.  For some more insights have a read of this blog by the inspiring Jack Canfield:  7 Tips to Strengthen Your Intuition (jackcanfield.com)

To Quote Einstein

I always love a good quote, and this intuition quote by Albert Einstein is just perfect: ‘The intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant.  We have created a society that honours the servant and has forgotten the gift.’

The parting message is this: don’t give the rational mind more power than it needs, deserves, or can even handle!  The way I see it, your mind will short circuit if overworked whereas your intuition will blossom.  Give the power to your inner strengths, those beautiful hidden ones that are like untapped superpowers waiting to be discovered.  Live your life guided by your intuition, following the path of least resistance through your life.  At the end of the day your intuition is always talking to you, all you have to do is learn to listen.

Thank you so much for reading, I hope you enjoyed it and that you are excited to starting tuning in to your intuition!

Steph x