What Is Intuition And Can You Really Trust It?

We all have a gut instinct or intuition that gives us hints or signals from time to time about things that need our attention and can make a huge difference in our lives. But what is intuition and should you even rely on it?

“Trust your hunches. They’re usually based on facts filed away just below the conscious level.” – Joyce Brothers

Intuition meaning…

I am frequently asked about intuition… what is it? How do I know if I am connected to it? How do I know if it is real and not something I made up? Hey, great questions.

Let’s explore the answers. As an intuitive, Akashic Record reader, and coach, I rely on my intuition in both business and personal life. I check each decision to make sure it is aligned with my highest purpose. That is the most important function of intuition, to keep you on track.

Intuition is also the guide to your Highest Intelligence. Thus the query is, would you rather be given advice from your High Self or your ego?

Hence cultivating your intuitive voice is probably the most important thing you will ever do. It makes your life easier, less stressful, and smoother. I think of it as helping me get to my destination as the crow flies – or, the shortest path.

As a professional intuitive, I depend on my still small voice for insights and instructions in every situation.

When I work with clients, I am guided to the right energy, symbols, and scenarios that supply the most meaning and impact for them.

The messages that come through my channel are relatable, and practical, and provide my clients with the quickest way to accomplish what is needed and I mean as the crow flies.

Read How To Use Your Intuition To Find Your Soulmate, And Never Look Back

The truth is that we live on many levels. The physical/material world happens to be the heaviest (densest) energetically.

The finer realms, where intuition resides, are clear, insightful, and packed with wisdom. By following your intuition, you will discover ways to heal and express your highest energy, passions, and goals.

What is Intuition?

“Intuition is a spiritual faculty and does not explain, but simply points the way.” – Florence Scovel Shinn

Intuition is the still, small voice that dwells within that guides, and sometimes prods us. It informs us if something is right or wrong for us and it offers insights about situations and relationships.

We are often tuned to it when we are quiet and heart-focused as opposed to being in our analytical head or ego.

When we dash through life, letting our intellect (head) lead the way, living by rigid rules and forced decisions, we are continually distracted by external noise and unable to listen deeply.

The material world is loud, dramatic, and demanding. As a result, we find it difficult to cultivate the deep inner listening necessary to access inner wisdom and life becomes chaotic and difficult.

To connect to inner knowing, we must step away from external noise. Take a break; stop. Go to the heart, sit quietly, and listen.

You can begin with five minutes a day. This allotted time will naturally expand as you develop mental discipline. Is it real or are we making it up?

There are studies that illustrate the benefits of intuition.

• A 2015 study presented in the Journal of Positive Psychology indicates that intuition is particularly beneficial when a person is stressed or under pressure. It states that intuitive processes often lead to conclusions of higher value than rational-analytic methods of reasoning.

• Another Forbes article states that scientists and researchers have proven that intuition is the highest form of intelligence. It is noted that gut feelings, hunches, or the still small voice of intuition contain power, insight, and truth. In fact, it offers far more insight than the data available in the outside world. We can use these faculties together.

• Use reason to back up intuition in much the way that Einstein did. He would intuit a premise (the speed of light or the law of relativity) and then go to work with his logical mind to find the formulas to back it up.

Read 8 Tips To Strengthen The Voice Of Our Intuition

Trusting Your Gut: The Benefits You Receive

“Intuition is seeing with the soul.” – Dean Koontz

Our intuition never lies or steers us in the wrong direction. When we dwell in the intuitive mind, we develop clarity because fear is displaced with love.

It is vital to never make a decision out of fear because it leads to conclusions that may seem appropriate on paper but are ultimately bad as they are reactionary and do not take in the long view of a situation.

Fear drowns out intuition and blocks forward movement. It is restrictive, confining, and shortsighted. Love is expansive whereas fear constricts and creates anxiety.

We may get an intuitive don’t do it signal, but the energy around that message is lighter and more insightful than the energy of fear. As you observe, intuition feels right, and there is a sense of clarity with it. When connected to your intuition, you feel calm.

Peace is indicative of truth and conclusions come easier. Even with a “don’t do it ” or “this is a bad idea” message, there is still a sense of ease. In fact, intuition never goes against your desire; it is actually moving you toward it.

Clarity always produces confidence. How does it speak to us? There are a variety of ways that your inner voice can speak to you.

Feelings are important – a sense of peace or repulsion conveys choices. With clarity and lightness you know you are on the right path; when repulsed you know you are not.

Your body does not know how to lie and you can be easily guided when you listen to it. Dreams (day or night) are another way to receive messages. Dealing with dreams symbolically helps you understand the urges coming through.

A person who dreams of being a superhero will probably become one – perhaps not with a cape and laser gun, but still a superhero. He may discover a new way to accomplish a purpose, heal an illness, rocket to space, or develop a higher technology.

Recently I had a client who dreamed of earthquakes, floods, and disaster and knew she must leave her job as it was having a negative effect on her.

Another client met her beautiful, unconditionally loving mother in her dreams and was told that she is doing everything as she should and to continue.

Both understood that they were being guided. Intuition also shows up in symbols. When I see ambulances, police cars, and fire trucks, I am alerted to be attentive to what I am doing.

Read Your Subconscious Superpower Based on Your Zodiac Sign

To stay grounded. Or, you may see a word that shows up everywhere you go, SLOW DOWN; or an animal, like a deer, which instructs you to be gentle.

Or a hawk that bears the message to take the long view. Indeed the Universe communicates through intuition in many ways.

Some Exercises For Developing Intuition

1) Get in touch with your authentic self.

Throughout our lives, we have buried and hidden our true selves under personalities and behavioral roles in order to stay safe and acceptable.

We have paid a huge price for this as we end up creating blocks against recognizing our innate gifts and purpose. We must drop these false personas and get honest.

You know what you love to do, how you love to express, and the things you find distasteful. These truths have been evident from the time you were a small child.

“The truth about life and lie about life is not measured by others but by your intuition, which never lies.” – Santosh Kalwar

If possible, connect with someone who can help you peel away the layers to free yourself and connect with your true self. By doing this, your intuition will get stronger and louder.

Gaining clarity on “who you truly are” will assist you in letting go of the past and learning to love yourself. It is an essential shift as intuition resides in love.

If you disdain yourself, you stay boxed in fear and closed-mindedness. Our higher self — the source of intuition — is pure love.

Loving yourself stabilizes your connection to your intuition. Learning self-love can be a lifelong journey. Yet the more we accept ourselves, warts and all, flaws and mistakes, without judgment or self-denigration, the more we can live fully in our Higher Selves.

2) A most important practice is to learn to be still.

Creating space to be quiet, meditate, breathe, and enjoy nature, will pay dividends. You will discover that connecting with your heart, gut instincts, inner hunches, or intuitive voice gets easier day by day.

Also, let go of negative or chaotic situations. They are draining. Also, remove distractions and clutter. This helps to quiet the noise and drama of life. Within this space, your intuition gains strength.

Read 12 Tips To Sharpen Your Sixth Sense

3) Pay attention to your physical body to notice feelings that come up for you.

Perhaps you feel uneasy about a person or situation, or you may feel a strong yes. Whatever you are feeling, take time to connect and explore it.

With time it becomes obvious – is this feeling coming from intuition or fear? This is the work that must be done.

4) Another method of listening is channeled writing.

Write a question on a piece of paper, take a few deep breaths, clear your mind, and write. You can wait for the words to start flowing or you can make circles on the paper until they surface.

Once they do, start writing. Don’t filter, or concern yourself with spelling, grammar, sentence structure, or making sense of it. Keep writing until the words stop coming. Just trust what you are hearing.

“It is through science that we prove, but through intuition that we discover.” – Henri Poincare

Your intuition is focused on helping you live your highest life. Often the answers that come are not the ones you think you want.

But that goes to trust. Being honest is imperative to developing a strong relationship with your intuition. As you become stronger at trusting your intuition, making choices gets easier.

Decisions come faster and are more aligned with what is best for you. Anxiety is minimized, as you don’t agonize, or let your rational/intellectual mind sort everything out.

Because you are attuned to your Higher Mind, instant feedback becomes your method and it offers the best option for you.

Read The Psychic Powers Of Each Zodiac Sign

5) Becoming familiar with your intuitive voice makes is vastly easier to put it into practice.

For instance, let’s say you are looking to change jobs. You might start thinking about each job you are considering. Explore the fears, dreams, and visions associated with each one.

For example, ponder your current job. What does your work environment feel like? Going through the various activities of the job, how do they feel?

Does it feel like you are learning something important and does it align with your career goals? How do you feel as you go to work every day?

By asking questions, you define the problem. What is it you want to get clear on? Once you determine this, what are some possible solutions? Should you stay or go?

And if you do go, what option is best for you — working for another company? Being self-employed? Being a full-time employee or a contract-based employee? Starting a different career? Doing something completely new?

Write down various options and let your intuition guide you to what feels best. What feelings show up in your body?

The body is a great barometer of truth because it does not know how to lie. It will always give honest feedback on what you really want. You can mentally rationalize, but your body cannot.

What do you feel? Relaxed, relieved, or peaceful? Then your answer is probably yes. Or does your body feel tense, anxious, or distressed? If so, you’re being told that the solution you are considering is not the right one.

If you are still unsure, imagine going forward to implementing each answer. With your imagination engaged, you will get immediate intuitive feedback. By imagining the new scenario, the body will actually feel it because it does not know the difference between what is real and what is made up.

Visualize doing solution one. Move into it. How do you feel with each step? Are you fearful yet excited or do you feel dread and repulsion? Each feeling is an intuitive guide. Go through each possibility and you will know what is best.

“The only real valuable thing is intuition.” – Albert Einstein

Take time to reference if your reactions are fear or love (intuition) driven. Remember, fear feels heavy and restrictive.

If you notice that feeling, give yourself time to figure out what you are afraid of. In other words, explore the fear. It is possible the initial fear is not the real fear. By getting to know your fear, you also learn more about yourself.

All fear is irrational. Yet, exploring it may help you let it go. To say this differently, the only valid fear is when your life is endangered, like being chased by a bear.

More than likely, the fear you feel is a remnant from the past and not really relevant to your situation.

Other fears might relate to being embarrassed about failing at a task or someone not liking you. These are the fears that keep you stuck and must be acted on. We are human beings having a learning experience. Listening to your intuition will help you learn.

Life is a process and not a destination. When it feels right, walk through the fear and become free. As you use these tools you will create a strong connection to your intuition and your life will flow more easily, you will have more clarity and joy.

This blog "What Is Intuition And Can You Really Trust It?" is written by Jean Walters and it originally appeared in Spiritual Transformation1.

Jean Walters is a spiritual guide and assist clients in finding their path in life and achieving clarity. She is available at jean@spiritualtransformation.com or 314 991 8439. 

Trusting Your Intuition Is Trusting Yourself

“Intuition will tell the thinking mind where to look next.” – Dr. Jonas Salk

Your intuition is your instant response and understanding of the present moment. You don’t need to take advice from others or over-analyze it. You just have this feeling inside about what you know.

Your gut instinct is a unique sensation that occurs within you that you can’t explain to anyone. This feeling is so personal that only you can decide if you should trust your intuition and determine its authenticity, value, and reliability.

So, what is intuition, and can you really trust it? Only you can make this decision. After all, when you trust your intuition, you trust yourself.