How to Tune Into Your Intuition
Have you ever “known” something without evidence to back it up? Have you felt “off” about a situation or person, but couldn’t pinpoint why you felt that way? That’s your intuition talking to you.
What is intuition? Basically, it is the subconscious part of your brain sending you “hunches” based on its analysis. It’s a second kind of intelligence, but one that is unfamiliar to most of us.
Trusting our intuition can be difficult for those of us who are logical, trained in the sciences, or who spend a lot of time in our heads. Our logical mind is useful at work, school, and during most of our daily life. However, the mind tends to “chatter” and it can be easy to overthink things. That’s where our intuition comes in. Learning to trust what it tells us can be a powerful way to make important decisions in our lives, or to know who to trust, what to pursue, and what to let go.
How can we learn to tap into our intuition? Here are a few tips that have helped me throughout the years:
- Be still and meditate.
One way to turn off your racing mind is to be still and focus on your breath. Meditation may sound complex, but it’s actually quite simple. You don’t need to be in lotus position on a fancy meditation cushion – you can meditate anywhere! Just find a place where you can quiet your mind and focus on nothing but your breath for a few minutes. The stillness has answers. The more you practice, the easier it is to tap into your subconscious.
- Walk alone in nature – and ditch the tech.
Spending time alone in nature is a great way to calm your logical mind and tune into your instinct. When you do this, try to ditch your phone, or, at least, put it in airplane mode if you can’t resist snapping photos of your surroundings. Being by yourself, immersed in natural elements, is a great way to listen to your gut instinct.
- Create.
Creative pursuits like art, writing, music, or crafting are great ways to focus on your subconscious. Often, when creating something, you get into the “zone” – and tune out your daily stress and inner “to-do list.” You can even try free writing, and allow the words to pour out from deep inside you, directly onto the page. If you need an answer to something, it might come to you during a free-writing or painting session.
- Pay attention to your energy levels.
When you’re around someone or engaged in an activity, notice how you feel. Do you feel energized or depleted? This is a sign from your body that someone or something is good – or not so good – for you.
- Focus on your body.
Notice how your body feels when you think about something. You might feel sick to your stomach, unnecessarily nervous, or “off.” You might even notice pain in a body part. These are messages from your intuition!
If this doesn’t come naturally to you, don’t worry. With practice, you can learn how to tune into your body. When you go to bed at night, do some deep belly breathing and focus on how your body feels. Notice any pain or discomfort. Try doing this every night so you can get used to the signals your body is sending you. Then, you can try doing this when you meet someone new, or engage in an activity. Your body might tell you something that your brain ignores!
- Pay attention to your hunches – and follow up on them.
The next time you have a “hunch” about something write it down, no matter how silly it might seem. Come back to this list of hunches later, and determine which ones were correct. You might be surprised.
Think back to past situations. Were there times when you had clear hunches or “gut feelings” about someone – a co-worker, for example? This was your intuition talking to you. Keep these feelings in mind and try to follow them. They will usually steer you in the right direction.
This is just a small list of how to start tapping into your intuition. I’ll write about this more in a future post, including some examples from my life, where I chose to follow (or sadly, disregard) this inner voice. Trusting your intuition is a lifelong process. Don’t be discouraged if it seems difficult at first.
How do you tune into your intuition?
