A Guide To Strengthening Your Intuition
How To Fine-Tune Your Intuition
Have you ever had a feeling that led you to take an action you hadn’t been thinking about? It could have been something as seemingly insignificant as picking up the phone to call a friend you haven’t talked to in a while. When you did, maybe you discovered that friend was already on the receiving end, had just been thinking about you, or needed a listening ear.
Perhaps the two of you laughed it off as a funny coincidence. Even if you identified the feeling, you might have believed it was a rare gift that unexpectedly showed up in your life and was out of your control. If you’re reading this now, though, you may already sense that you absolutely can hone your intuition. In this guide, I walk you through some steps you can take to fine-tune your inner voice, commonly known as your intuition.
Understanding Intuition
The human brain is a wonderful tool, but we’ve learned to use it in a way that ensures our actions align with society’s expectations. We learn rules for behavior and thinking from our caregivers, teachers, religious leaders and society. We know that going against these rules causes trouble and grief. You don’t defy your parents, argue with your teacher or question a spiritual authority. To do so has uncomfortable consequences.
When that “feeling” arises that tells you to take a different path, to act outside of logic, it often induces fear, so we learn to stuff it down and quiet that inner voice. We learn to question ourselves rather than the authorities that lay down life’s rules. Intuition is a knowing that goes beyond the logic of the brain. You understand without thinking.
How Do Your Emotions Come Into Play?
You feel something is right or wrong — or you sense something nudging you in one direction versus another — and usually, the sensation arises in the gut, not the brain. The feeling isn’t an emotion. It isn’t fear, anger, hope, desire, physical attraction, or any other strong emotion that leads us into action without thought.
In fact, your inner voice may lead you in a way that is counter to those strong emotions, telling you to take a leap despite your fears or break off a relationship even though the two of you have a magnetic physical attraction. However, you need to have full access to your emotions and understand them to tap into your intuition.
What Does Science Say?
The concept of an inner voice tends to be a squishy subject. Science often isn’t sure what to do with subject matter that you can’t measure using traditional tools. Even so, the field of psychology attempts to define and measure it. Practitioners in the medical field often trust their inner voices when dealing with complex situations that sometimes involve life-and-death decisions. Regardless of how abstract the concept is, science doesn’t generally deny its existence.
Trusting Your Intuition
When you trust your inner voice, you learn to trust yourself. When I first started a magic journal to help me deeply understand my own magic powers, the first words I wrote were “Magic rule number one: Trust yourself.” The words caught me off-guard. I thought I’d already learned self-trust. What I discovered in the following years was that I couldn’t trust myself fully if I didn’t listen to the inner whispers trying to point me in the right direction.
Following the voice that arises from someplace deep within isn’t easy when the facts don’t seem to support or validate the feelings. I’ve come to understand that there is a dynamic relationship between your power and intuition, and you can strengthen that inner voice and trust it.
Increase Body Awareness
Your inner voice is connected to your body in that your body sends out signals that provide messages about the unfolding story of our lives. Take a moment to notice what’s going on in your body. Are you clenching your jaw? Are your shoulders drawn up towards your ears? Do you feel butterflies in your stomach? These sensations indicate stress. They often persist even when we think we are relaxing.
Spend time each day tuning in to your body, scanning from head to toe to check in with how your body feels. Learn to accept and love every sensation, including pain and fear. They all have something to teach and show us about our intuition.
Quiet the Mind
If you’re like most people, your brain is in constant motion, with an ongoing dialogue that never stops. Quieting the mind is key to strengthening the inner voice. You’ve spent years teaching your brain to shout louder than your intuition, so you’ll need to retrain your brain to turn off its voice. Guided meditations are a great way to help you turn off your thinking mind and free your intuitive voice.
Feel Your Inner Yes and No
Learning to tune in to your inner yes and no is the first step to fine-tuning and strengthening your intuition. Try this exercise to practice feeling the yes and no signals your body sends:
Gently tap your sternum bone close to the top, where the thymus gland is.
Cross your arms over your heart.
Bring all your awareness to your body's core, the space that sits between your throat and naval.
Rest your awareness in your solar plexus, the region beneath your ribcage.
Ask yourself a series of yes or no questions and sense what happens in your belly and chest when you answer. What is the sensation when you answer yes? How is the feeling different when you answer no? Does your body lean one way or another? Do you feel anything in your head?
Take it slow, asking simple questions initially, allowing your intuition to grow and blossom before moving on to more complex questions that you don’t yet know the answer to. Developing your inner voice takes time, so be patient with yourself and enjoy the process!
Getting Help With Fine-Tuning Your Intuition
Sometimes we all need a little help as we walk the path to reclaiming our magic and power. I’ve had great teachers in my own journey, and I’ve spent years passing on what I’ve learned to others. If you need someone to guide you in strengthening your intuition, reach out and let’s talk about how I can support you in this process.
