I spend a lot of time talking with my clients about the expansive personal growth they’ll experience as a result of growing and connecting with their intuition. The question that almost follows is, “OK, but how?”
Well, first of all, what is intuition? The textbook definition is “an inner knowing that goes beyond conscious reasoning,” but I take a slightly different approach when defining what our intuition really is. We all experience intuition every day, but it’s learning about how to work with it—and what gets in the way of recognizing and trusting it—where massive growth begins.
Our intuition is the guidance that nudges us when we’re making a decision or are stuck between two paths, and it’s that “gut feeling” you experience without the facts. Those are concrete examples of how your intuition presents itself to you routinely. It’s essentially your inner wisdom guiding you. It shares with you what your authentic self needs without distractions, limiting beliefs, biases and the ego.
5 ways to tune into your intuition
So, back to the initial question—how does tapping into your intuition fuel your personal growth? I love that question, because the answers are some of my favorite things to share.
Elevate the clarity with which you make decisions
Have you ever mulled over a decision for hours, days—even weeks, at times—completely lost as to what the right choice is? I know I have. I know that most of the people I work with have, too.
We weigh the factors of a decision over and over in our minds, in a bit of a vicious cycle. How will it affect those around us? What if it doesn’t turn out the way we hope? What if we’re giving up something great in pursuit of something that may fail?
All are valid questions, but none get you to an outcome any faster or with more ease. If anything, they inhibit your ability to make clear, purposeful decisions. That’s where your intuition comes in.
When you’re connected with your inner compass, you separate the external factors from what is ultimately aligned with your greatest purpose and good. This means you take into account your wholistic needs, your health, and your emotional and mental well-being, not just the external data points of decision-making.
Maybe you’re up for a promotion at work. Sure, the pay raise is great, and you’ve worked hard for years to get where you are, but you know the promotion comes with a relocation away from an area you love, an increase in hours and more time away from your family.
While the excitement around a promotion and growth is valid, maybe your ultimate growth stems from a deeper focus on your own self-care and the important relationships around you? Working more and having less time with your support system are two factors that may not serve your emotional well-being, and deep down, you are aware of it.
When we are connected to our intuition, it allows us to uncover the deeper meaning—the root of what we need, rather than solely focusing on external elements.
Build more authentic and meaningful relationships
When we hear “relationships,” our first inclination is to immediately jump to romantic ones. But our relationships with our friends, family members and coworkers are important to our personal fulfillment, as well.
“I have a great feeling about them,” “I really just love being around X,” “They bring so much joy into the room”—I’m sure you’ve experienced plenty of these variations from your friends and family, and have probably used a few yourself. When you’re attracted to another person’s energy, that’s your intuition nudging you to continue exploring the interaction.
It works the other way, too. “I just don’t get a good vibe from them,” “I get a bad feeling when I’m around them,” “Whenever they walk in the room, my stomach drops.” Those negative experiences—that feeling when something is just off about a person—that’s your intuition presenting itself to you. Yet, we tend to question our instincts and second-guess ourselves instead of prioritizing self-trust.
When we learn to trust our intuitive instincts about the people we surround ourselves with, we avoid unnecessary disappointment and gravitate towards the ones who fuel our soul and growth. You’ll begin to find that you organically attract people you connect with on a stronger level, and who often share your same values and principles.
It’s the same in romantic relationships too, of course. Opening yourself up to trusting your instincts about the interactions you have with others can alleviate anxiety, decrease your stress levels and improve your emotional well-being on unmatched levels.
Feel confident about speaking your truth
“I have a problem saying no.” How many people have you heard that from? Maybe you’re someone who struggles to stand up for what you want when it comes to dealing with others, or when it comes to making decisions for yourself.
When our struggle to say no or the difficulty we have with speaking up for ourselves becomes a pattern, it fosters the belief that you don’t know what is best for you. But much like with our decision-making, when we connect to and trust our intuition, we discover a newfound level of certainty in the choices we make.
As you deepen the connection to your inner wisdom, you truly get to know yourself. You begin to pay closer attention to what’s best for you, not what you should (or are expected to) say. The relationships you have become more authentic, and your empathy and understanding take on new clarity—growing how you communicate and relate to others and yourself.
Alleviate overthinking
We all worry. It’s human nature. Our analytical minds like to search for all possible outcomes to our decisions. They also have a tendency to perseverate about an upcoming event or decision, or maybe even a situation that has already passed.
This includes things like running through a job interview over and over in your mind, wondering if you should have answered the questions differently, or going through the sequence of a first date hundreds of times to determine whether it went well.
When we cross the line from natural worrying into overthinking, the toll it takes on our emotional health is substantial. Overthinking can even lead to physical ailments like fatigue, chronic exhaustion and migraines.
When we are deeply connected to your intuition, we learn how to quiet our analytical minds and pause the overthinking before it has a chance to begin. Slowing down allows us to look at situations and events as a bigger picture, rather than dialing in on the details.
One of the first stepping stones in quieting your analytical mind is practicing stillness through meditation and grounding exercises to centre yourself and notice the external factors that kick-start the feeling of being overwhelmed. Stillness is also one of the most crucial steps in connecting and accessing your intuitive senses.
Shift unproductive patterns
I saved this one for last because I believe it’s one of the most profound results we experience from forging a connection with our intuition. As we build a deeper relationship with ourselves, we naturally begin to recognize unproductive patterns—some of which we’ve been repeating for a lifetime.
We become aware of how these patterns hold us back, their origins and how to finally self-heal. I call these roadblocks, or the things that are holding you back from connecting with your inner wisdom and living your highest potential.
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