8 Steps to Developing Your Intuition
Articles By Peter Hutton
What is Intuition? Is it just make-believe? Is it something only gifted born Psychics have? Or can anyone have intuition? And what can we use it for?
In this modern age, intuition has been largely forgotten. Weve become rational thinking beings. Understandably so! We live in a literal world; A mechanical world; A rational world. A world where, experience and knowledge are highly regarded. A world which frowns on, actually fears, any form of mysticism.
As such, for many, intuition is too intangible too fanciful to understand or to contemplate mastering or possessing.
Thus the analytical and rational minds amongst us will tell you that there is no such thing as intuition even when it is well known greats like Einstein favoured intuition over rational thinking as a means to create and to understand complex phenomenon.
Rational thinkers will try to convince you that intuition is make-believe. That its just your imagination; And we make it up; Therefore, it isnt real. Ironically, this is not far from the truth.
Albert Einstein said it well when he explained that...
"The intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift."
The funny thing is, rational thinking people are more inclined to accept intuition being described as a gut feel. Many great men and woman in the business world for example are happy to confide their reliance on their gut feel to make decisions. Thats becoming more and more acceptable even in these literal rational times.
Intuition, as I have come to know it, is more than a gut feel. It is a sense no different to our other senses, such as hearing and vision. It is a natural sense that is available to all of us. In truth, it is a skill that our modern society has lost in recent centuries.
The good news is you can be taught this skill. Its not hard actually once you know how. So if intuition is more than a gut feeling, what is it then?
Lets start with the dictionary definition, heres a few:
The act or faculty of knowing or sensing without the use of rational processes; immediate cognition;
A sense of something not evident or deducible; an impression;
Immediate apprehension by the mind without reasoning.
Intuition then is not derived from rational thinking. Nor is it derived from our thoughts and feelings. It is not based on our stored experience or literal knowledge either.
The premise of intuition is: that intuition is a mode of awareness of our Soul or Higher Self. Additionally, it should be understood, we are infinite beings and we are all connected through all time and space. Quantum physics supports this premise.
Einstein also said this about intuition...
"There is no logical way to the discovery of these elemental laws. There is only the way of intuition, which is helped by a feeling for the order lying behind the appearance."
Because we are connected through all time and space, when we go outside of what we know, we are instantly connected to a wisdom that cannot be matched by the rational mind.
Why Develop Your Intuition?
Intuition, is the souls mode of awareness. It allows you to access a well of information that to the limited perspective of the Egoic mind lies hidden from plain view.
Intuition gives you the big picture. The truth.
When we make decisions or choices in life, without intuition, we automatically rely on our or other peoples past experiences and knowledge. This is one way how you perceive things. How we perceive things is revealed in your thoughts and feelings.
Now its not to say experience and knowledge is of no value, its just that it is limiting.
Intuition is the mode of awareness that allows us to receive information beyond our literal knowledge and experience and our thoughts and feelings. In comparison to relying on the limited resources of experience and knowledge, thoughts and feelings, intuition is unlimited. It gives you the big picture.
So its obvious, making choices and decisions are only benefited by the vast well of information made available to us when we use our intuition.
Anne Wilson Schaef said...
"Trusting our intuition often saves us from disaster."
I love this quote because I had an experience recently where my intuition did exactly that.
Heres what happened...
A few weeks ago I was in my sporty little car, stationary at a set of traffic lights waiting for the green light to go. It was a major intersection. In the lane to the right of me was another sporty car. As we waited for the green light, the boy in me (i.e. testosterone) decided that when that light went green Id hit the gas and give the guy to the right a drag. Not terribly smart I know. LOL.
I was planning to race across that intersection beating the guy next to me. No police in sight, I was ready to go!
Lucky for me, I am well trained in using my intuition. So much so, my intuition is there for me even when Im not actively exercising it.
What happened next was incredible.
As I sat their eagerly awaiting for the green light so I could hit the gas and race off, I had an intuitive insight.
I imagined me crossing the intersection and at the same time from the road to my right a large truck running the red light and it slamming into me. It was a frightening image of a terrible crash.
Valuing my intuition as I do, I headed this warning and change my mind about accelerating across the intersection.
What actually happened next was incredible...
The light went green, and as I purposely slowly started to move a massive Winnebago Motorhome ran the red light in front of me doing well over the speed limit. Had I accelerated off as planned it would have crashed into me or I into them no doubt.
A terrible accident was diverted. All I can say is, thank god for my intuition.
8 Steps To Developing Your Intuition:
Think of your intuition as a muscle. Without exercise, it will be weak and ineffective. So the first thing you must realize is that regular practice will strengthen your intuitive ability.
The following is a starting point to developing your intuition. Just follow these steps:
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1. Stillness: Preferably, to begin with practice in a quiet peaceful place where you wont be disturbed. However, in truth there are no right conditions that need to be met for you to access your intuition. Take a few deep breaths at the commencement;
2. Starting Point Is Just To Notice Where Youre At: become aware and acknowledge your thoughts and feelings first. Just allow them to be. Notice whats going on for you. Notice the room you are in, sounds, temperature etc. Notice the sensations and feelings in your body. Notice the thoughts you are having. And let it all be OK. Allow them to be. Its just a starting point;
3. Make It Your Intent To Serve The Highest Good: next step is, its always beneficial to make an intent that you choose to engage your intuition to serve your highest good. Always come from service of the highest good;
4. Receive: Also make an intent to be open to receive what you need to receive - no judgement, just receive;
5. Imagination: everyone has an imagination. No? Well, what if I said think of a Pink Elephant. Did you think of a Pink Elephant? Did you see it? I bet you did. Thats an example of your imagination. Your imagination is your link to your higher self. So in this step just engage your imagination now. Just use your imagination for the rest of the steps to come. Just make it up. If you cant visualize thats OK. Just pretend, just imagine and make it up. It is perfectly alright to just make it up;
6. Innocence: this is a crucial step. You must leave your baggage at the door now before attempting to use your intuition. What I mean by that is, adopt the attitude of not needing to know and let go of what you already know. When I say baggage Im referring to your knowledge and experiences that you have filed away. As I described earlier, intuition is the mode of awareness beyond what you think you know. So, innocence is really in-no-sense. Its a childlike state. Imagine now being a little baby looking out of your crib into the world. Everything is new to you. So when you practice intuition, imagine first being that little baby, wide eyed, everything new;
7.The Magic of Circles: There are many ways to access your intuition. For the sake of brevity, Im going to teach you just one method for now. This is a powerful method that involves circles. Circles are regarded as a magical symbol and help to define a space. By using a circle we are able to define a space. It helps guide your imagination. It provides definition for your imagination. So, in this step what you do now is you define the space inside the circle as whatever you want to receive intuitive information about. In other words do a reading on or tune into. For example, let say you want to tune in to your Greatness, your true nature and purpose in life. You would define the circle as your true nature and purpose. Then you would imagine stepping into the circle in innocence, a bit like entering a room youve never been into before. Then, in this space that you have defined as being your true nature and purpose, ask your highest self, your soul to give you a symbol that will serve to inform you about your true nature and purpose;
8. Symbol Interpretation: now you are in the circle and you have asked for a symbol to inform you (in the example above), about your true nature and purpose. Just hold the tension, a symbol will come to you. It could be anything. There is no right or correct symbol. It could be just blackness. It could be a flower, a person, anything. It could be a sound, a song. It could be a highly complicated image or a very simple one. It doesnt matter what it is. Once you have your symbol, all you need to do is interpret it in relation to what you want to be informed about. In the example above, you interpret the symbol in favour of what your true nature and purpose is. By the way, theres no interpretation book to go by. The symbol was given to you and only you can interpret it. So all you need to do is keep in mind the thing you are tuning into (e.g. true nature and purpose) and interpret the symbol you received in favour of the circles definition. At first, this can be a little difficult but it doesnt need to be. It is just a game of imagination. Make it up. Theres no wrong answer. The more you play with your imagination, surprisingly the greater the accuracy of your intuition;
By now you will have realized that your imagination is in fact part of your higher self. It is the mechanism that helps take you out of your limited reality of your thoughts and feelings and into that unlimited pure creative spirit that you are, connected to everything through all time and space.
Imagination directed by an intent to serve your highest good will connect you to your highest truth.
That s intuition!!!
About The Author
Hi, Im Peter Hutton, the founder of SOULD, http://sould.com.au/. Im a Transformational Sales Coach, Facilitator and Author. Whatever your sales dream, SOULD can help you create it. IMAGINE more sales without more selling. Thats exactly what SOULD is about. SOULD helps real estate sales people make more sales by accessing a very powerful part of your mind that 80% of real estate agents have not yet learnt how to use. Want to know how? Read my ebook, THE HAPPY AGENT. Download it for FREE NOW at ---> http://sould.com.au/the-happy-agent-introduction
Keywords: 8 Steps to Developing Your Intuition, Higher Self, intuitive mind, Stillness, Peter Hutton, Articles, UK, Cape Town, South Africa,
