by Sunny Simon
Ever go through with something knowing it won’t end well? That happened to me recently. To my credit, I tried to gracefully get out of doing a business transaction with someone who did not have my complete trust. Perhaps I was too polite, or perhaps I was giving this individual an opportunity to gain my confidence. Bottom line, I ignored the red flags and forged ahead.
The warning sign I neglected to heed was intuition. We are all gifted with that very powerful tool helping us navigate through life’s crossroads. Some call it a little voice, others identify it as that queasy feeling something is amiss, but we all experience a gut reaction whispering the signals. According to the experts at “Psychology Today,” intuition is the brain on autopilot, performing actions of processing information without our conscious awareness.
Let me give you an example. In hindsight, I realize the exact point where my intuition kicked in. During my first impression of the individual who convinced me to do business with her, my brain was processing unconscious clues. Red flags went down on the field as I listened to her voice and studied her facial expressions. At that point I suspected she might be a bad actor playing a part, so I made an effort to say no and then allowed her to convince me otherwise. It’s rather ironic my lesson learned here is trusting your gut, advice I often dole out to others.
What are some ways we can live more intuitively? Begin by becoming fully aware of that intuitive hit, then engage your rational mind to sort out what action to take. Doing so saved me a serious injury once. Driving down the freeway one day I noticed a truck several car lengths ahead of me transporting a picnic table in the bed of his vehicle. Something told me I was in danger. Within a few seconds the picnic table flew out of the truck and was about to connect with my car. Had I not been aware of imminent danger, my car would have been struck. But sensing this, I quickly changed lanes. In this situation, my intuition was on high alert. Other warning signals are a chill, pain in the gut or chest or the sudden onset of a headache.
Know that you have a voice within that doesn’t use words. Pay attention to that silent noise and when possible add data as a tool to enhance clear conclusions. By doing so you will make safer, wiser decisions. Sunny Simon is the owner of Raise the Bar High Life and Career Coaching. More about Sunny at www.raisethebarhigh.com
