{My sweet girl.}
Less than a year ago, I walked one of my sweet lab mixes down the street to a bike trail. My husband and I had walked on this path many times before and it’s usually secluded. Every once in a while we’d come across another person taking pictures of a field of wildflowers or a couple walking their dog. But, most of the time, it was just us on the path.
When I walked into the parking lot that I needed to cross in order to get to the path, there was one white car idling in the parking lot. The windows were darkly tinted, so I couldn’t see inside. Other than that, the parking lot was empty. My stomach turned and the hairs on the back of my neck stood up even though it was 85 degrees outside.
My dog picked up on it, too. She stayed right beside me instead of walking on the outside of the path like usual.
Even though I felt like something was really off, I walked past the car and started on the path. Within 30 seconds, I had an intense urge to turn around and get back on the street lined with houses and people. I tried to tell myself that I was acting crazy—that the odds of the person in the car being a danger to me were slim to none. But, the feeling was so primal that I turned around and walked on the other side of the parking lot back to the street.
The car peeled out of the parking lot and zipped past me minutes later. I’ll never know if I was just paranoid or if I was in danger, but I’m glad that I didn’t wait around to find out.
I’m sure that you’ve had experiences where your body has given you clues. This is called intuition.
Yesterday, I sat down to indulge in the latest copy of The Oprah Magazine, O, and came away inspired, because it delved into the topic of intuition. The articles motivated me to think of business decisions that I’ve made—and I can say one thing for certain: When I pay attention to what my body is telling me, I make the right decision.
If I’m paying attention, it’s easy to make decisions.
I come up with business ideas almost daily. I’m not saying this to brag, because it’s tough having so many ideas. I have to let go of most of them, and that’s hard for me to do.
However, I’ve learned how to narrow down my ideas and ultimately pick the ones that I can realistically make happen. It’s all about paying attention to how I feel. The ideas I ultimately act upon make me feel giddy, a little nervous, and immensely excited.
Lots of times I’ll get ideas that I think could make me some money, but if I pay attention, I know that my heart isn’t fully in it and I don’t want to put out anything that I’m not passionate about. If it’s just about the money, it’s not worth pursuing. Don’t get me wrong. I try to make sure that I can make money from my business pursuits, but that’s not the number one motivating factor.
How does it make you feel?
I’ll ask my husband that question, and he’ll give me this look that says, “Don’t play therapist with me.” I promise that I don’t ask this question, because I used to practice therapy. I ask it, because it often helps you determine the answer.
If you’re stuck with something within your business {or your personal life}, you may have an easier time if you tune into the signals that your body gives you when you think about it. Try to let your thoughts go and pay attention to how you feel.
Before writing this off as hippie-dippy stuff, give it a shot. If you follow your intuition in business, you’ll definitely make better decisions.
Too often people (in Western society at least) ignore their instincts and the information that comes from somewhere other than their mind. I wonder how much more exciting and enriched our lives might be if we were more open to, in-tune with and trusting of our deeper impulses.
This is a gory story, but your story reminded me of it… A few years ago a friend of mine went for a walk with 2 other friends. There was a man in a car, and they noticed that there was something ‘off’ about him, but walked past and ignored him. He got out of his car and followed them with a knife. Two friends ran, but my friend was attacked and died from his wounds. Later the man told police that God had told him to wait on that street for 3 men to walk by and then kill them.
Sometimes when we don’t listen to our intuition, we can lose out on great opportunities, and at other times, truly horrific things can happen…. So I’m relieved to here that you listened to your feelings!
Oh my gosh…that’s so awful! I’m so sorry.
I think we’re so distracted by things that we don’t always pick up on the signals that we’re getting from our bodies, and it’s definitely something you have to pay attention to in order to pick up on it. And, sometimes we ignore the signals even when they’re coming in loud and clear. Whenever I’ve ignored my intuition, I’ve gone down the wrong path.
My intuition always is telling me to just save my money. So my problem is that i want to try a business venture, which requires me to rent a space, and my intuition says…you know you could just save your money and spend it on your house (remodeling). Maybe that is not my intuition, maybe that is just my fear…. After spending several years paying off credit card debt and being debt free (except mortgage) I am fearful of going there again. I have some money i have saved up to start my venture but my conservative side is saying, you could spenf that on a new roof or a deck….
So is it THAT intuition or fear?
I hope it is just fear/
That sounds like your inner critic talking–not your intuition–but only you know for sure. I completely understand not wanting to go back into debt after getting out of it, and you definitely want to make smart financial decisions for yourself. I think you should take some time to really figure out the numbers and see if it’s doable. Then, trust your gut–not your inner critic.
Wow, that was a really good article! I was talking with a friend once about intuition and realized that whether I had listened to it or not, that I couldn’t think of a time when my intuition had been wrong. I think intuition is more than we can explain with words, I have resolved that it must be God speaking in a calm but strong voice. You really have to be paying attention to hear your intuition, I think often we so easily supress it into our subconcious…………. I think I’ll find some extra quiet time today to see what “me” may be trying to tell “myself”.
Hey Charity! Thanks for adding to the conversation. I’m with ya–following my intuition always leads me down the right path. And, it’s definitely easy to suppress or just push aside. You have to pay careful attention to it.
I think it’s so important to trust your gut feelings. I’ve learned to do it with my interior design practice, but not so much with my jewelry business. It’s something I’m definitely trying to work on.
I know what you mean Jillian. When I first started Blacksburg Belle, there were times that I didn’t trust my intuition even though that’s what I used in my therapy practice all the time. I had to realize that it was the same thing–and that I really needed to pay attention to it.
i pretty much always assume i am in danger in situations like that. better safe than sorry. looking back, there are times i wish i had followed my instincts about biz related things as well. its easier to sleep at night.
I don’t want to be paranoid about everything little thing–but I just can’t help it sometimes!
I watch too many law and order/ cold case files type shows. ive done it to myself…
I definitely try to listen to my intuition. I have learned that it’s usually right, and the times that I haven’t listened I usually regret it. 😉
I love the question, “How does this make me feel?” and have been learning to pay more attention to how I really feel about things, to let my feelings guide me more. My mind can make up ALL kinds of excuses, reasons, and bullshit – but my feelings are another matter. They are a far better compass for where I want to go than my mind is. 😉
Loved reading your thoughts on this, April! Keep listening to your intuition – and thanks for talking about it too. We need more people in this world who are tuning in to their intuition. 🙂
Hey Jess! Thanks for stopping by 🙂
Oh boy…I definitely know about all the excuses that my mind can come up with! I think you have to pay attention to what’s coming from your mind/inner critic and what’s coming from your body. It can be two completely different things, right?!?
I’m definitely going to keep listening to my intuition…I just realized that I say/write definitely A LOT…hmmmm….
LOL! I use that word a lot too… I often catch myself, cause I’ll use it, and then want to use it again in the next sentence – or even later on in the same one! 😉
Have you ever come across Laura Day? She is known as a Practical Intuitionist,
I read her books many years ago and she gives tips on learning to hear and trust your intuition.
If you think about it intuition is a survival tool and our ancestors had to rely on it.
I get intuitive bursts but cave to my upbringing that said do your research and ask your authority figures.
How different my life would be if I followed my intuition more often.
I think I would be happier.
I’m a big believer in intuition. If it looks like, feels like , it probably is. my intuition always seems to be right. Especially my intuition about people- if I follow my instincts , I always have long lasting relationships with the right kind of people. I can’t explain it but if I seem to foster a friendship with someone that go against my instinct , it almost always doesn’t work out.
I’m so glad you listened to your intuition that day at the bike trail!
I’ve been relying on my intuition more and more over the past decade or so. I find that I can get internal guidance if I just come to a complete stop with whatever I’m doing, clear my mind, and “listen”.
The event that woke me up to listening to my intuition happened several years ago when I was house-hunting in a town I considered moving to. The real estate lady had taken me to see this one house that I liked as far as floorplan, etc. – but I just didn’t have a good feeling about it.
The homeowner was there too, and she took us upstairs to see the “bonus room”. When we got to the top of the stairs, I had an inexplicable panic attack. I was overwhelmed with the feeling that we all needed to get out of the house immediately. I made some excuse for wanting to go outside to look at the back yard, and sort of rushed everyone downstairs and back outside.
As we came out of the house, I looked back and saw a thin trail of black smoke coming out of the roof. Within minutes, half of the house was engulfed in fire. There had been something propane-powered in the garage (either a furnace or water heater, I’m not sure) that malfunctioned.
Ever since then I have listened closely to any type of inner guidance – feelings, intuition, etc. I’ve learned it’s one of the most trustworthy ways to make a good choice or decision!
And whenever I have a new idea for my business or hear about someone else’s interesting new direction, I try to explore what I feel or sense about actually doing that activity myself. It’s become a great way for me to “try an idea on” before impulsively jumping in.
Thanks for this great post!
April, I love that you wrote about this topic. I rely on intuition a lot a lot, and I think it’s a big reason most creatives get started with their own biz. And sweet pup!