Dragon Heads on Snake Bodies: The Power of Intuition
Intuition: embraced by some, suspicious to others. While intuition is perceived in all sorts of ways, one thing is undeniable; in our modern world, we’re far more likely to be taught how to think than how to intuit. In fact, developing our capacity for rational thinking has been given top priority since the Enlightenment, the ‘great age of reason’. A wise teacher once summarised this with a brilliant image: we are like dragon heads on snake bodies. Our focus is mostly on the mind (the dragon head), while our body awareness, intuition and larger experience beyond the mind - is typically left unexplored (the snake body).
While there’s nothing wrong with placing importance on our minds, developing our relationship to our intuition can be transformative. I have witnessed this first-hand. In fact, many have long defined intuition as the highest form of intelligence. Einstein once famously said ‘the intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honours the servant and has forgotten the gift’. The gift Einstein speaks of is what this month’s blog is all about - what our intuition is, how to tap into it, and how to practically apply it in our lives. Let’s face it - in unstable times like these, where old systems and ideas are falling away, hearing our intuition and plugging into our inner navigation system has never been more needed.
What is intuition?
Alla Branzburg, psychotherapist and professor at University of California, says that intuition is “understanding and judgement without rational justification”. Intuition is nothing new; in many times and cultures before ours, using intuition to guide us was considered totally normal. In fact, those who listen to and trust this voice often report many practical benefits including leading healthier, calmer and happier lives. They also say they make much better and faster decisions than when they rely on logic alone (how often has painfully ruminating over a decision led you to a good one?). After all, life is an endless series of making decisions; we apparently make around 35,000 of them every day! For me, since discovering the power of intuition for myself, I’ve never set a foot wrong when I’ve trusted it. By contrast, when I’ve made decisions using only my rational mind, I’ve made too many bad choices to count.
In its roots, the Latin ‘intueri’ alludes to intuition as being our inner tutor. The invitation is that following it will help us to plug into our inner GPS – as opposed to relying on external validation or the ways of doing things we are taught ‘out there’. Of course, the key issue is how to trust this intuitive voice. If we have only ever made decisions using our rationale, we are likely to spend a lot of our time in the left-brain hemisphere, where decision-making is a more laborious process. It can feel alien, scary and even bewildering to make decisions from another place; if we go to ‘check’ our intuition is ‘correct’ via the left hemisphere of the brain, it won’t register on those channels - the brain literally works in a different pattern when it’s intuitively-led. You can see how it can become a vicious cycle – rational thought creates more rational thought. Ultimately, we have to trust intuition for it to be useful in our lives; the more we trust and act on it, the more present it becomes.
How to Access our Intuition: The Triple Threat
So, in a typically rational and distracted culture, many of us have no idea how to access intuition - and some even fear it. Where do we start? The trick is in creating the right conditions to access our intuitive knowing superpower in the first place. I recommend 3 steps to start us off, what you might call the ‘triple threat’ of intuition.
Grounding - helps us become more present in our bodies and surroundings. It connects us with the present moment (see my blog on grounding here).
Self-compassion – a kind, caring relationship to yourself makes sure your inner critic isn’t running the show; this voice can be a major obstacle to connecting to our intuition and inner world generally (see my blog on self-compassion here).
Making space for yourself & for reflection - regular walks, nature time, decluttering, simplifying your routine, unscheduled time, meditation, movement, journaling, creative activities - depending on what you enjoy, the possibilities are endless.
These 3 steps don’t have to mean a life overhaul; it could be 10 minutes a day you dedicate to one of these things. However, once we engage in regular grounding, self-compassion and creating more space, we are going to notice our intuition showing up more - guaranteed. In 2018, Statista found that we spend an average of 144 minutes a day on social media alone. When you really consider how often we scroll on our phones and devices, reducing a bit of time online will provide you with more space. If you want to use tech to flex your meditation muscle instead, two meditation apps I highly recommend are Headspace and Calm.
Practically Applying Intuition in Decision-Making
In the usual day-to-day, it is typically our instinct that calls the shots - namely our survival drive and hardwired behaviour. Most of the people I work with make their decisions from here without realising it: think of the automatic (often fear-based) decisions we make based on what we’ve always done, or the choices we make when we’re living in survival-mode or on autopilot. When we’re living in this mode, we’re not really aware of what we truly think or feel in our decision-making - we can also rely on others to make our decisions for us or on the status quo. By contrast, intuitive decisions are guided by that place of deeper wisdom and innate Knowing - they originate from a completely distinct source (and feel very different as a result). Here are some of the main differences between a decision based on instinct and one based on intuition:
Instinct/Survival Drive Decisions:
fear-based (we feel scared, anxious, nervous)
we often ‘feel’ the decision in our head area
our inner voice can sound loud, forceful or even aggressive
it’s normally future-focused
often causes doubt, rumination
physical symptoms often emerge too – e.g. racing heart, body tension, unease
it’s useful when we are in immediate danger
Intuitive Decisions:
loved-based (we feel warm, excited, supported)
we often feel the decision in our heart, gut, solar plexus area (think ‘gut feeling’)
intuition feels like a gentle nudge towards something
it’s grounded in the present moment
it’s often instant and unambiguous
it helps our bodies feel at ease
it’s useful in all situations
The more you discern the difference between an instinctual and intuitive decision, the easier it will be to feel your intuition in your decisions for yourself. At first, you may have to practice multiple times but eventually you will hear, feel, see your intuition in some form, be it a powerful image or a sudden knowing or realisation. As a rule of thumb, if you’re feeling background tension or fear when making a decision, it’s likely you’re listening to your survival drive. If, instead, you drop into your body, sense a gentle nudge or idea, what might happen if you followed it? I’d love to hear where your intuition takes you this month…
To find out more about intuition, take a look at my new Youtube video HERE as part of my ‘Know Yourself in 2021’ series.
