WHY YOUR SIXTH SENSE IS #1 -
INTUITION AND BUSINESS

Our fives senses -- taste, touch, smell, hearing and sight -- are directly coordinated with and identified by their association with the body. Our senses bring us information about the world around us.

Some people refer to intuition as a "sixth sense." In fact, intuition is a finer sense of knowing that reveals things that may escape our other senses. Intuition is like a sonar device; we use it to analyze the finer strands of information that our body and mind pick up. If you know how to interpret your intuition, you'll be amazed at what information is suddenly at your disposal.

So start thinking of intuition as your first sense, and not your sixth.

INTUITION AND YOUR BUSINESS

Alarm signals go off for some business people when they hear that decisions are based on intuition. "What about logic?" they ask. "I can't base solid business decisions on something as amorphous as intuition!"

You can't. And you shouldn't.

Intuition and rational thought are not at odds. Your business decision-making shouldn't be based on exclusively on one or the other. The key to success is harnessing the dual power of intuition and knowledge, or (as some people think of it) feelings and the facts.

Business professionals should seek congruence and make decisions based on gut feelings AND logic.

Congruence? What does that mean?

Congruence is balance. When you're in congruence, you're receiving and interpreting communication signals clearly in order to make decisions. It's that "enlightened" state where you're attuned to both logic and intuition. And, when you're in congruence, decisions flow naturally, with no second-guessing.

Using your intuition to achieve congruence in your decision-making can have a tremendous impact on the way you live life, and especially on the way you do business. Here's why:

When you're congruent,

  • You minimize the risk of making mistakes by considering all valuable data, both conscious and UNconcious.
  • You trust yourself and people trust you.
  • Your confidence inspires confidence and exerts influence.
  • You feel more relaxed and receptive.
  • You stay clear, and people can rely on you with confidence.
  • You don't have to second-guess yourself. You simply know.
  • You don't send out mixed messages

    • If your head and body aren't communicating, you're not in alignment. And when you're not in alignment -- not congruent -- you'll know it. Something just won't feel right and you'll feel stuck or stalemated.

    It's no secret that we're a society plagued by certain kinds of illness that develop because we simply deny or ignore our body's feedback.just like our "case study," Nathan.

    Nathan's Story

    Nathan was a smiling workaholic who loved the way he was living his life.or so he said. He built his healthy body with the same vigor he used to build his healthy business. On the outside his life was perfect -house, money, security, all taken care of. Yet, although Nathan himself didn't know it consciously, there was trouble afoot!

    One day, Nathan's bowels inexplicably turned to liquid. No answers were forthcoming from the medical community, and several consultations with a psychiatrist showed that Nathan was not a candidate for psychoanalysis.

    Ultimately, the psychiatrist referred Nathan to Caron, a mind-body health specialist, for help. Caron asked Nathan to place his hand on his gut and breathe deeply for several moments. When she sensed Nathan's mind was quiet, she asked, "What would your gut like to say?

    Nathan poured out his gut, so to speak, saying, "This guy (referring to himself) never slows down. He stresses me out. He runs, runs, runs-in the head, out the mouth. He over-exercises, over-computes, blah, blah, blah."

    As smart as Nathan was, he had foolishly treated his body like it was a machine. He ignored all of his intuitive signals and was completely out of congruence with his physical state. He ran his body ragged until his natural instinct for self-preservation made itself known.

    It wasn't Nathan's rational mind that saved him from an early heart attack. It was his body's intuition.

    GO WITH THE (NATURAL) FLOW

    If you have to push harder to make things happen, if you constantly feel dragged down or stymied by decision, then you are not in touch with your intuition. Instead of being part of the natural flow that exists when your logic and intuition are in congruence, you end up struggling, pushing, drowning or getting emotionally intense.

    Everyone can find the balance between logic and intuition. Going with the flow is a natural state. The eye-opener is that the natural, ordinary task of listening to your intuition produces extraordinary results:

  • Your inner voice will go from being a whisper to a roar.
  • Synchronicity, those little miracles of alignment, will be a common event for you if you use your intuition.
  • Gut-level hunches will open a doorway to your flow of creativity and inspiration.

    • An uncluttered and receptive mind will provide better "radar" than a hassled and busy one. In order to free your mind to receive intuitive thoughts, you may want to seek out a natural and quiet setting where you can sense the deeper, rhythmic flow of the environment.

    Many people who foster their intuition often bring the more natural environment inside their home or office in order to feel more in harmony: A psychotherapist installs a natural fountain to calm her patients and herself A cardiologist plays a CD to help patients maintain calm, yet alert during a stressful consultation A highly gifted scientist collects quartz rocks and places them on his desk because he says he feels more attuned when he touches them Executives place miniature Japanese gardens on their desks, for their ability to establish an intuitive, creative space within a busy setting.

    How do you decide what techniques will foster communication with your 'inner voice'? Try several.

    When you've hit upon the right one, you won't have to think, you'll just know.IF you follow your intuition!

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