Bruce Kasanoff’s recent Forbes article on intuition as the highest form of intelligence made me laugh. But then, I’ve been an intuitive for more than fifty years.
I particularly liked this quote from the illustrious Albert Einstein:“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.”
Whilst I appreciated Mr. Kasanoff’s distinctions about “disciplined intuition,” I am one of those people who can sit on my sofa and tune in to what’s happening anywhere. Is my intuition disciplined? Maybe, maybe not.
I particularly liked this quote from the illustrious Albert Einstein:“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.”
Whilst I appreciated Mr. Kasanoff’s distinctions about “disciplined intuition,” I am one of those people who can sit on my sofa and tune in to what’s happening anywhere. Is my intuition disciplined? Maybe, maybe not.
The more important question is: does intuition need to be disciplined?
I have to answer that with a resounding yes. Intuition is like a muscle. We all have it. The issue is how we use it, and using it means practice, and practice means learning. Intuition speaks its own language—a language specific to each intuitive. In order to rely on intuition, we each have to learn how it works for us.
Generally speaking, there are three intuitive modes. Clairvoyance means clear seeing. Clairaudience means clear hearing. Clairsentience means clear sensing. I tend to use the words visions, voices, and viscera to mean the same things.
My intuition communicates with me primarily in words—yes, Virginia, I hear voices. Once in a while, I’ll have a vision. Almost always a sensory feeling comes with any guidance or information I receive. Other intuitives I know experience their sacred gift very differently.
One thing I know for sure is that my intuition never begs the logic of my rational mind. I know that’s a big statement, but it’s true. If I can’t apply immediate logic to an intuitive leading, I approach it with careful respect, especially if it has to do with the future as intuition so often does. When I can’t make sense of something, it often hasn’t yet happened.
This is why it’s good to know other intuitives, and to be able to check your intuitive leadings with those of others. I have several friends who I call to confirm my own guidance when I’m not certain.
When am I not certain? Mostly when I know I’m attached to an outcome. A young entrepreneur approached me recently to ask me to “read” for the future of his company. The guidance wasn’t very cheerful, and I really wanted to cheer him up because he was feeling discouraged.
I called a friend who confirmed what I’d gotten but placed it in a very different context than I had done. Turned out, the discouraging news was about his partner (who was about to bail—which turned out to be a good thing) and not his business. I’d thought it was about the business as a whole.
If you’re curious about working with your intuition, start using it today. Begin by asking simple, low-stakes, yes-or-no questions. Don’t start with: shall I marry that guy?
Keep a record of your answers.
Notice the sensations in your brain when you get good guidance. Mine almost always comes from the back lower right quadrant—no idea why.
Notice whether how you ask matters. Or what time of day you ask matters. Or where you are matters.
Your intuition really is a sacred gift. Let your rational mind work for your intuition. Practice learning the language of your intuition. Then, when the stakes are high, you’ll get the answers you need.
It’s worked for me for more than fifty years.
Generally speaking, there are three intuitive modes. Clairvoyance means clear seeing. Clairaudience means clear hearing. Clairsentience means clear sensing. I tend to use the words visions, voices, and viscera to mean the same things.
My intuition communicates with me primarily in words—yes, Virginia, I hear voices. Once in a while, I’ll have a vision. Almost always a sensory feeling comes with any guidance or information I receive. Other intuitives I know experience their sacred gift very differently.
One thing I know for sure is that my intuition never begs the logic of my rational mind. I know that’s a big statement, but it’s true. If I can’t apply immediate logic to an intuitive leading, I approach it with careful respect, especially if it has to do with the future as intuition so often does. When I can’t make sense of something, it often hasn’t yet happened.
This is why it’s good to know other intuitives, and to be able to check your intuitive leadings with those of others. I have several friends who I call to confirm my own guidance when I’m not certain.
When am I not certain? Mostly when I know I’m attached to an outcome. A young entrepreneur approached me recently to ask me to “read” for the future of his company. The guidance wasn’t very cheerful, and I really wanted to cheer him up because he was feeling discouraged.
I called a friend who confirmed what I’d gotten but placed it in a very different context than I had done. Turned out, the discouraging news was about his partner (who was about to bail—which turned out to be a good thing) and not his business. I’d thought it was about the business as a whole.
If you’re curious about working with your intuition, start using it today. Begin by asking simple, low-stakes, yes-or-no questions. Don’t start with: shall I marry that guy?
Keep a record of your answers.
Notice the sensations in your brain when you get good guidance. Mine almost always comes from the back lower right quadrant—no idea why.
Notice whether how you ask matters. Or what time of day you ask matters. Or where you are matters.
Your intuition really is a sacred gift. Let your rational mind work for your intuition. Practice learning the language of your intuition. Then, when the stakes are high, you’ll get the answers you need.
It’s worked for me for more than fifty years.