Develop Intuitiveness

“The intuitive mind will tell the thinking mind where to look next” Dr. Jonas Salk

We now embark upon a “sensitive and touchy” area for most Christians but one that is mostly a matter of semantics than theology. The dictionary tells us that intuition is “a direct knowing of something without the conscious use of reasoning.” Christians might call this a “word of knowledge”. The individual on the street would call it a “gut feeling”. The intellectual might call it “a flash” of brilliance, an awakening intuition. Call it what you want, but call upon it! Intuitive thinking and business intuition is a must in a dog-eat-dog world.

Intuition is more than a natural gift. It is a talent and discipline that we can enhance and increase. To not use intuition and only reason is like saying you just need one leg, one arm, one hand, one ear, one eye! We need all the help we can get in the work place and in life. Whatever you want to call it, it is a clear sign that you are somehow connecting with your inner self and we hear a lot today about living from the inside out! This is one of the ways to do that.

The twin tracks of developing intuition is to “gather the facts” and then take the “time to reflect”. You must work on both tracks to develop intuition. As Ed McCracken, CEO of Silicon Graphics puts it, ” The mind, when it is quiet, delivers up phenomenal intuition which can then be focused to design a next generation product or to understand what’s driving particular customers.”

We have been given great “creative powers” from our Maker who alone creates but passes some “derived powers” on to us for His glory. One of the most important ingredients of intuition is FAITH! If you begin to DOUBT what your inner man has heard, you will surely not be able to tap in to the intuitive powers because FEAR decreases the intuitive juices. There is basically in many of us a “fear of our own power” which holds us back!

“The greatest advances in man’s understanding of the universe are made by intuitive leaps at the frontier of knowledge, not by intellec- tual walks along well-traveled paths.” Andrew Weil, M.D.

Along with FAITH is the need to grow a CURIOSITY in an embracing fashion. Those who develop their intuitive skills are those who are not afraid of change, who are pioneers, who care more about searching out the unknown than worrying about “what people may think”. One must have tough skin because the person who decides to develop and follow their intuitive nature will find persecution and ridicule as frequent companions.

“Intuition often turns dreams into demonstrable facts.” Buckminster Fuller

We need to remember as we embark upon this journey of “intuitive discoveries” that it’s not for the exercise itself but for the PROMOTION of ourselves, our employer, and society as a whole. In other words, there is a very PRACTICAL reason that we need to develop our intuitive side. If you choose to just rely upon REASON alone in your work, you will be at a decided disadvantage to the person in the next office who quietly and sincerely looking beyond the obvious to the subconscious or unconscious self. We have been given great gifts beyond our imagination and there in is another of the elements of developing the intuitive self: imagination. But space and time doesn’t allow us to go there now.

“The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind.” William James