Trust Your Intuitive Heart

“Trust yourself. You know more than you think you do.” – Benjamin Spock

Do you often make decisions that do not ‘sit well’ or say to yourself, after the fact, “I knew I shouldn’t have done that”?

Trusting your intuition means listening to and trusting that inner voice that knows what you need to do. The problem is that many of us do not listen to our intuitive heart – we have become disconnected from it. Often we feel the need to think things through rationally, not believing that legitimate answers could be so obvious. The trouble is that as soon as we allow our thinking mind to enter into the equation, we think ourselves out of it, argue for our limitations and they become ours.

If you can overcome the fear that your intuition will give you incorrect answers and learn to trust it, your life will become much easier to live because you remove the barriers to enjoyment and wisdom. So, maybe it is time to open your eyes and your heart to your greatest source of wisdom and peace – your intuition. But it may take a bit of practice.

Start by setting aside a little quiet time to clear your mind and listen. Ignore any habitual, self-defeating thoughts and pay attention only to the calm thoughts that begin to surface. If your intuitive heart says you need to slow down and take more time for yourself, try to make it happen. You will find that when your intuition gives you messages and you respond with action, you will often be rewarded with positive experiences. Start trusting your intuitive heart today and see the differences in your life.

Practice Makes Perfect

“Remember you become what you practice most” – Richard Carlson

Repeated practice is one of the most basic principles of most successful activities, whether they are physical, emotional or spiritual. In other words, whatever you practice is what you become. When it comes to physical activity it is much easier to see the tangible products of our practice (or lack thereof), such as improved cardio-fitness etc. However, we may not always be conscious of how this applies to the cognitive and behavioural sides of the equation. For example, if you are in the habit of being uptight when life isn’t quite right, allowing your thinking to snowball in response to adversity or acting like life is an emergency, then unfortunately your life will be a reflection of this type of practice. You will be frustrated because, in a sense, you have practiced being frustrated! So it is immensely helpful to become conscious of your own habits, both internal and external by honestly answering a couple of simple questions. Where is my attention? How do I spend my time? Am I cultivating habits that are helpful to my goals? Is what I say I want my life to stand for consistent with what my life really stands for? If you remember that what you practice you will become, you may begin choosing different types of practice.

Guinea Pig Principles

“Simplify, and add lightness.” – Colin Chapman.

We have a guinea pig called Mia. Mia started off life with a range of issues – she was smaller than her sister and battled with one ailment after the other. She has however outlived her sibling and two other housemates! The other day I opened her cage to get Mia’s food bowl and she grizzled at me in no uncertain terms when I tried to move her out of the way. It occurred to me then just what a survivor she was and how we humans could learn a thing or two from our furry friends. For example, life could be a lot simpler if we were guided by some of Mia’s principles:

• Prioritise your actions by doing the thing that is most important first;

• Only eat when you are hungry and leave what isn’t good for you;

• Get enough sleep and rest;

• Ask for what you need when you need it;

• Let people know where your boundaries are and let them know when they overstep the mark.

As we get caught up in our complicated and busy lives, we can lose sight of the KISS principle (Keep it Short and Simple). This month, why not take some time out and think about how you can simplify, and add lightness to your life.

Keep Asking Yourself "What's Really Important?"

The following is the start of a series entitled "Live, Learn and Pass It On" which will appear in this Blog. The purpose of this Blog is simply to reflect on life and the lessons we can learn along the way.

"If you make the mistake of setting your schedule to somebody else's agenda,
you will always end up being late for your own destiny." – Jamal Bryant

Last year I worked with the Queensland Cancer Council where every day I came into contact with people who are facing enormous challenges: people who have been diagnosed with cancer and their carers and loved ones.

This was a very sobering and humbling experience, which reminded me on a daily basis to keep asking myself “What is really important?” It is very easy to get lost and overwhelmed in “stuff” and tempting to forget about and postpone that which is most near and dear to our hearts. I would recommend as part of your daily routine to take a few minutes to ask yourself this same question to help you keep your priorities straight.

Despite our many responsibilities, we do have a choice of what is most important in our lives and where to put our greatest amount of energy. This might sound overly simplistic, but it is still a great strategy to keep yourself on track because you become more ‘present-moment’ oriented. Without this conscious reminder it is easy to lose sight of priorities and again get lost in busyness – you rush out of the door, work late, lose your patience, skip exercise and do other things that are in conflict with your life goals.

To a large degree, the measure of our peace of mind is determined by how much we are able to live in the present moment. So, regularly take a minute to check in with yourself – you may find that you need to re-align your actions with your goals. By making more conscious decisions you will be more likely to follow your own agenda, rather than that of someone else’s and thus be the master of your own destiny. Practice keeping your attention on the here and now and your efforts will pay great dividends.