Guidance

GUIDANCE

 Have you ever used a GPS system to help you find your way?
You simply type in the address or say the name of the place you want to get to, and you are given step by step instructions on how to get there. If you make a wrong turn, you are alerted. The further you stray off course, the more adamant the system reminds you of what you need to do to get back on your path.

What if you had a GPS system for life and business?

• What if when you were headed in the wrong direction, something alerted you so that you could course correct?
• What if it could not only give you guidance on how to get to existing locations, but also to blaze a trail to entirely new destinations?
• What if it also had access to an entire field of possibilities and intelligence that could guide your thought and actions in a way that would allow you to create and innovate like never before?

Well, you do – it’s called your intuition
Some people refer to it as “gut instinct”. It is the ability to acquire knowledge without the use of reason or inference. And it is what the greatest scientists, inventors, musicians, artists and innovators of our time have utilized to transcend what others thought was possible and create something that didn’t previously exist.

But most of us aren’t taught to recognize or rely on our intuition
In fact, a great deal of us are inadvertently taught to disregard it. Unlike a GPS system, intuition speaks very softly and is easily drowned out by the louder voices that urge us to gather more data or proof and to distrust anything that isn’t the product of rational thought.   Recognizing it requires a degree of stillness that is often the last thing our busy lives and frenetic schedules provide.

We are encouraged to move into the future based on the past
We feel we have a solid plan when we have done our research, studied best practices, evaluated what has worked for ourselves and others in the past, and carefully plotted a course designed to get us exactly where we want to go.

The trouble is that the past is often an inadequate predictor of the future
Unless, of course, you wish to repeat the past. And even when you do, the high degree of change facing each of us and the organizations we are a part of requires us to navigate through uncertainty and often act in the absence of data. Additionally, creativity and innovation by definition necessitate that we break free of the constraints of the past to forge into unchartered territory.

Intuition allows us to proceed when rational thought keeps us constrained
You have likely experienced this when you took a break after pouring over a project or a problem with such intensity that you found you could no longer think about it. Maybe you decided to go for a walk, or call a friend, or go do something — anything else for a little while. And when you were least expecting it, you had a sudden flash of insight during which you knew exactly what you needed to do.

Intuition keeps us from getting stuck and helps us find our way out when we do
And you may have experienced this as well — the last time you got an unsettling feeling as you proceeded with a carefully thought out plan. You didn’t really know why you felt that way, and perhaps you disregarded it despite its persistence.

It may have been accompanied by an urge to do something that didn’t make any sense at all. But you powered on with your original plan, only to find that you hit a wall. A wall you could have avoided if you took the seemingly irrational action you briefly entertained before disregarding and proceeding in a different direction.

But is intuition really reliable?
Often people mistake judgments , preconceived ideas and even fears as intuition. And when they act on those things with little or no success, they proclaim that intuition gets them into trouble, or produces variable results at best. They often fail to slow down and practice the kind of awareness that is necessary to truly recognize and utilize intuition, and don’t even realize what is getting in their way.

With practice, persistence and an open mind, anyone can learn to consistently utilize intuition
And like a muscle, the more you use it, the stronger and more dependable it becomes.   Like a GPS system, it allows you to find your way in the most complex and confusing of situations, navigate through uncertainty, and find your way to any destination. And unlike some GPS systems, it won’t lead you to a dead end or tell you to drive over a cliff.

Intuition is a powerful tool that many professionals and organizations overlook
It can be the key to discovering and creating new products and services, new niches, and new approaches to building organizations of inspired, engaged and high performing people.  It will allow you and your organization to creatively rise up to any challenge and know exactly what you need to do to turn even the most menacing of problems into opportunities.

And you don’t even need a fancy gizmo to access it.

Below are some steps you can take and resources you can utilize to tap into your inner guidance and GPS system and use it in a way that elevates your success and that of your organization as well.

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WANT MORE?

 

Check out these articles

• Why Your Small Still Voice is Mightier Than the Public Roar
• An Easier Way to Find Your Way
• Why That Gnawing Feeling in Your Gut Might Mean More Than You Think

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