Have you ever had a gut feeling that you should have paid attention to and regretted it later? What about that feeling that you did listen to; were you glad you paid attention and thankful for the results?

That feeling of intuition tends to take on supernatural proportions, even though it’s something everybody experiences. It’s an immediate response that typically doesn’t have anything to do with a careful examination of facts.

While everyone has intuition, they don’t pay attention to it in the same way. Some people may seem more intuitive or in touch. These people put more faith in their intuition and have learned to trust and nurture it over time. 

If you would like to rely more on your intuition, there are ways you can tap into your inner power.

Ways to Build Intuition

Like all skills, building intuition can take time and practice. The following tips should help you let your intuition take the lead, but it’s important to work at it.

1. Recognize and Acknowledge Intuition

When your intuition is saying something to you, stop ignoring it or pushing it away. Listen to that inner voice and realize it’s nothing mystical; it’s just that intuitive part of your brain having a say. In the beginning, it’s about recognizing and acknowledging. 

Intuition isn’t always obvious. Sometimes it’s a feeling, be it good or bad. Recognizing that the feelings you have can have a meaning of their own, is a big step in the right direction.

Once you begin to see your intuition for what it is, you can then move to the next step and appreciate the value of your intuition. 

2. Value Your Intuition

You’re already partway there. You want to improve your intuitive skills, which means you see that there is value. 

What if there was science behind the importance of intuition? Would that help you appreciate how important that little voice in your head can be?

If you’re someone who dismisses intuition as silliness, then the study published in Science magazine may help you embrace its importance. This study found that a non-conscious bias, or intuition, effectively guides behavior before conscious knowledge does. This means that your intuition already gives you value in your day-to-day life. 

Don’t fall into the trap of thinking that it’s meaningless because it is more like a feeling than rational thought. Know that there are many layers to every decision, and your intuition is one of those important layers.

3. Trust Yourself

Stop second-guessing your feelings and talking yourself out of listening to yourself. Too often, intuition is passed off like a snap decision that’s not reasoned out. Selective reasoning then negates the intuition. This is the opposite of what you want to hone. Instead, try trusting yourself.

This shouldn’t be taken lightly, and it’s not as easy as it sounds. Building trust in yourself might be the hardest part of this process. It’s worth it though, and you’ll find this brings even more benefits to your life.

4. Take Action

When you’re openly listening to your intuition and trusting yourself, it becomes easier to take actions based on intuitive feelings. The trick is learning a balance between what your heart is telling you, what your head is saying, and what you’re feeling in your gut. 

Psychology Today suggests listening to each of those three regions and giving them all credence. Then, making decisions based on a compilation of data. This will help you avoid making rash decisions and open you up to explore new things that may be great for you.

Living Well

Now that you’ve learned how to tap into your intuition and move from recognizing it, valuing it, and eventually to using it, is there more you can do? Yes, there is, and interestingly it doesn’t involve looking in, but it involves looking out. 

Part of your intuition is fed by what’s around you. You may not be overtly aware of the world around you, but your instincts are, and they feed this information to your intuition. 

You can take that a step further by being more present in your environment. Try putting your phone down, listen to people around you, appreciate what’s happening right in front of you. All of these steps will add more fuel to your intuition fire and give you even more access to that valuable insight.

With all of these tips, you should be well on your way toward learning more from your intuition. If you’d like more information like this, to help you on your way to health-lightenment, follow Live Conscious on Facebook @weliveconscious and Instagram @weliveconscious.