The Power of Intuition

Intuition presents itself in various ways:

• Through symbols and metaphors that become meaningful for us. There are some seemingly universal symbols and metaphors (life as a journey, say, or success as climbing a mountain): others will be personal to us. It’s not just poets who ‘see’ or think about one thing in terms of another. We all do this, as a way of understanding and expressing the meaning of the things that happen to us. Particular symbols (whether it be an eagle or a butterfly, a seed or a star) take on values and associations that resonate with our lives, sometimes with amazing parallels, and give us inspiration and understanding beyond their ‘surface’ significance.

• Through themes and stories that express the shape and flow of our lives. When we look back at the things that have happened in our lives, we can often see patterns emerging; recurring themes; ‘threads’ linking events over periods of years. This web of meaning goes beyond what we would expect from the mere patterns of behavior arising from our personality traits: the story has a shape beyond our own conscious choices and directions.

• Through 'synchronicity’, a term coined by Carl Gustav Jung for what he defines as ‘a meaningful coincidence of two or more events, where something other than the probability of chance is involved’. Like when we are thinking of someone, and she phones us out of the blue. Or when we become interested in a particular subject, and all sorts of people and information, relevant to that subject, start appearing on our doorstep.

We’ve all had those perfect moments, when things come together in an almost unbelievable way, when events that could never be predicted, let alone controlled, remarkably seem to guide us along our path... In the beautiful flow of these moments, it seems as if we are being helped by hidden hands...” - Joseph Jaworski (Synchronicity: the inner path of leadership)

What symbol or metaphor is, or has been, particularly powerful for you? What does it ‘mean’ to you? What values or attributes does it express? Try mind-mapping your thoughts around the symbol/metaphor, drawing it (if possible) as well. Now write a paragraph describing yourself or your life as the symbol/metaphor: ‘I am a.... My aim in life is to... The amazing thing about me is that...’ or ‘My life is a... When I started out I was... When trouble comes, I...’. Or whatever. Turn off your Inner Editor and let the words flow onto the page: you can read it back later.

Think back to when you were a small child. What was your favourite children’s story?

Who (or what) was your favourite character in this story? In writing – switching off your Inner Editor and just letting your thoughts flow onto the page – re-tell this story from the point of view of your favourite character. Use first person narrative: ‘Once upon a time, I lived... I was very... Then one day, I was visited by...’ and so on. Don’t feel that you have to tell the old story accurately: just tell it as it appears from the you-character’s point of view...

Read your old-new story to yourself – and, if possible, to someone whom you trust, who knows you well. What can you learn from it about yourself and about the themes in your life’s story?

I want to say more about ‘staying awake’ or ‘staying aware’. Because intuition and synchronicity are true, often untapped, secrets of success. Ideas and opportunities often seem to come to us – not because of anything we are doing to make them happen, but because we are available and aware. Available to an opportunity that comes out of nowhere and aware of the opening door it represents. We don’t make the opportunity – but we need to know it when we see it.