There is something to be said about that gut feeling, when we know our next move. Through all the clutter and noise of our daily lives, there is a deep quiet inside that knows when and how to act. Listen to that voice and don’t look back.
—Kathleen Kennedy, American producer and president of Lucasfilm Ltd.
Steve Lishansky, CEO of Optimize International and author of The Ultimate Sales Revolution, describes how intuition helped him land his first major corporate client. Though he’d never worked with a company larger than mid-size, his friend Linda had put him in touch with a contact of hers. This is how Steve found himself talking to Tony, who was a key information technology executive at a Fortune 500 company.
However, Steve knew nothing about IT. Plus, the company itself was a financial services company and—you guessed it—Steve had never dealt with financial services, either. It was a daunting task Steve faced, but he knew that if he was going to take advantage of the opportunity in front of him, he needed to make the call to set up a meeting.
“So, Steve,” Tony said after a quick handshake and a brief introduction, “I understand you’d be worth talking to about our project. What do you do?” Steve didn’t hesitate. He jumped right in with an intuitive flash that set up the whole conversation. “I help companies improve their performance. Rather than bore you with a laundry list of what we do, why don’t you explain a few of your specific issues, and I’ll tell you what I’d do with them.”
Tony raised an eyebrow, then proceeded to discuss his organizational challenges. Steve and Tony started to converse, and as they did Steve began to see questions appear in his mind. He was surprised—but not too surprised. He was, after all, an intuition “believer.” So he simply relaxed, followed his intuition, and asked Tony the questions that appeared.
As Tony answered the questions, he became excited. “I never thought of it that way before,” he exclaimed. Steve asked more questions and Tony answered them all. At the end of the meeting, Tony told Steve they had worked with another consultant for four frustrating months trying to get him to understand what they were after. “And in just one hour,” Tony said, “you not only got it, but I’m really clear about how you can help us!”
Bottom line: Tony introduced Steve to his boss, the CIO, who was similarly impressed, and Steve, with the help of his intuition, had his first Fortune 500 assignment, which turned out to be worth more than a million dollars in the course of this relationship.
Steve says of that day, “It was an absolutely effortless conversation. An insightful line of questioning just kept on appearing, and as Tony came up with answers, he was led to greater and greater clarity. At the end of the conversation, he made an amazing statement. He said ‘You know, if my people could do with their clients what you just did with me, we’d have no problems.’ I knew at that moment what an extraordinary meeting had just taken place. We ended up producing dramatic, highly valued results with their organization. Tony became a friend, and this company became one of my best clients.”
Steve listened to his intuition at a critical moment in his business life. He heard it. He heeded it. And he scored a major contract. But listening to your intuition doesn’t always lead directly to the bottom line. Nevertheless, there are plenty of times when it’s important to tune in and listen up. For example:
When there’s insufficient data.
When you need to make a decision quickly.
When there’s too much information.
When the data is conflicting.
When your data seems to support several different options.
When your individual or group vision has become cloudy.
When you’re stuck and can’t “think” your way out.
When you need to come up with outside-the-box ideas.
There is no right or wrong way to receive intuitive information. However, you probably have a predominate mode of receiving its wisdom. Here are some common ways intuition communicates.
These include a knot in your stomach, hot flash, cold shivers, a tension in your neck or shoulders, or a generalized sense of lightness or heaviness.
Example: My client Edward described a major business decision he had to make. His company had decided to expand their operations and open branch offices in four key cities in the United States. There had been a good deal of money and time invested in research and analysis of which geographical area would be most profitable for their company. Whenever he met with his staff to work on logistical details about the sites for the business expansion, he had what he describes as a “knot in my stomach” about one of the cities. The other three locations that were chosen he felt great about. He gave a “go ahead” to these and said “no” to the city he felt queasy about. A few months later he learned that this city had been devastated by a major hurricane. Needless to say, he was very glad he had chosen to trust that gut feeling.
Intuitive information often comes through your emotions. Feelings of relief, enthusiasm, passion, eagerness, and excitement characterize good decisions. Conversely, if you’re making a decision that may lead you astray, you’ll likely feel heavy, depressed, weighted down, drained, bored, or enervated.
Example: You’ve been feeling overwhelmed lately and realize you need to examine your lifestyle with an eye to letting go of some activities. As you examine your list of items, which of them do you look at and immediately feel drained? Which things make you feel excited? Those responses are your intuition at work! Move away or let go of the ones that deplete you, and keep the ones that energize you.
Many people report a “still, quiet inner voice.” It may sound perceptively different from your normal everyday inner chatter. People often characterize it as a non-judgmental or compassionate voice.
Example: My fledging intuitive consulting business began as the result of this type of intuition. I walked into a funeral service for a friend. I heard an inner voice saying “Sit there.” My attention was drawn to an empty seat next to one of the few people in the room I didn’t know. Always a believer in trusting these auditory messages, I sat next to her. The short version of the story is that my seatmate turned out to be a reporter for the Boston Globe newspaper. She wrote a story about my unusual consulting business. As a result, more than 300 people called me to request my services and my new career was born.
The old adage “A picture is worth a thousand words” pertains to this form of intuitive information. Intuition often communicates through symbolic images.
Example: My client Karen was seeking venture capital for her skincare product line. She had presented her business plan at an investors meeting and had the happy outcome of two groups seemingly interested in working with her. They presented equally attractive offers. As she studied her pros and cons list, Karen felt more and more confused about which one to work with.
I asked her to close her eyes, take a deep breath, relax, and envision each of the two offers with the intention of receiving an intuitive response. Within a few moments, she opened her eyes and laughed. She had seen an image of one of the potential investors holding a huge sign that said, “My way!” The insight she received was that this individual was probably rather difficult to work with, only wanting to do things his way. Karen perceived through this image that he was not particularly collaborative, an issue that was of utmost importance to her. She later had her symbolic instinct confirmed when talking with another person who had worked with this investor.
Otherwise known as “a-ha” moments, epiphanies are usually a flash of insight or a “knowing.” People often report they suddenly know something but don’t know where the insight came from. Epiphanies frequently arrive when you least expect them—while showering, washing the dishes, walking the dog, whenever.
Example: Thomas Edison, one of the most prolific inventors of all time, was a great believer in intuition. He registered a new patent an average of every two weeks of his adult life. He carried a 200-page notebook with him at all times to record flashes of inspiration. As one biographer described it, Edison would be talking with friends or eating, “when something he saw, a topic of conversation, or an intruding memory, jogged up a technological possibility.” At the time of his death, Edison had filled 3,400 such notebooks.
Dreams can provide a rich source of guidance for insight in all forms when you learn how to use them. Painter Vincent van Gogh once said, “I dream my painting, and then I paint my dream.” People report coming up with creative solutions, answers to complex issues, moneymaking ideas, and inventions—all while sound asleep.
Example: When I had the experience of meeting the Boston Globe reporter, I was still working as an operations manager for a software company. The experience of gaining more than 300 clients virtually overnight might be some people’s idea of a dream come true. To me it was anxiety-producing. I was fearful of giving up my “normal” job, with benefits and a weekly paycheck, to be out on my own as a consultant. “Could I keep both jobs?” was the question I asked myself as I drifted off to sleep. When I awakened in the morning, I had to laugh. In my dream, I was out on a lake in canoes. Yes, plural! I had one foot in one canoe and the other foot in another canoe, and they were headed in opposite directions! I took that as a very clear sign that I wasn’t meant to begin my consulting business while holding on to my day job. I gave my notice that day and never looked back.
The answer is both! Rosa Harris wrote a February 2015 Fortune.com article entitled “Only Human: The Emotional Logic of Business Decisions” in which she stated, “Data. It is a powerful tool for executives, delivering them greater analytical depth than ever before. What does this mean for the decision-making process? Are executives leaning deeper into the numbers to help make important choices? Undoubtedly, the answer is yes, but despite vast pools of information, the intuitive still precedes the rational when it comes to business decisions.” It was the key finding derived from an expansive research study conducted by the FORTUNE Knowledge Group in collaboration with Gyro, a global advertising agency:
The Gyro.com study polled 720 senior executives (88% of whom had director-level titles or higher) in June 2014 to explore how emotions and other subjective factors influence business decision-making. Among the findings, results show that executives increasingly rely on emotions, intuition, or “gut feelings” when making important choices. Our respondents strongly agree that as the amount of information available to them increases—often to the point of becoming overwhelming—they place greater emphasis on “softer” factors, such as a business partner’s corporate culture and reputation.
We’ve all had those intuitive moments when faced with a choice at work or in your personal life. However they come to you, pay attention. You might be contemplating a potential deal with a new client at work. All signs point to a successful outcome, and yet you can’t seem to shake the feeling that something is “off” or wrong. You’re likely to dismiss this feeling as illogical or irrational. However, after signing the contract and working with the client, you discover your intuition was right all along. Why didn’t you pay attention?
We use our intuition all the time for all sorts of decisions. It’s an incredibly important skill. Although it’s difficult to explain where the information comes from, it’s possible to encourage and develop it. Doing so will help you supercharge your inner wisdom so that you can think fast and make great decisions.
If using intuition is new to you, keep reading! You’ll find a wealth of information on these pages to get you started. If you’re an old hand at intuition and you’ve been listening to it for years, you, too, can expect to find new techniques, ideas, and processes that will deepen your connection to this well-spring of knowledge.
Put Your Intuition to Work Tip
Intuitive information primarily communicates through feelings, images, dreams, aha moments, an inner voice and physical sensations. Begin to pay attention to how your intuition communicates with you. As you do, you’ll be rewarded with faster and more accurate insight.
Intuition is the key to everything, in painting, filmmaking, business—everything. I think you could have an intellectual ability, but if you can sharpen your intuition, which they say is emotion and intellect joining together, then a knowingness occurs.
—David Lynch, director
It’s the curse of anyone trying to trust their intuition: nothing comes, no answers, nada. And then—voila!—the “a-ha” moment. An idea you previously hadn’t considered simply pops into your mind. These seem to come when you least expect them and usually not when you’re engaged in serious and solemn thought.
What can you do to invite this kind of intuitive message? Get clear about what you want and be open to the guidance.
Here’s a list of examples. I want a winning idea for:
The theme for our annual meeting.
My next direct mail piece.
Our new ad campaign.
Approaching the acquisition committee.
Boosting sales at our winter conference.
What do you enjoy that’s creative and relatively mindless? Do it. For some it’s knitting, for others it might be completing a crossword puzzle, cooking, or playing a musical instrument. You want to create a period of downtime where you’re simply enjoying yourself and not thinking about your problem or concern. Be advised that the “a-ha” message may not pop into your mind during this creative interval, but it may happen when you least expect it at some point during the day.
Intuitive insights have a distinct feel. Remember the ad campaign for V-8 juice? The actors had little thought balloons that said, “I could have had a V-8!” “A-ha” moments are just like that. People often describe them as a “pop” of inspiration or ideas. You can’t force them to happen. You create an environment that allows them to occur. Just like that, a wonderful idea will come to you.