Training and trusting your intuition, divine timing, living your ideal life now, + more

Whatever lens you read this post through (relationships, work, big decisions, etc), let it resonate in the way you need right now. How can we first reach a place where our intuition can flow freely, and then how can we effortlessly trust it and let it guide us?

When you know, you definitely know. And until you experience that feeling, you may not believe that statement.

You may wish you could, but it feels so out of reach, whether that’s because seemingly nothing has been working out for you, or you’re just a ~slightly skeptical person who’s always going to have those “what if’s”, or the tendency to plan and think realistically- which are all very normal, healthy feelings and thoughts to have.

Up until you have a true “when you know you know” experience.

The analytical, fight-or-flight, “protect my peace” mind goes on a walk. Leaves the chat. Is put on mute.

You’re not ignoring the practical questions, you’re not pushing away gut feelings (honestly, you’re doing the opposite), and you’re not rushing or getting ahead of yourself. You just whole-heartedly know the answers already.

That’s why training and learning how to utilize our gift of intuition is so efficient- you skip that whole overthinking step! Everyone has the power to be intuitive, it’s been instilled in us since the earliest forms of human life.

Something a lot of us can struggle with is questioning if our internal directions are 100% right. Is it intuition or are we just impatient? Are we just excited? Are we using it as an excuse? Are we not thinking of all the implications following the feeling could have?

This is especially present if we’ve been through a situation where we have trusted ourselves and ended up getting hurt. I think once you go through something like that (especially with another human) you have your guard up for a while after. There is no shot that you’ll let that happen to you again. It’s hard to re-ignite that trust in yourself.

So when something really good comes along, and you do get that knowing feeling in your body and mind, it’s natural to sink into the familiarity of slowing down and thinking. Are you rushing by going with your gut, or are you spending too much time by thinking it through?

Who sets the pace? The correct answer is you.

I think the pace can be set for us by family, friends, societal norms- things and people outside of ourselves. When you’re making a decision it should be for you. Only you know if something is right or wrong for yourself. Lean into the feelings and into the direction you want to go.

Don’t even begin to worry about what others might think. They don’t have insider knowledge of your journey with your intuition or your relationship with your thoughts, even if you’ve shared some of it. Now let me remind you, I’m talking about these true “when you know you know” situations.

As I wrote before, there are times we think we’re having an experience like that, but it turns out we’re just convincing ourselves it’s right because there is probably some void we’re trying to fill, or we’re wishing for things to improve or be resolved instantly. We’re not being honest with ourselves.

For some, intuition comes quite naturally. For others, there’s some training to do. If you want strong arms, you go to the gym and lift weights. After a few weeks of doing this, you have stronger arms. The same goes for your intuition. And you must start with a clean slate, you must set a foundation for this intuition to flourish.

The key is just being with yourself. Doing the self work, preferably on your own, and really understanding your wants and needs before you start exploring adding something or someone to the mix. I feel like it’s our responsibility to do this.

In most cases you’ll find that by consistently doing that self work, you’ll become the best, purest version of yourself, who will ultimately attract the people, opportunities, and experiences at that same level. Without looking. They. Will. Come. They will flow into your life. Once they do happen and begin to show up, they’ll feel right. Making decisions and channeling your intuition will become easier, because you’re so sure of who you are and what you want.

At first you’ll have the “I’m so lucky”, “what did I do to deserve this”, “this feels too good to be true” moments. A bit down the road when you can be more reflective, you’ll see why it was obvious those things started happening for you, why those people began showing up in your life.

Divine timing? Maybe. Because you put the (very difficult) self work in? Because you consciously decided to recognize and focus in on the fact that you had self work to do? Because you admitted that, and took the step to do something about it? For sure.

It’s the epitome of “your thoughts control your life”. We obviously can’t control everything, but we can make sure we have the most control possible. And I don’t mean controlling exactly what happens. That's where divine timing and leaving it up to the universe comes in. I mean having control over the types of opportunities, people, and things that come into our lives.

We can create an environment in our bodies and minds that either welcomes the good we desire, or one that brings unwanted experiences.

A lot of the time we don’t realize the state of our internal environment, which is why meditation, journaling, therapy, and other self care practices are so beneficial.

In the craziness of daily life, it’s very possible (and common) we could be telling ourselves a completely different story from the truth, from the story we’re living. It could be because we don’t think we have time to do the work and are occupied with other things, or because we are too scared to acknowledge that things aren't actually as they seem. That’s a big step.

Again, we could be too heavily influenced by things outside of ourselves. We could feel like we have to maintain this version of ourselves everyone knows, and any change would cause everything to fall apart.

What we must do, is sit down with ourselves and just be. Be with our thoughts, feelings, and deeply examine the types of experiences we've been having, the thoughts that have been circling our minds, the kind of people we’re surrounded by, the kind of people we’re attracting or keep seeing in our lives.

You will quickly notice patterns. You might be surprised. This will open a whole new inner dialogue that could be uncomfortable.

Do you like these people, opportunities, and experiences that are currently in your life? Do they feel in alignment with that ideal life you picture yourself living years down the road? Do they feel in alignment with who you are at your core, your values, your beliefs, the way you want to feel, physically and mentally?

Do you even know who you are at your core, do you know how you want to feel? It is a lot to think about, and you need to be prepared to embark on this endless, yet beautiful journey.

Now this is where planning and an analytical approach can make a positive impact.

The people, places, things, and experiences you're having now are setting the foundation for that life. So are they aligned, will they get you there? Because yes, while we’re young, while we want to live in the present moment and don’t want to rush, we don’t have minutes to waste.

Why wait for the perfect conditions (which will never exist), and why wait to begin that ideal life? Why wait to feel good and thrive? It’s not some future end goal, it’s the here and now.

with love, sm