Neuroscientists have identified an enteric nervous system in the human gut, confirming that intelligence is not housed in the brain alone. These transmitters, which connect the two systems, are called peptides and match the brain-cell receptors. You may have experienced this when you listen to reason and at the same time want to heed your inner voice. Doing both of these together is one of the challenges we face in our work and personal lives. Many times it takes great courage to know and do things you can't totally explain.
You probably know it as "a mother's intuition". Somehow moms just seem to know what to do when something is wrong. Some call it a feeling and can appear as a pit of fear in your stomach. How you handle those intuitions and what you do with them can make all the difference in making a decision. Some people are not confident enough to follow their instincts. Some people will go against all odds on intuition and be right every time.
Self-trust can be harder than trusting others and yet much more valuable to cultivate. We accomplish the most by believing in ourselves and trusting our intuition.
I learned in my coach training that accessing and speaking my intuition with my clients was essential to being a great coach. One of the coaching competencies of the International Coach Federation is Coaching Presence: the ability to be fully conscious and create spontaneous relationship with the client while employing a style that is open, flexible and confident. A sub-category of Coaching Presence is when the coach accesses their own intuition and trusts one's inner knowing - "goes with the gut". When we use our intuition in coaching we demonstrate a different way of knowing that cannot be explained logically or rationally. In addition, we give ourselves permission to express what 'popped up' during the coaching conversation without wasting time analyzing our thoughts and perhaps skipping over something important. Some coaches call this "dancing in the moment," or letting the music (conversation) take you where your heart leads.
Where does intuition come from? In the book Emotional EQ, by Robert Cooper Ph.D and Ayman Sawaf, they wrote: "In truth, all of the experiences you've acquired in your life and work are not sterile facts stacked on shelves, but are emotionally laden memories that are stored in the brain. The sum total of those experiences, your life wisdom, doesn't present itself to you as a clean, edited list of 'important things that matter' but instead as instantaneous hunches, as the sum total of gut feelings."
Intuition appears in everyday interactions of all kinds. The next time your "gut" tells you to do or say something, remember; you simply may be seeing it with your heart. If you intuition tells you it's time to think about talking to a coach to help you overcome some of the obstacles in your work or life, go for it, contact me.
Trust your intuition
and
it will serve you well.
Have a great month and I hope we can talk soon. Take care.
