Ignoring Your Gut is Like Not Breathing | In-Between the Pages

You got to have reason, but we also cannot ignore that nagging feeling we get in the back of our minds either.

Andrew Mercer whose inventions included many patents with processes and process management tools states:

If I get an idea and it won’t go away then I have to do it. This takes a fair amount of self-trust, but I find that it works.

Game designer Jill Worthy has similar feelings on the topic:

If I have three ideas and feel a great amount of passion for one of them, then that’s the one I’ll spend time on.”

Just like you asked that question of where babies come from, you have to ask, where do hunches come from?

Your subconscious mind is constantly recording and filing unrelated knowledge, experiences, and feelings. Later, it takes that cache of thought and combines the disparate information into answers – hunches – if you simply ask, trust, and listen. Our inability to be present and mindful in our moments through out the day is our greatest enemy. With all the disruptions that come along, we let the day often happen to us versus us happening to it. We don’t listen enough to our hunches.

These hunches, for no particular logical reason, might lead you to trying different problem-solving approaches, like cooking something you’ve never cooked before, betting on some great talent for your team, taking on something spontaneous like a vacation to a new locale, or ignoring the trusted advice of a friend/family member.

You need to give your subconscious more time in the present. The more you do, the closer your hunches will be to the best path you should be taking. Here’s some things to keep in mind as you pause and listen to your hunches:

• What hunches have you had lately?
• Which ones did you listen to?
• Which ones were even helpful?
• Which were completely wrong and off the mark?
• What does your gut tell you now?

It’s important to not bury that hunch, but instead explore it. It could lead you to one of the best experiences you ever have in your life. Pause, be in the moment of it, and listen to it.

Thanks for the reading. Feels great to be back. I’ll get another post up this weekend.

Shawn