I’ve had a bit of an epiphany this week.
So many of you say that you want to be guided by your intuition and the universe. And then you look for things you can do, to do that.
The insight, however, is that being guided is not a doing thing. It’s a feeling thing.
Stay with me here.
Let’s say, that, for example, I need some guidance on the content for my new live class that’s starting in late June: The Practical Guide to Connecting to Your Intuition & The Universe. Considering it’s a class about intuition, much of the content is being pulled together intuitively.
Instead of forcing the answers to come to me, I ask the questions, maybe even write them down, and then wait.
I wait until I have a sudden influx of inspired ideas, momentum, excitement and motivation to work on the content for this class. And without thinking much about it, I pour whatever answers, ideas and insights are arriving in my heart, mind and imagination forth onto paper until it’s all there. And then I wait again. Until the next time.
This process continues until I feel I have all the content down. And then I allow my analytical and logical mind to take over, to organise, edit and structure everything, to make it easy to read, learn and listen to.
This same process works for everyone, on all things.
Sometimes this waiting game takes a while. And we feel frustrated and inspired. Our minds get impatient and decide they have to control the process. This is a warning sign. Don’t do it. Trust the process. Allow yourself to have the time you need. It will get easier and faster the more you do this.
I have decided to close my public Facebook page at the end of this month, as a result of a process exactly like this. I was starting to feel resentful, annoyed and frustrated with having two separate Facebook accounts. This is a sure sign that something needs to change. And so I asked for help and guidance, and felt inspired (and a little scared) by the solution of closing my Facebook business page. It feels like a big, dangerous step in some ways. It also feels like sweet relief, and more real, honest and authentic. You can read all about it here.
By the same token, I updated my “Love List” this week. It’s a collection of time- and sanity-saving tools, creative service providers that I heartily recommend, things and people that inspire me, and more. I update it every year or so, and recently had the inspired nudge to do it. So many of you said it arrived at just the perfect time. Enjoy! I hope you find something that delights you.
Here are my best tips on how to pay better attention to the signs from the universe:
- Make sure you take time out on a daily basis to check in with yourself and how you feel. Getting to know your feelings and whether things are lighting you up, or draining you, is the first step.
- Pay attention to the things that light you up: those exquisite moments, that bring delight and happiness to you. Those are the signs that guide you toward the ‘greater’ things that you can do and create in the world.
- Say “no” to the things that drain you, as much as you possibly can, until one day, you are only doing things that light you up. This is an ongoing, ever-changing process. That’s why you have to keep checking in with how you feel, every day.
- Disconnect from the Internet, television, radio, books etc. for a couple of hours or even days. It’s hard to get attuned to your feelings when you have a slew of loud voices yelling at you, telling you what to do all the time. When was the last time you were alone, without having a book, a movie, the television, a magazine, or a playlist to distract you?
- Meditate. Go for a walk. Have a swim. Look through your closet. Get a massage. Do things that bring you into a state of connecting with your feelings (instead of your thoughts).
- Give yourself permission to start asking yourself, what it is you truly want. Grab a piece of paper and start to write things out. At the beginning these things might contradict each other but stick with it. As you move through it, your mind will become clearer, and the things that actually thrill you will jump out at you like big, shiny (and sometimes scary) gems.
- The more you listen to your feelings, the more obvious the signs form the universe and your inner guidance becomes. All you have to do is devote time to feeling your feelings, learning to recognise them and spending time alone, which so few of us do. The more time you spend feeling and thinking deeply, the more in tune with yourself and the signs from the universe you will be.
- Once you get clear on these things, you can use the signs from the universe and your inner guidance to start creating the life that you truly want.
P.S. Next month’s edition of The Free-Spirited Collective is devoted to creating action plans for those big dreams that you have. It might be right up your alley.