How to Find Your Way in Life

Let your intuition be your guide

During the transition between infancy and adulthood, we lose something precious. Intuitive knowledge–the things we have no business knowing, the stuff we’re born with.

We grow into adults who have little idea how to express ourselves. How often do we conceal our feelings on a given day? When you feel like crying, do you? Do you always laugh when you feel like it? We hide our emotions out of fear of what others will think of us for having them. To act on that fear is a mistake. Feelings exist for a reason.

Consider the freedom of an infant. A baby doesn’t wonder whether it would be appropriate to cry. There is no contemplation of manners before laughing. A baby feels and then expresses. It does this because it’s alive, so part of life’s purpose must lie in these expressions. Our feelings are part of the human condition. Suppressing them is a denial of our humanity.

Life is an expression.

Please don’t think I’m saying that anytime you feel hungry, you should cry until someone sticks a bubba in your mouth. I promise that’s not the point, but how often do we feel slighted, unseen, unloved, or the like and do nothing, say nothing? Unexpressed feelings remain within us. We carry them like a cross, and they can make living feel unbearable.

What kind of life is it if we’re constantly repressing our emotions? Is it possible to follow that path without deciding on some level that we are mistaken for having them? Every time we deny our feelings, we tell their Source it’s wrong. I find it difficult to believe that anything stemming from Life itself could be a mistake.

What if we were to look at it differently? Why not channel the infant we once were? Imagine the freedom we’d gain. To awaken with a smile and no sense of dread over the day to come. To walk through the day free to feel however you damn well please, and to illustrate those feelings with your actions. To fall asleep feeling comforted by thoughts that you will be able to do it all again come morning.

I don’t mean to suggest that doing so brings sunshine and lollipops. Conflict will still arise, but you’ll feel confident with intuition as your guide. After all, intuition, it seems, is from someplace else. I can’t point to the source of it. That is a determination every one of us must make for ourselves. But I’m sure you’ll agree you won’t find it at Walmart.

Recently, I was laid off. I didn’t view this as bad since the company gave me three months’ severance, and lately, I wasn’t thrilled with the work. When I first started, it was a good gig. I liked my coworkers, and they were flexible with my hours. Then capitalism began doing what capitalism does — it grew. My little company merged with four other companies. Then they bought another. Camaraderie got lost in the chaos, and the work no longer felt rewarding.

In light of this, you would think I would be elated by my release, and I was, initially. My first reaction was relief, and I thought, “Oh, thank God,” but the feeling didn’t last long.

Soon, the negative voice in my head grew loud and drowned out all other thoughts. My intuitive feelings came under assault. I could feel myself trying to replace relief with dread, comfort with queasiness. Why would I do that to myself? Because that is how I am conditioned to react.

I was taught to be this way by my parents, by my friends, and by society at large. Think of all the times someone has said to you, “You have to do it this way,” or “That will get you in trouble.” When someone points out their fears to you, a part of you will concede. If you accept this fear, it becomes yours, and fear demands a reaction.

If only the idea of trusting my gut had been encouraged more in my formative years, I could have avoided so much stress. I would discard more fears than I accept. I would be more inclined to march in the direction intuition points me. Life could only be more satisfying.

Lately, I have been working hard to remedy this. I am, at the moment, still unemployed. I have always felt called to write, so I have been doing that. Every day, I sit before a blank page and call on my muses for guidance. Sometimes, I am struck by inspiration, and sometimes I’m not, but I sit, and I do because, for once in my life, I’m listening to my heart. In a soft voice, I say, “Okay, I trust you.”

Every day, I fight the negative voice that shouts, “Do something,” and invites chaos into my mind. I’m learning that the soft voice of the heart can overcome the voice of panic. It all depends on what excites me more. Would I rather live a life I’ve always dreamed of or succumb to fear and spend my days hiding in plain sight? The choice is mine. It’s always been mine, and I’ve always known the answer. I just don’t always listen.

So does all this mean you should quit your job and run off in pursuit of your dreams? Not necessarily. I don’t think acting impulsively or recklessly is the answer. We all need to eat. We all have responsibilities we must face. You should absolutely start listening to your intuitive voice, altering your trajectory as needed. Just act responsibly with it.

However, when you recognize a situation as a gift, a chance to feel the butterflies, to live your dreams, I highly recommend you take it. They don’t come too often and are easy to miss, but if you pay attention and listen to your gut, you’ll know which path to take. You’ve always known. It’s just a matter of learning to listen.