How to Listen to Your Inner Guidance

Are you listening to your inner guidance?  Or are you mostly influenced by people, circumstances, or situations outside of you?

Albert Einstein is widely quoted as saying, "The intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift."

If you keep reading, you will learn three steps to tap into your inner guidance, also known as your intuition.

Napoleon Hill, author of Think and Grow Rich, who researched 500 of the world's most successful people, found that highly effective leaders listen to their inner guidance. He referred to intuition as "The Sixth Sense."  But intuition is not a sense, it's one of your higher faculties.

What is intuition?

Intuition is derived from Latin and means knowledge from within. Intuition is an inner knowing or gut feeling that guides decisions without the need for conscious reasoning. It operates beyond logic and beyond what we can fully explain. Intuition is a deep, unshakable knowing that emerges from within us. It’s the spark of insight that artists, visionaries, and leaders rely on to create, innovate, and make bold decisions. While experience and subconscious processing play a role, there’s also something beautifully mysterious about intuition; as Napoleon Hill explained, it "defies description."

Steve Jobs said, "Intuition is a very powerful thing, more powerful than intellect, in my opinion. That’s had a big impact on my work."

Steve Jobs relied heavily on his intuition to shape Apple’s innovative products and brand. He had an uncanny ability to sense what people wanted before they knew it themselves, which led to pioneering breakthroughs like the iPhone, iPad, and Mac. Rather than relying solely on market research, he trusted his intuuition about design, user experience, and technology’s potential to transform lives. This intuitive approach allowed Apple to stay ahead of the curve, creating not just products but movements that changed entire industries.

You have intuition. It's your inner guidance system, like your own GPS. Developing it and paying attention to it will support you in living your most exceptional life. 

Acknowledge your intuition.

Here are three steps to develop your inner guidance:

Step #1: Learn to quiet your mind.

Today, we live in an era of abundant information potentially coming at you from multiple sources throughout your day. This can feel overwhelming. Ways to quiet your mind include:  developing a daily meditation or breathwork practice, engaging in a "strategic pause" at points during your day, or going for a walk outside.

When you quiet your mind, you can hear the whispers from your intuition or feel sensations in your body - all of which carry important information via your intuition.

Oprah Winfrey has acknowledged the role intuition has played in her success journey. She said, “I've trusted the still, small voice of intuition my entire life. And the only time I've made mistakes is when I didn't listen.”

Step #2: Pay attention to flashes of inspiration.

You might feel it as an image or as an idea. Flashes of inspiration usually come quietly and unexpectedly, which is why quieting your mind is so important. 

Howard Schultz, the former CEO of Starbucks, had a powerful intuitive moment that changed the course of the company. In the early 1980s, he visited Italy and was captivated by the espresso bar culture. He saw how cafés were more than just about coffee - they were about community, conversation, and connection. Schultz had a flash of inspiration: Starbucks shouldn’t just sell coffee beans; it should create a "third place" between home and work where people could gather and enjoy high-quality coffee in a welcoming environment.

At the time, this idea went against conventional wisdom. Starbucks’ founders initially resisted, believing their focus should remain on selling beans and equipment. But Schultz trusted his intuition, left the company, and started his own espresso bar. Eventually, he returned to Starbucks, bought it, and transformed it into the global coffeehouse brand we know today.

His decision wasn’t based on market research or spreadsheets - it was a deep, intuitive knowing that people would embrace a new kind of coffee experience. And he was right.

Step #3: Listen to your body.

Your body has subtle energy centers which allow you to gather information from your body through sensation. For example, when I was younger I sometimes felt a lump in my throat in certain situations when I felt my needs, aspirations or values weren't being heard by others. When I became older and learned more about subtle energy, I realized that this was my body’s way of telling me I needed to communicate more effectively. This helped me to grow and develop into speaking up and advocating for myself. 

Arianna Huffington had a life-changing experience when her body sent a loud message after years of neglecting rest. In 2007, she collapsed from exhaustion, breaking her cheekbone in the process. This moment of physical breakdown forced Huffington to face how little she had been listening to her body’s signals. For years, she had been pushing herself relentlessly, prioritizing work over rest and ignoring signs of burnout.

This collapse was a wake-up call, and it led to a profound shift in Huffington’s life. She began to prioritize sleep, self-care, and mindfulness, eventually writing a book called The Sleep Revolution, advocating for the importance of rest in achieving success. Huffington now speaks frequently about how her body’s breakdown was an essential turning point, teaching her the importance of paying attention to the signals of fatigue and stress before they become overwhelming.

Her story is a perfect example of how our bodies communicate vital messages. When we don’t listen to these signals, our bodies find ways to make us stop and reassess.

There is a voice inside of you

Finally, I'd like to share a quote from the poet Shel Silverstein:

“There is a voice inside of you that whispers all day long, “I feel this is right for me” “I know this is wrong." No teacher, preacher, parent, friend or wise man can decide what is right for you. Just listen to the voice that speaks inside."

Listening to your own inner guidance - the "still small voice," flashes of inspiration, gut feelings or physical cues -  is absolutely essential for you to be able to step into the most exceptional version of yourself. 

What's one step you'll take today to listen to your inner guidance?