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If you’ve ever been confused, stuck or overwhelmed, when your life has presented you with a critical decision, then you are not alone. Many of my clients come to me because they are grappling with major decisions.One of the reasons we get stuck is because we look from different perspectives and this can result in a range of options with no real insight into what is best for us or others.Much of my work is based on Carl Jung’s personality types, deriving from which the Myers Briggs Personality Type (MBTI) tool was developed. Although I use MBTI, it is Carl Jung’s enlightened understanding about how our personality works, which enables me to help my clients to make better choices, as they align with their heart and mind.Part of the decision making process is gathering information. In simple terms, you usually gather information in two ways:
The first and most common way is through your senses. What you see, hear, touch, smell and taste. Predominately you are gathering information through the first three, although sometimes all five senses, depending on the situation. If you prefer gathering information through your senses, then you tend to like evidence, facts, and data. You are often described as a “down to earth” person and you like to analyse the information you are receiving to inform your decision making. The second way you may gather information is through your intuition. Your intuition can work in two ways, it takes the information it sees through the senses, and forms patterns and possibilities, which can be creative and involves using your imagination. The second way is to tap into insights, ideas and guidance which can be described as coming from your unconscious part of your mind. When your intuition is tapping into your unconscious it can give you illogical insights and wise guidance. This can sometimes be known as your “gut instincts” or “higher self”, or “collective unconscious”. We all have the ability to tap into both types of information, but as Jung and the Myers Briggs team have demonstrated we have a preference for one or the other. Sometimes this can be a very strong preference and sometimes it can be border line. You also have a preference about how you make decisions. The two decision making functions are “thinking” and “feeling”. Some of us prefer to make decisions based on our feelings about the information, and others through our logical conclusions about the information. Often when we are confused, we are alternating between the information we receive through our senses, and that which we are receiving through our intuition. For example, “I have a strong gut instinct to take that job, but the salary is less and there seems to be no promotion prospects”. For me the best decisions are made when you feel good about the decision, and the logic about the information which informs your decision aligns with your beliefs. Part of the formula for doing that is to get in touch with your intuition and trust it. If you have a strong preference for sensing, then this can be uncomfortable, but do-able. Over the years, I have found the following 5 ways help people get in touch with their intuition. There are many definitions of some of the descriptors used, the following describes the context and meaning in the way I use them, rather than referring to any universal definition. Meditation is giving you a holiday from the clamour of your daily thoughts and stream of information. It is finding the gap between your thoughts and staying there. Silent and observant, you can watch your thoughts without attaching yourself to them. It is allowing your intuition or your unconscious wisdom, space. Through mediation, your intuition may come to you in different ways, either through thoughts, ideas, or an encounter with someone or something. Use meditation to be open to whatever comes up. Contemplation is also about clearing your mind, but for me it is more purposeful. You may have a problem or a situation where you’re not sure what to do, or don’t know what the solution is. Ask clearly what the problem is, and then simply observe the problem from different angles and instead of actively thinking about the information, let thoughts come up. Often, you can be inspired with a solution, although sometimes the emerging solution isn’t immediate. It can pop up at any time. Writing is extremely powerful if you are disturbed or upset, even if you aren’t sure why. Writing down how you are feeling, why you are feeling that way and then ask your intuition how you can look at the situation differently. Then write down different ideas, until you find a perspective which feels good and you can believe. Writing is about telling the story of what is going on in your mind and giving you an opportunity to see it from a better perspective. The true trick is to ask your intuition how to perceive the situation so that you can be at peace with it. It’s not about repressing feelings though. Feelings are a great emotional guidance system, and it’s important to let them come up and help to inform the writing process. Listen to Music – You are better aligned with your intuition or higher self when you are feeling good. You know you are feeling good when you are in touch with appreciation, gratitude, love and laughter. Listening to music you love can quickly help you get into those places which feel so good. A daily dose of music you love can definitely align you with your intuition. Going outside - Whether it’s fresh winter air or warm summer sunshine, getting away from the clutter of a busy workplace, or a demanding home can clear your mind and give you a space which you might not otherwise give yourself. Staying in the present moment and clearing your mind while you are outside is a must. It’s no good getting out into the open and taking all your clamorous thoughts with you. Are you a sensor or an intuitive? Or do you flex between the two? What do you think? If you’d like to undertake the MBTI type tool and find out about your preferences, contact me at If you liked the information in this article, why no sign up for my weekly blog and claim your free EBook “The Magic of Seven” 7 x 7 ways to be inspirational at work!
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Hi Christina. Can I throw another model into the mix?? I was introduced to The Human Design System more than 15 years ago (http://www.jovianarchive.com/Newcomers) and it’s fair to say that it has helped to shape my life, decision making and my approach to business.
I’ll leave you to read up and investigate for yourself but as a very high level explanation Human Design divides us into 4 energy types, one of which is sub-divided into 2. Each energy type has a strategy, so for example my type is called a Projector, and my strategy is to ‘wait for the invitation’ before getting involved in something new.
I am also intuitive, so have access to an immediate intuitive knowing. For other types Gut Instinct is key and there are others. There is a physical felt difference between gut feeling and intuition.
Human Design also introduces the concept that timing is important. Approximately 50% of the population have the instant knowing while the other 50% need time to process before making key decisions. This is huge!! As an example, my daughter has gut feeling and also needs time to process – so we have come to realise that if she is pressured to make an instant decision she will often make the wrong one, However, following the Human Design System if we ask the question so she can access her immediate gut feeling, then allow her to sleep on it and ask her again the following day, we are confident that she now makes the right decision for her and it’s an authentic decision that she can trust.
Conversely, I am an instant person so have learnt to trust that immediate intuitive response. If I choose to ignore that response my mind (thinking) kicks in and questions the intuitive response, and can persuade me to make the wrong decision. This is easily tested when driving or walking without a map or directions. Immediate intuition will tell me to turn left, but logic kicks in and suggests that turning right makes more sense. I turn right and usually discover that I have to turn around and go back.
Does this make any sense? I could go on and on about how my Human Design strategy has had a real impact on my business……
Hi Richard, thank you so much for your comments and sharing your model and experiences. It certainly sounds fascinating. Some of what you describe sounds like Personality types, which just goes to show, all perspectives are helpful in the quest for self-understanding and awareness. I’ve had a quick look at the site you’ve mentioned and will certainly investigate further. Thanks so much for commenting! Very best – Christina
Hi Christina. Really enjoy your ezines and updates – very thought provoking. I have just finished associate certification programme with Emergenetics – Maybe you’ve heard of it? http://www.emergenetics.com. I can see many similarities to what you have been writing about but the main difference with Emergenetics and most other psychometric profiling tools is that Emergenetics does not rate personality and is all about preferences. In our company we have used MBTI DiSC and Insights before but see considerable advantages with Emergenetics. Anyway thanks for all the excellent ideas and discussion you bring.
Thanks for the very kind feedback Ian, appreciated. I hadn’t heard of Emergenetics, although like Richard’s system below, it sounds very interesting. I think there are probably as many preferences about profiling tools as there are personalities! I will definitely take a look. Thank you, and have a great day.
Dear Christina: It’s lovely to meet you via Twitter @Fey1IsleofSkye. Great article! I took the MBPT eons ago. No clue where or what the results were, but I remember being surprised by them.
I am largely an intuitive, however, I also use my five senses. Honestly, I think you really can’t have one without the other. Good suggestions on how to nurture intuition.