When your intuition speaks; Listen. 

When your gut instinct kicks in; Pay Attention. 

It will do you much justice in this life to reintroduce yourself to your inner knowing. Your intuition. Your gut instinct. Tuning into this natural part of your make up will pave the way toward living a life that is aligned with your unique essence. Practicing and then honing your intuition will help you make choices that connect you toward your truth. 

Without cultivating the art of listening to your inner world, it’s only natural to look outward for your answers. Ultimately you have to make your own choices and live with the consequences of those choices. This is how you learn. Even when you do act on the advice of others, the consequences of those actions will always be yours. Ultimately, there's no escaping self responsibility in this life. 

Learning tends to be more impactful when you're in the front lines, making the decisions and bearing the consequences of those decisions. This is why it's valuable for you to take the time to get in tune and in touch with the inner workings of fabulous you.

A habit of consistently looking to others for your answers will disable your ability to hear your inner voice. Once that connection is diminished, your ability to trust yourself will shut down. This will make it difficult to make decisions that are true for you. If your inner compass is not functioning properly, the results in your life will match that disfunction.

After all, an action always follows a reaction.

With that said, if you're feeling disconnected from your inner voice, here are some tips to help you tap back into your intuition:

Ask Questions

Ask questions; Questions answer. 

Let me remind you for a moment that you're not always "supposed" to know what to do. There are times when the empty space between knowing what to do and taking an action is required. It's, often, just not very comfortable, which is why we avoid it. 

There's a lesson within this quiet space that can add to your character if you allow it. That space is where the virtues of patience and trust have the opportunity to grow. The quiet space is a chance for you to practice allowing, flow and letting go of your human mind control. This is often hard for us to give up because it leaves us in unknown territory, which we tend to hate. For some of us it's too scary, so we do many things to avoid it. We become chronically busy. We numb out. We do anything to feel more in control. These actions diminish any learning and, ultimately, delay what we're really desiring in our lives.

With that said, instead of being in the drivers seat of life, let go by asking outward. Ask questions. It's natural when we don't know where to go in life, that we ask a question. "Hey, where's the bathroom?" Take that very logical question and apply it to something that's not tangible. "Hey, where should I live?" "What career path fits me best?" "What romantic partner is best suited for me?"

Ask who? Just ask. Put the question out there. Verbalize it. Say it out loud. Ask who your heart wants to ask a question too. This could be a past loved one. The Universe. Buddha. God. Whoever that higher source is for you. 

When you become open and vulnerable enough to begin asking these deeper and, possibly, intimidating questions, you will get answers. They will show up in different forms, but if you remain aware and open, you will get a sense of direction. 

Here's a great general question to ask with any situation that may be pulling at your heart:

“What's the best choice that I can make in this moment for both myself and all involved?” 

Bottom line is to get in the habit of asking inwardly and to something higher. It can greatly help you find direction.

Follow the Bread Crumbs

Life is constantly putting situations, people and events in your life to guide you. Pay attention to this. Follow the breadcrumbs that life is constantly dropping in your path.

Get Quiet

Slow down while making sure that you're doing the things that you need to do in order to feel peaceful. 

Meditate, run, jump in the ocean, take pictures, go on a trip, ground your feet in the earth, go to karate, listen to music, cook a badass dinner, visit with a friend. Whatever you need to do for yourself in order to feel grounded and pulled together will help you quiet the noise. Discover what grounds you and brings peace to your heart and do it consistently.

Get Out of Your Head

Stop trying to figure it out. Life is not math. There is no “correct” or “fixed” way of how to approach situations. I would point you more toward tapping into elements such as grace, trust and flow. Get out of your head and into your heart. The voice from your head is often loud and intrusive, your heart is softer and speaks with a very different energy. Tapping into your heart will help you hear the messages it speaks.

*Blog image by Amy Lynn Bjornson, San Diego based Lifestyle & Wedding Photographer.