Developing Intuition Part 1
Developing Intuition is the title of my latest series of articles on Create Good Things, and I will begin by sharing a story that provides an example of intuition in action…
A man in a casino is having extraordinary luck at the roulette wheel. Having turned the few chips he originally had into a substantial pile by placing small bets exclusively on red or black, he suddenly changes his strategy and stakes everything he
has on the zero.
The small crowd of people who have gathered around this mysterious player take a gasp. The roulette wheel is European and it has just one zero. The odds of the ball landing on the zero are just one in thirty-seven. Yes, the bettor would win thirty six times his chips if zero came up, but surely nobody in their right mind would place such a risky bet unless they were intent on losing everything they had?
The roulette wheel spins. The people in the crowd follow the ball with their eyes, their mouths open in anticipation. The player himself, however, is unusually calm. He takes a sip of water from his glass and smiles to himself.
As if in slow motion, the small metal ball clicks and clacks around the wheel, then finally settles on a number. The crowd gasp, then unleash a loud cheer of amazement and congratulations as the croupier calls the result of the spin. Zero.
The player collects a massive pile of chips which are worth five figures and cashes them, then starts for the exit. As he leaves, one of the spectators stops him to ask a simple question. ‘How did you do that? How did you know it was going to be a zero?’
The player smiles at his inquisitor. ‘A little voice inside told me,’ he replied. ‘And when that little voice inside speaks, I’ve learned from experience that things work out for the best if I listen and act accordingly.’
There are many stories like this one which allude to the extraordinary things that people can achieve when they begin to use their intuition on a regular basis. Some report how airline passengers have avoided certain death by listening to an inner voice which told them, ‘The plane will crash! Don’t go!’ Others, like the man in the story used to introduce this series, tell of people who have listened to their intuition and, as a result, gained immense wealth or career success.
In this series I will be discussing how you can begin to listen to and use your intuition, and how doing so could help you to turn every aspect of your life around. We’re not just talking about making improvements in your career and financial life (although of course these things are important) but also about making improvements in your relationships, your physical health and your spiritual advancement.
Let us begin by defining intuition. Longman’s dictionary defines intuition as follows:
1a (knowledge gained by) immediate apprehension or cognition. b the power of attaining direct knowledge without evident rational thought and the drawing of conclusions from evidence available. 2 quick and ready insight.
This definition is as good as any that I have come across, but it could be summed up in just one sentence: The power of attaining direct knowledge and quick and ready insight.
Now allow the implications of this definition to sink into your heart and mind. Intuition is the power to attain direct knowledge and quick and ready insight. Knowledge and insight about what? About anything you want!
Imagine being able to ‘know’ intuitively that a certain horse will win or lose a certain horse race. Imagine being able to ‘know’ intuitively whether the stock market or a certain share will go up or down within the next few days or months. Imagine being able to ‘know’ intuitively how people feel about you.
There are literally thousands of ways in which you can use the knowledge and insight which you can gain through developing your natural powers of intuition. I will discuss a few of these applications later in this series.
On hearing about the seemingly miraculous power of intuition, there are always a few people who claim that they don’t have this power. ‘I don’t have an intuitive bone in my body!’ they say. Fortunately, these people are wrong.
Everyone has intuition, just as everyone has a conscience. Of course, some people appear to have more intuition than others, but this is simply because they use it more regularly. You see, intuition is like any physical muscle. It needs to be used or it will wither. Exercising it regularly, however, will cause it to thrive.
