No doubt you have heard the phrase, “Just trust your gut.” Ever wonder what it actually means in a practical way, what it feels like and how to do it?

Abiding inside our most authentic self is a feeling, a voice, a resonating vibration that knows what is best for us and if we can just quiet all the noise around us and all the chatter inside our brain, we can actually hear the guidance coming from deep, deep inside our very essence. That guidance –that intuition– is our gut communicating with us and it can be our greatest protection when we make the effort to connect to it and allow ourselves to hear it.  It’s always there yet it’s easy to miss the messages it wants to give us when we engage in any compulsive activity such as working or playing too hard, eating, drinking–you can fill in the blank here. Another common way to block the guidance from our gut is by assuming the answers we need are outside of ourselves.

Want to begin a daily practice that will help you trust your gut?

Find a time and a place where and when you can be still and undisturbed.  Initially, as you are learning, you need only to dedicate a few minutes each day.   Close your eyes; breathe slowly and deeply from your belly. When your mind wanders and starts thinking about mundane things, just stop those thoughts without judging yourself or them; refocus on your breathing and start again.

Making this effort to pay attention to your gut is a step toward true knowledge of who you really are, what you really need and what action or non-action serves you in your highest and best good at this point in time.  The more effort and time you put into connecting to your gut, the more power, strength and guidance you will receive from it.

Decide how much time you want to devote and choose when and where you will do it. Set the timer on your phone, whether it is for one minute, two minutes or more; then just begin.

Your gut is the best friend you will ever have; the more time you spend communicating with it and learning how to listen to the guidance it sends to you, the easier it becomes to follow that guidance with assurance, confidence and calm.