Guidepost 5: Cultivating Intuition and Trusting Faith, Letting Go of the Need for Certainty

(From Mindful Ambition post about Guidepost 5 by Brené Brown)

All humans have a craving for certainty and control.

But there’s only so much you ever can control in life. There’s a limit to the level of certainty you can experience. (Especially if you’re creating something new or meaningful.)

Which is why intuition and faith are so helpful. They’re powerful tools for navigating uncertain environments.

Intuition might seem a nebulous word. But it’s actually quite simple. Intuition is a cognitive process where your mind compares the situation you’re in with all the others you’ve ever experienced. This happens at a subconscious level, which is why it’s difficult to explain your intuitions and hunches.

As Brown says, “Intuition is not a single way of knowing…it’s our ability to hold space for uncertainty and our willingness to trust the many ways we have developed knowledge and insight, including instinct, experience, faith, and reason.”

So if you want to get great at navigating uncertainty, cultivating your intuition and faith is essential.

Start practicing:

When you find yourself in uncertainty, check in with your intuition. Find stillness and consider: What’s your gut telling you to do? What would you do if you had no fear?

Create open space in your life to foster your internal connection. If you’re constantly bombarded by media and events and the thoughts of others, you lose track of what’s true for you. Make time for meditation, journaling, movement, and other alone-time to keep your internal connection strong