The self-confidence would have been a game-changer.
The wisdom gained in a lifetime is immense. Looking back, we might say, “If I knew then what I know now…” which is often followed by what could have, should have, or would have been different or better. Then most of us say, “But I wouldn’t change a thing because it made me who I am today.”
While that’s true, it can still hurt to look back on painful mistakes and time-consuming missteps that took us down a long and winding road in the opposite direction of our dreams.
Knowing there would still be times of difficulty and stress with emotional ups and downs, if you could give your younger self one empowering piece of wisdom, what would it be?
Always follow your gut feeling.
That’s what mine would be.
I paid attention when my gut feeling popped in with praise for a good decision I’d made. Confirmation I was on the right track.
However, when the same intuition that creates that gut feeling in the pit of my stomach would show up screaming for me to make a different choice, or get out of a specific situation, I didn’t always follow it. I thought I knew better. I took the feeling as just a suggestion.
But again, and again I was shown that if I had followed the advice of my intuitive messages instead of pushing them away, I would have been happier, more empowered and had much more confidence early on.
Overruling My Inner Guidance
There were friendships that felt oddly uneven and required too much work. Ultimately, they dented my self-esteem when I realized the other person wasn’t a friend at all.
I let my need to be liked and feel part of the crowd overrule my intuitive guidance. Now, I clearly see that each of those one-sided friendships had an underlying uneasy vibe from the start.
There were painful relationships I would have avoided if I’d followed my gut feeling. But knowing relationships are emotional, I just attributed the “get out now” and “he’s not right for you” warnings to the normal fear of heartbreak that comes with falling in love.
Doing what everyone else was doing didn’t work for me.
I would have made different business decisions also if I’d followed the suggestions of my inner guidance. I wouldn’t have worked with clients who obviously weren’t a good fit. Nor would I have put up with workplace bullies, sexual harassment, or unsafe working conditions for as long as I did.
Somehow, I got the idea from watching others just power through that somehow if I did it too, it would earn me a badge of honor or credibility or a promotion. It didn’t. It just reduced my self-respect and ultimately my self-esteem.
If I’d followed the wisdom of my gut feeling, I certainly could have avoided a lot of emotional and financial setbacks and developed a solid foundation of confidence much sooner.
That confidence would have empowered me to be more successful, stand up for myself quicker, and boldly go after my dreams. Looking back, every time I took someone else’s advice over my own intuitive signals, the situation was more difficult than necessary. What I wanted got delayed and my enthusiasm faded. Then I’d have to pick myself back up again and that took time.
Intuitive Signals Are Inner Power
Since I learned to always follow my gut feeling, everything is easier and more fun. The simplicity of feeling the right answer from my inner guidance every time rather than overthinking and worrying myself into wrong choices has been magical.
I’ve learned the wisdom that creates intuition and those gut feelings comes from not just my lifetime, but is passed down from my ancestors as well. So, if I ignore my inner guidance, that’s pushing away lifetimes of wisdom that is meant to protect me and make life more fun and peaceful.
The most powerful piece of wisdom I’d give my younger self is, always FOLLOW your gut feelings. Do exactly what they say.
Originally published on ThriveGlobal.com
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