Do you ever get the overwhelming feeling that you should take a step in a particular direction in your life? Do you ever have the unwavering sense that you shouldn't say what you are about to say?
I believe we all have inner wisdom and a guidance system that will help steer us on the best path that sits well with who we are. It's an inherent trait.
It is common to steer away from this inner voice due to societal pressures, comparison, opinions of others, and fear of pretty much everything. Over time, what once was a strong knowing, can become tangled up with the noise of life; thus diluting the beautiful truth of who we really are.
Who we really are and what we truly desire is always with us -- always.
The work is often in coming back to the place of hearing the soft yet powerful whisper of our truth. It is in honoring our truth by following through with our inclinations that will lead us to our joy and unique version of a fulfilling life.
Listening when the soul speaks is a practice that can transform the moments in our day and bring us closer to living life from a place that sits well with who we are at our core. Here are a few ways that help me hear and honor my inner wisdom. Try them out and see if they may be a right fit for you.
1) Get Quiet
If life feels noisy and you are overwhelmed with decisions and things you feel you must do, don't fret. The quickest, surest way to get off the merry-go-round of discomfort and stress, is to stop yourself in your tracks. If you feel you are simply too busy to stop, do it anyway and see what happens. Give yourself the gift of 10 minutes to get quiet and be with yourself. Focus on your breath: inhale deeply and exhale slowly. When we calm our bodies first, it helps us to slow down the stories running through our minds. Just allow yourself to have some quiet space. It is often during this space, where we can begin to hear the familiar voice of our inner truth. You will know it is that voice because it wants you to be happy, balanced and can be heard speaking in a loving tone.
2) Be Playful
Remember what it was when you were a small child who interacted with the world from a curious place? When we were young, we often lived from the perspective that life was magical and wonderful and that anything was possible. When we engage in playful activities we begin to come back to this child-like place that feels light and joyful. If you feel it is a bit too challenging to stop what you are doing and surrender to playful pastimes, see what happens when you adopt a playful mindset instead. There are ways we can interact with our world from a playful place. We can be playful in our interactions with others, and in the words we speak to ourselves. We all have a choice: we can focus on everything we are grateful for in our day and begin spinning our stories from a playful place; or we can focus on everything we feel we have to do that feels heavy and hard. From this perspective, the preferable choice becomes obvious. When we are happy and light we are most likely connected to our inner truth, and that voice will be better able to be heard because it isn't being squashed by the overbearing narrative that life is hard. See what happens when you experiment with adding more play to your day through your interactions with others and in your thoughts that inevitably become your inner dialogue.
3) Take Action
When you hear your soul speak, see what happens when you actually listen to that voice and take a baby step in the direction you are being urged to go. When we start to connect to ourselves and see the truth of who we are, it becomes harder and harder to turn our backs on ourselves. When we listen to that voice, we strengthen our relationship with ourselves so that we become more resilient in the face of tragedies and stresses that are part of the life journey. When we take action from our inner wisdom, we begin to take better care of our emotional and physical needs. When we listen, play and follow through on those inner nudges, it is easier to begin living life from a balanced, peaceful place that is in line with who we are. When we live from our truth we are better able to show up in the world to offer our unique gifts and to help brighten the path for others we share space with out in the world.
What is your soul wanting YOU to hear today?
If you liked this post, you will love my new book Fall in Love with Your Life, One Week at a Time
-----------
HuffPost's GPS for the Soul app is based on two truths about human beings. First: We all have a centered place of wisdom, harmony and balance within us. Second: We're all going to veer away from that place, again and again and again. What we need is a great course-correcting mechanism -- a GPS for the Soul -- to help us find our way back to that centered place, from which everything is possible.
Because no one knows better than you what helps you de-stress and tap into that place of peace inside yourself, it's important for you to create your very own GPS guide -- a personalized collection of whatever helps you course-correct. Email us at GPS@huffingtonpost.com and we'll set you up with your very own HuffPost blogger account to share your guide on the site. If you're already a blogger, we encourage you to upload your personal guide today. We can't wait to see what you have to share.