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Nowhere is the power of intuition so evident as when you hear stories of people somehow ‘knowing’ they have some medical illness and getting treatment in time. Particularly when the marvels of medicine say everything’s ok.

Last week, my 92-year-old grandfather didn’t feel right, though he had just been to the doctor and been told that everything was ok. He wasn’t in pain, but “I just knew something was off,” he told me. He called my aunt and said he thought he should go to the hospital. Long story short, doctors told him that had he not come into the hospital he might not have been around to tell me that story.

About 11 years ago, Alice Soler had a clear mammogram, yet she had the feeling that something was wrong. So she told her doctor she wasn’t satisfied. Her doctor – who’s got to be commended for this – listened to her and ordered a sonogram. Turns out, Soler had breast cancer.

Today she’s a survivor and an advocate for others, but her willingness to listen to her own nagging feeling saved her life.

No matter how awe-inspiring the latest medical technology is, I don’t think it will ever be able to keep up with our bodies’ own inner knowing.

Titanic Premonitions of Doom

One thing I’ve noticed is that a lot of stories of intuition seem to revolve around tragedies. I’m not sure if that’s because people’s intuition sometimes gets stronger in an attempt to warn them of impending danger or if people are just more likely to notice gut feelings of doom.

There were many fascinating stories of intuition surrounding the Titanic. A number of survivors and victims of the boat’s sinking confided to others prior to the trip that they had a bad feeling about it.

Among them: The Washington Herald in 1912 wrote an article describing how novelist Jacques Futrelle, who died on the Titanic, had a strong enough premonition two weeks before the tragedy to set up powers of attorney for his and his wife’s affairs.

Annie Ward, a maid who survived, told her mother she didn’t want to get on the ship because she was afraid something was going to happen, according to the Evening Bulletin.

Major Archibald Butt reportedly received a warning that he’d die on his trip abroad so he made a will before he left and settled his affairs.

The New York Times reported that George Quincy Clifford, who died in the wreck, took out $50,000 worth of extra life insurance prior to traveling.

You can read more stories of the Titanic premonitions here. Clearly something to think about.

What? No Burning Bush?

Since I’ve been writing this blog several people have felt compelled to tell me about their intuitive moments. (I enjoy hearing about them so keep them coming).

I’ve heard several stories of people thinking of someone the moment before that person called. I heard a story about someone knowing a relative would be stopping in unexpectedly from out of town. And I heard a story in which someone felt compelled to contact a former colleague and the conversation led to a job offer.

The interesting thing about all of these stories: they were so anticlimactic. There was no major defining moment, no overwhelming feeling of certainty, just a quick thought or a slight tug of interest. Nothing like the dramatic visions or terrifying dreams you see in movies like The Sixth Sense or television shows like Medium.

Maybe the people I know just aren’t that intuitive yet. But more likely, I think we often miss out on what our intuition is trying to tell us because we’re looking for something far grander. While some people may in fact have the heartstopping visions, I'll settle for the butterflies in my stomach or the quick thought that seems to pop into my mind out of nowhere.

I like the following advice from Meredith Self, a professional intuitive who teaches others how to work with their intuition. She says: “Drop the need for intuition to be a burning bush or great visions. Seriously. Not necessary and distracting for most people... Expect simple.”

Works for me.

Honoring the Instinct to Rest

It’s been a few days since I’ve written because I felt the overwhelming need to rest. I don’t know if it was the holiday weekend or the winding down of the summer, but my body felt tired and I could sense that burnout was on the horizon.

A couple of years ago, I would have kept going, ignoring my body and I probably would have eventually gotten sick – my body’s way of forcing me to slow down.

Researchers have proven what the body intuitively knows: According to studies cited in this article by Marie Claire, chronic work stress can be as harmful to you as smoking and not exercising.

So after listening to my intuition and taking last week off, this week I feel energized, creative and rested. It may seem like a simple concept to just listen to your body but so many of us ignore what’s right in front of us.

We often get caught up in the dramatic stories of intuition in action, such as my previous post on Jaycee Dugard. But intuition is about recognizing the little things that we need minute-by-minute and day-by-day. It’s not something that we can plan weeks in advance; it’s about acknowledging your needs in the moment and responding to them.

Intuitive Action Item: You’ve probably planned out much of your work vacation time but if you haven’t scheduled all of it, leave some days free for “intuitive health” days. You can’t predict when your body will intuitively need a rest.

How Intuition Saved Jaycee Dugard

Intuition played a role in another major news story. Last week Jaycee Dugard, who had been abducted 18 years ago when she was 11, was found and her captor, Philip Garrido, was arrested.

Just as intriguing as the story itself was one of the factors that led to Dugard’s discovery: the intuition of a police officer and a campus safety officer with the University of California, Berkeley.

Both women, upon meeting Garrido, felt that something was off. In fact, that feeling led police officer Allison Jacobs to call Garrido’s parole officer, which eventually led to the discovery of Dugard and Garrido’s arrest.

This story is a good example of how to use intuition. The two officers trusted their gut instincts and then did some research to see if they were right. It’s also interesting that it’s becoming more socially acceptable for people to talk about the role intuition plays in their lives. Hopefully it will inspire someone to speak up like those officers did when intuition throws up a red flag.

Lessons About Fear From an Acrobat

A friend mentioned today that the blog post he most related to was the one about fear. That wasn’t surprising to me. Having worked for years in a newsroom where I listened all day to CNN, I noticed that one of the things many media organizations do well is package fear and transmit it through their newscasts. In fact, the news coverage of the recession earlier this year made me feel so anxious that it got me – a self-professed news junky – to turn off CNN during the day and I haven’t turned it on regularly since.

I’ve also noticed that when people are afraid of something, they tend to act – or react – quickly and rashly. You’re afraid you’ll be destitute so you take a job that you never wanted in the first place. You’re afraid of being alone so you get involved in a relationship that you know doesn’t quite fit. You’re afraid you’ll lose your job so you take on extra work and let a boss mistreat you instead of looking for a better work environment. I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve taken on a project or client I knew I shouldn’t have because I was afraid another client wouldn’t come along soon enough. I always regretted it.

There’s no way around it; fear blocks intuition so if you’re worried about something, you’ve got to find a way to calm down and slow down so your inner wisdom has the chance to come through.

Who better to know about fear than two acrobats who risk broken bones or worse when they swing and fly 25 feet above the ground? This article by Dancer Universe poses the question about how they manage fear. Here’s their advice:

---Focus on a successful outcome. The acrobats didn’t think about falling. Period. Don’t think about what can go wrong. Instead, visualize all that can go right.

---Remember successful experiences. The acrobats trusted their bodies because they had performed these daredevil stunts before. Think back to all the successes you’ve had. What makes you think this won’t be another one?

---Reduce the risk. The acrobats planned their routines and had safety precautions in place in case they fell. There are steps you can take to lessen a potential blow. If you could handle the worst-case scenario, why worry about it? It probably won’t happen and if it does, you can handle it!

Intuitive Action Item: One of my favorite movie lines of all time is from Gone With the Wind when Scarlett O’Hara said, “I’ll worry about that tomorrow.” Next time you feel the grip of fear, follow her advice.

Unleashing Intuition on the Job Hunt

Despite the constant news reports about how bad the job market and economy are, I know four people who’ve received job offers in the last week alone. A couple of them were actively job-searching and a couple were not. Conventional wisdom says now is the time to stay at your current job and be grateful to have it even if you’re doing something you hate.

I think differently.

While I don’t recommend that anyone just quit his or her job without a viable plan for making a living, I think you have nothing to lose by looking for a job that is a better fit regardless of the economy and whether you’ve recently been laid off or not.

In the spirit of job-hunting, I came across this article by Katharine Hansen, Ph.D., offering suggestions for using intuition to find that better job.

Among the advice:

---- Relax. If you’re worried about the economy, you’re operating out of fear and even if you do intuitively feel that a certain job or career path is right, you’ll ignore that because your rational mind will tell you it’s too risky or you can’t possibly make enough money.

----Assume the best. This tip will help you to relax. If you imagine the most dire economic situation befalling you, you’ll get anxious and, again, operate out of fear. But if you imagine that everything will work out in the end, you’ll be less tense and open to different opportunities.

----Don’t throw logic out the window. Yes this is a blog on intuition, but the reality is that during tough economic times, you want to use all of the tools at your disposal to get the best outcome so why not use your intuition and logic together?

Go ahead and brainstorm various options that feel right to you intuitively. At this point, give your intuition free reign. Contact any potential employer that interests you even if there’s no official job opening or the media is telling you the industry isn’t hiring or there’s any other logical reason that would keep you from even trying.

I recently felt very strongly about writing an article for a magazine that I’d never written for. However, through another writer, I learned that this magazine wasn’t using freelance writers anymore because of the recession. Now my logical mind told me not to waste my time but I sent off my idea anyway because I really felt like I should. I ended up getting the assignment.

Once you get a job offer, let your logical mind do the research to back up whether you’re making a sound decision in taking the job. Intuition isn’t based on economic trends or media reports so if you feel that urge to make a career shift, you may find an opportunity waiting for you recession and all.