My Inner What?

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Thanks,
Claudette Rowley
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My Inner What?
Claudette Rowley
Copyright 2004

"Your vision will become clear only when you can look into your
heart. Who looks outside, dreams. Who looks inside, awakens."
- Carl Jung

Many of my clients want to design a vision for their life or work
that's truly compelling to them. I define a compelling vision as
one that motivates you to push past your internal barriers to
embrace what you deeply and fundamentally desire. This can be in
any area of your life - work, relationships, health, spirituality
or fun. Included in the process of creating a compelling vision
is giving yourself full permission to identify what you would
LOVE to manifest in your life. You get to want what you want.

One of the keys to selecting and implementing a vision - knowing
what's right for you - is listening closely to your inner voice.
Your inner voice is another name for your unique, internal wisdom
- the part of yourself that knows what is true and best for you.
Although we are each born with this wisdom intact, it often gets
swallowed in a sea of external voices, opinions and judgments.

Learning to hear your inner voice strengthens your ability to
identify your compelling vision. Your access to this wisdom
assists you in knowing if you are selecting the biggest, most
fulfilling vision for you. It guides you as you build vision and
gives you direction when it becomes time to release or expand a
vision. Here are three pathways to listening to your inner
voice.

1. Tap into your heart's wisdom.

Social conditioning teaches us to be logical and "use our
heads." When you only use your head, your experience of
yourself and the world is limited. You miss out on vital
information from your emotions.

Benefits: The same neurological tissue found in the brain is
found in the heart. The heart is a second "brain" and our
emotional center. Listening to your head and your heart is
crucial to good decision-making about your life, business,
relationships, and vision.

New Focus: Put your hand over your heart and focus there -
what is your heart's message?

2. Connect with your body.

Your body gives you a tremendous amount of useful information
that you may not consciously perceive. For example, when your
mother-in-law visits, does your stomach tie up in knots? When
your boss yells at you, do your shoulders turn into stone?
When you feel passionate and alive, does your chest feel warm
and open? When we ignore the body's messages, we lose valuable
information designed to let us know what works for us and what
doesn't.

Benefits: For many people, fear manifests as a tightness in
their chest. This is valuable information, especially if you
aren't aware that you are afraid. Your body alerts you to
what makes you feel passionate and what doesn't. The body is
a fount of wisdom designed to tell you when you're on the
right path and when you aren't.

New Focus: Notice the messages your body is giving you right
now. Try a self-massage to find areas in your back, neck or
shoulders that are tense or knotted. What other areas of your
body feel tight? Which ones feel relaxed and loose? Use this
information as another pathway to listen to your inner wisdom.

3. Listen to your intuition.

Intuition is simply knowing something - without knowing how
you know it. Connect back to a time that you had a "gut
feeling" about something. Perhaps you were offered a job you
knew you shouldn't take, even though it looked good on the
surface or you were in a relationship that just felt right for
you. That's your intuition talking.

Benefits: Intuition presents you with a wealth of
information. Remember, your intuition is never wrong,
although your interpretation of it may be incorrect. When
your intuition calls to you, trust it. Practice makes perfect
when it comes to using this sense of knowing effectively.

New Focus: The next time you need to make a decision, check
in with your intuition. Experiment with trusting it. When
you follow your intuition, what happens? When you hear it and
disregard it, what's the outcome?

There is no substitute for listening to your inner voice.
Practice these ways of listening to it and you'll be amazed at
the wealth of information and guidance it provides as you work to
make your compelling vision real.

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Claudette Rowley, coach and author, helps professionals
identify and pursue their true purpose and calling in life.
Contact her today for a complimentary consultation at 781-676-5633
or claudette@metavoice.org. Sign up for her free newsletter
"Insights for the Savvy" at http://www.metavoice.org.