Gut Feelings, Intuition and Instincts Do Not Speak English!
Posted on May 26, 2012 by Eric Stone, One of Thousands of Performance Coaches on Noomii.
I think mental self-absorption is one of the leading causes of stress.
Although not the most popular afflictions, self-absorption and stress are a very real inconvenience. I think mental self-absorption is one of the leading causes of stress. Good indications include frustration, anger, sadness, short temper, fear of the past or fear of the future, cynicism, physical tension, inability to focus or listen, projections, distrust of others, judgments, blame, too much trying, absence of humor, laughter or joy, etc.
Self-absorption is an excessive focus on mental activity. Self-absorption is not concentration but rather an overwhelmed state of intense mental pressure to either figure something out or get something done. We become self-absorbed when we stop listening to how we feel, what our gut responses are and what our instinct or intuition is telling us. These three aspects are located in the body not in the mind.
The over reliance on mind cuts one off from instinct, gut responses, and true feelings. This leads to wrong or rash decisions, as the healthy reactions of the body are by-passed. A good example is making up your mind too quickly about a financial decision that could affect the rest of your life. Many people get married on impulse for instance. Impulse is NOT a gut feeling but rather a pressure to act without grounding.
Tension and self-absorption breed attachment to positional points of view on life, people, and especially oneself. A positional point of view is a certainty or judgment, which has not been verified. Part of being well adjusted is actually role-playing to hide our levels of stress. People may not see the pressure but you feel it. Tension and control issues all eventually lead to imbalance. When we stop listening to our intuition, gut, instinct or true feelings, we begin to seek control. Unchecked, tension and control are addictive behavior patterns. Last but not least, self-absorption dooms creativity and ruins the possibility of relaxation and humor, which ironically, are the two keys to heal self-absorption. Indeed, it is relaxation and consequently humor, which grant us the direct access to our gut feelings, intuition and instinct. A relaxed body can listen.
Allow me to share what is possibly the most profound knowledge that I have ever learned and verified: gut feelings, intuition and instincts only warn us once and do not speak to you with the language of the mind—they are innocent in that sense. In other words, they do not warn us over time for the same gut feeling, intuition or instinct. Conversely, mind operates over time and speaks English. A gut feeling, intuition or instinct is a body sensation NOT a conversation. Hence, how distinct they are.
80% of the battle of relieving self-absorption and stress is to become aware of it and start paying much more attention to your body. Relaxation of the body opens new dimensions and offers considerable productive and creative advantages. Sound decisions, authenticity, and well-being, are all rooted in relaxation. It is much harder to teach a tense person to relax than it is to communicate to him or her the technical demands of a particular task. Lesser skilled individuals are easier to work with than skilled individuals who carry a lot of tension and self-absorption. Working in a relaxed way will give you a sense of ease and will help make all your presentations and communications seamless and effortless.
