What does it mean to live in ‘Intuitive flow’
“The self expands through acts of self forgetfulness” — Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
In my mid twenties I made a conscious commitment to try to live in ‘intuitive flow’. Part of this for me meant developing a consistent relationship with my intuitive voice, being open, listening and flowing in the direction I was sent — channelling higher direction as it were, day to day, task by task, conversation by conversation and so on.
Living in intuitive flow is an ambition — it’s an aim. It doesn’t mean I always manage it. It also doesn’t mean we bypass problems, or don’t hit roadblocks or deal with difficult situations. To me, it means being in alignment with our souls highest potential for development and expansion at this time — as well as being able to live out a soul mission or purpose. Being willing to listen to our souls guidance, operating day to day in deeper states of mind, accessing a greater sense of ‘flow’.
Intuition over head and heart
So where do we start? Well I will begin at my beginning. I decided this after two long-term relationships ended, one of three years and one of five — both halted by the voice of my intuition becoming so loud I could no longer hide from it, and decided that I’d rather not run from the truth anymore as it was wasting time and energy — not only mine.
I thought to myself, I’m a reasonably intelligent and self-aware person, how can I make decisions that are in alignment with my ‘highest good’ when I felt in conflict? My head was arguing ‘this relationship is possible, we can make it work’; but my heart was saying ‘I love them!’, then my intuition said ‘no’ and trumped both, pulling the plug when the time was up (speaking to me through dreams and gut reactions in these cases).
So I decided to listen to the ‘boss’, my intuition, directly instead of ignoring it and ignoring the reality. I decide in life, to give my intuitive voice weight and importance, let it be the first port of call — I let it lead and I let it have the final say, even if I didn’t understand the reasons why…… and it’s been working for me. However, did it ‘solve’ my love life problems immediately? No. However it got me out of pointless situations more quickly, or helped me avoid really bad ones completely and led me to my now husband with whom I confidently ‘just knew’ as they say ‘it felt right’ and I felt deeply aligned.
Getting out of our own way — No-Self
Stop thinking your head knows all the answers, because it doesn’t. What is important about opening to your intuitive voice is we are open to a more expansive state of awareness. We get more comfortable with stepping into the mystery, opening to the flow and channelling insights, information and ideas from a place beyond the limited conscious mind. ‘You’ learn to ‘get out of your own way’. As the conscious mind operates at a Beta wave length, it is ‘the personality self’ — it feels resistant, contractive, restrictive, fearful, doubtful, limited and over-thinks.
However when you enter more ‘no-self’ intuitive flow states — you enter a deep state of mind, with almost day to day channelling of our higher states of being. It feels open, graceful, knowing, loving, satisfying, flowing. For me it’s like I ‘switch off’ or I turn down a ‘smaller self’ and the mind goes quiet. When entering into alpha and theta states (which come through practice), I become open, allowing, broader (broader what?…thinking?) and the answer/s or information ‘just come’ which is what is happening as I write just now. For me my ‘conscious mind’ is switched off yet the words flow. No dense, heavy, laborious ‘thinking’.
Intention, letting go and allowing
Setting the intention to live in intuitive flow is paramount to you achieving it. The big part of the journey is being willing to let go. Let go of fixed ideas of how you’re gonna achieve what you want. Letting go of fixed ideas around the path of certain relationships. Let go of these fixed identities we have around ourselves and so on. We have to be willing to release what is blocking us emotionally or mentally and step back into more expansive space internally.
We need to be open, not rigid, fluid not static, releasing not fixed. We have to be willing to let go more and more deeply — into a state that is far more beautiful, light, open and lovingly responsive. We’re not falling back into nothing we are falling back into knowing and support. With this, we experience more and more moments of synchronicity, insight, brilliant ideas and knowing the best thing to say. The more we experience this, the more we can trust it and confidently lean into it.
Romantic to realistic view of intuitive flow
Aiming to be in intuitive flow doesn’t mean everything will then be hunky-dory. You still get lost in the dark, needing to step forward with a flashlight and using our internal compass to guide us! We won’t always feel we know the answers. We all experience trials and challenges. But the more we follow that intuitive voice and live in flow, the easier it becomes to return to it and trust it’s not lost completely.
Even when we get stuck that intuitive voice can eventually help us to find the right mentors and communities to support us moving forward — even when flow has vanished, and it all feels clunky or sticky. We are after all here to learn which is a challenge and we are ‘being worked and stretched’. However when we listen to the intuitive voice, it puts us in touch with our highest ethical values, driving us towards expressions of this.
What can help us achieve this flow?
To enter the state of flow takes practice and there are different ways of approaching it. Practices like meditation, qigong or self hypnosis help to concentrate and slow down the mind, leading to deeper, more absorbed states — just short sits of 10 minutes can support this. Being willing to ‘get out of the way’ is primary! Setting your intention to listen to your intuition and be in flow is a powerful act and we will repeatedly return to this objective as our journey unfolds.
Clearing the energetic, emotional or mental (limiting beliefs) blockages that prevent you from expanding in various areas in your life or opening to the intuitive voice is also important, by reducing the over thinking. Doing the deep healing work and hard graft, working on the subconscious mind which I experience as trapped, resistrive fields of energy is important for example to remove limiting states of fear or paralysis when you get triggered thus making it hard to be open.
Practicing channelling in different forms — such as writing or painting or channel communication with spirit guides, switch the ‘conscious mind’ off and allow something to flow through you, be that art or messages. Or whatever form flow arrives for you, if that is cycling or gardening, start to try and mirror this experience in other areas of your life… Notice, how does it feel for you? How can you continue in this state of flow or introduce it into different areas of your life.
The ultimate aim of intuitive flow is to be in a state of mind which feels nourishing, expansive, deeply connected, knowing and has an ease that draws us back again and again. We decide to operate from this space because it’s so satisfying, feels deeply aligned and life feels enriched. We feel like a vibrant expression of life and can live purposefully.
Further reading
Working with Intuitive Intelligence in decision making and leaping towards your calling
Strategy vs Intuition: the importance of trusting our intuition and being in intuitive flow
Nicole Drummond, Intuitive Healer for Highly Sensitive People and mentor to Souls with a Mission www.nicoledrummond.com
