“Do I need to back up my files before I re-set the computer?” I asked the support person.

“No. You’ll keep all of your files.”

Me: “Ok. Let’s do it.”

What happened next? I’m sure you can imagine.

Sure enough, I opened my re-set computer yesterday afternoon to find that all of my documents, pictures, and videos were gone.

We don’t really get it until the worst has happened

We buy earthquake insurance AFTER an earthquake.

We stop smoking, start eating right and exercising AFTER we’re diagnosed with cancer.

We say, “That’s enough” AFTER we’ve ground ourselves into exhaustion.

Only when we have experienced loss, a startling diagnosis, or crisis do we know through our bones and souls that we need to take action. That’s when we see others REALLY turn their lives around and make significant, life-altering change.

Wouldn’t it be great if we could get those jolts of realization BEFORE disaster? Sometimes we’ll have close calls, and those can definitely help to point us in better directions. Other times, we need to rely on our own self awareness and intuition to ward off the not-so-nice events in our lives.

Our intuition is sound – listen to it

It was there. My intuition had the power to voice its concern: “Do I need to back up my files before I re-set the computer?”

I heard the answer inside my head as well: “Yes, you should.”

I chose to dismiss that voice in favour of the person on the other end of the line who, while giving prompt, courteous assistance, had nothing to lose in telling me that everything would be there after the re-set.

I didn’t trust that voice inside my head. The voice that knows me inside out. I didn’t listen.

Trust your intuition

That little voice knows us through and through. When it speaks, we need to trust it.

Instead of immediately dismissing the voice, listen deeper. We can then be fully present and aware of what it brings forward. With that, we can discern if it is indeed our intuition – a helper – or our fear – a hindrance.

So what’s the upside to learning the hard way?

It offers us perspective, often about what is most important to us. It’s 20-20 hindsight that we can use to reflect not only on the effects of the hardship, but also in all other areas of our life. We can up-level that hindsight to check in with ourselves and ask our intuition if it has any other messages it’s been sharing that we’ve either ignored or dismissed.

I invite you to take a moment now, as I did last night when I wrote this post, to consider your current situation.

  • What has your intuition shared with you lately that you might have ignored?
  • What is it sharing with you right now?
  • What is one thing you can do today to take action on what your intuition tells you?
  • Do it!
  • Set regular times for an intuition check in.

Know someone who isn’t listening to their intuition or the signals the universe is sending them? Share this message with them. It could be the exact thing they need to read today.