"I Had a Feeling . . ." Listening to Your Internal GPS!

Have you ever been on the verge of doing something, and then had a feeling rush over you like some kind of warning? It happens to everyone. You're about to say or do something, but there's a little, nagging feeling inside fighting you. You might as well be in a boxing ring—sometimes it’s that strong. Do you pay attention, or do you do it anyway?

That little feeling inside of you, that unidentifiable "thing" you feel in your gut, is a guide of sorts; like an internal GPS. Imagine you’re driving. Your GPS is directing—the soothing woman’s voice saying, “In half a mile, turn left.” You hear it, but you’re talking or not paying attention. Of course, you miss your exit. Now you have to do all sorts of rerouting to get you back on track to your destination. Your internal GPS is like that; it lets you know whether you should proceed with something, proceed with caution, or back off altogether.

What happens in most cases, however? You’re not really paying attention. You may feel the feeling, but you rationalize yourself out of it. It usually ends up backfiring—making you have to reroute to get you to where you wanted to go. I can already hear you saying, "I had a feeling I shouldn't have gone to the movies last night. The projector broke and we all had to leave." Yeah, that feeling is usually right on target.

Next time you have to make a decision about something, sit still. Does it feel absolutely right, or is there something inside of you, whispering, "No, no, no?" Your internal GPS is usually right. Listen!

You will be glad you did.