Navigating through Change:
Tuning into your Inner Guidance System

By Richard Michaels and Marcia Goldberg

Navigating through change is a constant part of living. How we navigate through change impacts our health and well being. There are a myriad of choices and actions we must take to keep our lives in balance. The escalating demands of the workplace, relationships, and being true to one's self, compete for our attention. The way we respond to the changing demands of these three areas determines the quality of our lives.

The answers we seek, to successfully navigate change, lie within us. In addition to the miracle of our innate intelligence regulating physical functions such as digestion and circulation, there is another part that has valuable guidance for our well being. This "inner guidance system" communicates with us through physical sensations, emotions, intuition, and insight. This system has its source in who we are-our essence.

In our busy lives we have lost touch with our inner guidance system. The result is greater stress, disease, and dissatisfaction. Once you connect with and create a relationship to this system you can use it as a resource to receive answers to small as well as major life questions. It is a touchstone that is in integrity with who you are at your core.

What you focus upon grows. If you are focused on trying to figure out solutions using logic alone, the information you receive will be limited by conditioning from the past. The logical function of your mind is great at sorting information and creating plans. However, the quality of your life depends on using both your logical mind and your inner guidance system. We have learned to overly depend on our logical mind. This has weakened the integral function intuition and insight plays in giving our lives direction. Cultivating our ability to pay attention to physical sensations and emotions reestablishes this connection.

The first step in communicating with your inner guidance system is to slow down and turn your attention inward. Once you are in touch with your body and emotions you can begin a dialogue with your inner guidance system to receive the answers you seek. Slowing down to get in touch will yield more meaningful and satisfying results as you move forward in your life and work.

Step I: Creating physical, mental, and emotional awareness

1. Sit in a comfortable position. Close your eyes. What do you notice about your connection with your body and emotions in this moment?
2. Begin to observe your breath without changing it. Just notice it. Become aware of the subtle movements in the body as you inhale-notice what you feel as the body expands to receive the breath. Notice what you feel as the body relaxes on the exhalation. What are you aware of in your belly, chest, ribs, back, throat? Feel the breath as it enters and leaves your body.
3. As you continue to remain aware of the breath, what other physical sensations do you notice? Begin a dialogue with yourself starting with "Right now, I'm aware of …" You may notice the point of contact between your body and the chair, the air touching your face, tension in your shoulders, or an itch on the surface of your skin.
4. Continue this focus on the breath and body for several minutes. When you are ready, become aware of the subtle sensations that form a recognizable emotion. Where does this emotion live inside your body? Notice what size it is, does it have a color? Does it have a shape? How does it feel, as you stay present with it? Explore the edges of the sensations of this emotion within your body. Do not judge or try to change whatever experience you are noticing.
5. Now what do you notice about your connection with your body and emotions? Open your eyes.

Once you have formed a close relationship with your body and emotions you can continue with a dialogue that will provide you with the answers you seek.

Step II: Dialogue with your inner guidance system:

1. Identify a clear question.
   
   Example: Fred felt deep fatigue from long hours of work, barely eking out time for his wife and two young daughters. The only other thing he had enough energy for before he went to bed was T.V. Having completed a strategy for his company's new direction, Fred felt that there was no plan for his personal life. He felt flat spiritually. Looking at himself he thought, "this is not who I am, not what I want to be, but this is where I am". He felt trapped in a box that was not bringing him joy. He wanted information about how to get out of the box - how to create a life that was balanced and fulfilling in all areas.
   
   
2. Ask: What do I want to experience?
   
   Go deeper into the inquiry of what you want. Give this inquiry not to the analytical mind, but to the body and the emotions. You may ask your heart, breath, or belly. After you ask this question, spend time noticing the sensations and the subtle messages that come. Allow whatever comes into your awareness to simply pop out without judgment. You may want to make notes as things come to you.
   
   Example: Fred discovered that he longed for spaciousness, time for rediscovery, and time for himself and his wife and family. He wanted to get in touch again with his sense of desire and what really excited him personally.
   
   If you don't know what you want, you may first want to explore what you don't want. For example:
   
   I don't want to only have the energy to work at my career.
   I don't want to be isolated from my family.
   I don't want to miss out on enjoying the simple things of life.
   
   For each of the things that you don't want, notice what you wish would be present instead. For example:
   
   I want to balance my energy and time between work, family and self.
   I want fun filled intimate times with my family.
   I want time to smell the roses.
   
   
3. Articulate what you want in a simple statement.
   
   Look for a felt sense, "in your bones" that resonates as "yes". Let this statement incubate, reread and adjust it as necessary.
   
   For Example: Fred saw that he wanted to have energy instead of being depleted, wanted to slow down and form a new foundation for his life, and work smarter, not longer.
   
   
4. Experiment with putting what you want into action.
   
   At this point your habitual thinking may say you cannot have what you desire. Instead of capitulating, Ask: What is my next step to bring this into my life. Make your step something that you feel good about and small enough that you can actually do it within a week. Set up a time each week to create another step. Small steps actually taken are giant steps.
   
   For Example: Fred started with a plan for a hike, time to browse in bookstores, time for re-envisioning himself and his relationship with his wife.

Ironically, our ancestors had more of a handle on listening to the wisdom of their inner guidance system, than we do. They were more advanced in understanding and responding to the messages within that tuned them into their authentic needs. That is the very same quality that we need to rebuild to successfully navigate life in the 21st century. We need to slow down and relearn how to listen to the inner messages of our body, mind, and spirit. As we learn to receive these messages we come home to ourselves. We become the conscious creators of the lives we wish to live.

Richard Michaels and Marcia Goldberg are certified life coaches and present workshops on personal, professional and spiritual development throughout the US and Canada. Richard lives in Great Barrington, MA and Marcia in Quakertown, PA. They will be offering an “Exploring Your Life Mission” workshop in Michigan in July. Call 989-833-7777 for details.