Listening to Your Inner Voice: How to Tap Into, Trust, and Strengthen Your Intuition

Lately, I’ve been getting quiet nudges — reminders to slow down, to listen in, to trust my intuition.

Intuition is something I’ve always known I had. But honestly? I haven’t always trusted it.

There have been so many moments when I wished I had, moments where I knew deep down what the right thing was, but still talked myself out of it.

One of the biggest lessons came from my last job.

I had just landed my dream promotion: managing a big team, building the career I’d always imagined. On paper, it looked perfect. But inside, something felt wrong. My intuition was quietly, then loudly, telling me it wasn’t right.

I was exhausted, disconnected, and starting to lose myself. Even my body was rejecting it. Sleepless nights. Overthinking. Nail biting. Disassociating. I was officially burned out.

Still, I fought it. My brain told me I couldn’t walk away. That I’d be letting people down. That leaving meant I had failed.

The inner critic got louder: “You weren’t good enough for this. You’re just an imposter.”

It took time, and a lot of inner turmoil, but eventually, I listened. I chose myself. I left. And it turned out to be one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.

Today, I’m in a role where I’m supported, valued, and most importantly, feel like myself again.

The only thing I would change? I wish I had trusted myself sooner.

So here, I am going to share with you everything I’ve learnt about intuition in my healing journey.

1. What is Intuition? Understanding Your Inner Wisdom

So, what exactly is intuition?

I would describe it as that inner knowing, your gut instinct. It’s always there, quietly listening and guiding us, even when we’re too busy or distracted to notice.

The Oxford Dictionary defines intuition as “understanding something instinctively, without the need for conscious reasoning.”

In other words, it’s the part of you that knows without needing a spreadsheet, a ten-step plan or a pros and cons list.

The problem is, life gets noisy. We’re pulled in a million directions, and those quiet nudges often get drowned out.

But those little nudges, that something feels off feeling or the urge to do something, that’s your intuition speaking.

Sometimes it’s big things, like taking a different route to work for no obvious reason and later finding out there was a major crash on your usual road.

Sometimes it’s survival-level instincts: you’re walking down the street, notice someone acting strangely, and something inside you says, Go into that shop. Stay safe.

And sometimes, it’s the smallest things.

Like the countless times I’ve paused over something while shopping — black bags at Aldi, for example — and thought, “Nah, I don’t need that.” Fast forward to getting home and, surprise, I’m out of black bags. That little nudge? Yep. Intuition.

It might feel small, but it’s powerful.

The more you learn to notice it — and trust it — the stronger it gets.

Your intuition is always available. It’s just a matter of tuning in, trusting, and letting it guide you.

How to Tap into Your Intuition: Step by Step Guide

If you’re wondering how to actually connect with your intuition, here’s a practice that changed everything for me.

(I got this from the book The Life-Changing Power of Intuition by Emma Lucy Knowles (affiliate link). This is my take on a technique from there. If you want to go deeper, I seriously recommend grabbing a copy.)

Here’s how to get started:

1. Find a calm space 🧘‍♀️

Somewhere you feel safe and comfortable with no distractions.

2. Get comfortable 🛋️

Sit or lie down in a relaxed position. Whatever feels good to you.

3. Start with your breath 🌬️

Close your eyes.
Inhale slowly for a count of six.
Exhale slowly for a count of eight.
Feel your body soften a little more with each breath.
Do this for at least three minutes to help your mind settle.

4. Ask your body: “What’s my intuitive yes?” 💖

Calmly repeat the question in your mind. Notice where you feel a sensation, maybe warmth or a tingling. For me, it’s a warm feeling in my heart. Yours might show up somewhere totally different.

5. Return to your breath, then ask: “What’s my intuitive no?” 🚫

Again, feel for any physical signals. Mine shows up as a tightening in my lower belly but there’s no wrong answer here. It’s all about your body.

6. Practice with real questions 🔍

Now that you know what “yes” and “no” feel like, try asking simple questions and tuning into the sensations. As you get more confident, you’ll be able to do this anywhere, out shopping, at work, on a walk — by simply pausing, breathing, and checking in with yourself.

And if you don’t get it at first, don’t worry.You’re not doing it wrong. Like anything building trust with your intuition takes time. Keep showing up, keep listening, and it will get clearer.

Your intuition is already speaking. This practice is just about learning how to hear it — and trust it. 💬✨

How Do You Know and Trust It’s Your Intuition

I know sometimes it feels like your “intuition” is just your anxiety – I really do get it. So how do you actually know when it’s your real inner voice talking, and not your overthinking brain going into overdrive.

True intuition feels calm, clear, and kind.

It’s not screaming at you. It’s not layering on guilt, fear, or “what if” spirals. It’s more like a soft nudge, a quiet but confident knowing that cuts through the noise, even if it doesn’t always make logical sense right away.

Anxiety, on the other hand, tends to feel loud, frantic, and clingy. It’s that spiralling, overthinking voice that demands immediate action and floods you with “what if” scenarios. Basically: if it feels overwhelming and comes from a place of fear, it’s probably not intuition.

Intuition: Calm, grounded, a quiet inner “yes” or “no.”

Anxiety: Racing thoughts, worst-case-scenario loops, just total emotional chaos.

Now, about trusting it.

You’re not gonna trust it overnight. Building trust with your intuition is like building trust with a new friend. You’ve got to listen, show up, and give thanks for when it’s right (because it will be right more often than you think).

Daily Intuition Practice to Strengthen Yours: 2-Minute Check-In

Next time you’re stuck between a “should I” or “shouldn’t I” moment, try this:

Pause whatever you’re doing.

Close your eyes and take three slow, deep breaths. Like you’re trying to exhale out all the noise of racing thoughts.

Ask yourself:

👉 “If I already knew the answer, what would it be?” Don’t overthink it, go with the first feeling, word, or image that pops up.

Notice the feeling:

If it feels calm, simple, and clear → that’s probably your intuition.
If it feels urgent, panicky, or exhausting → that’s likely fear or overthinking.

✨Bonus tip✨

Trust the first answer. Don’t argue yourself out of it five minutes later.

Then try to start with small stuff. Test your gut on everyday decisions:

Which coffee shop feels right today?
Which person in the meeting gives you good vibes?
Where should I have lunch today? Don’t overthink it, let it come naturally to you

The stakes are low, but the practice is real. Every time you follow that inner nudge, even for tiny things, you’re sending yourself the message: “Hey, I hear you. You can speak up more.” And guess what? It will.

Remember: Your intuition doesn’t shout, it whispers. You just need to be quiet (and brave) enough to hear it. Try this with everyday decisions, no matter how small. The more you practise the more you will strengthen yours.

Intuition and Psychology: What’s Going On?

Intuition isn’t just some woo-woo spiritual thing. Psychology actually backs up what so many of us feel deep down: your brain and body are constantly picking up on tiny cues you’re not even consciously aware of.

From the understanding of my own research, psychologists call it “subconscious pattern recognition.”

How I understood is that, basically, your mind is like a supercomputer — quietly gathering millions of data points from your past experiences, body language, tone of voice, gut feelings and serving up a snap judgment without you even realising it.

That sudden feeling that something’s “off” about a person?

That quiet knowing that a choice is right (even when you can’t explain why)?

That’s your intuition doing its thing, powered by all the inner wisdom you’ve already collected.

The best part? When you learn to listen to your intuition and balance it with conscious thought, you’re making decisions with your full power — both the seen and unseen parts of your mind.

It’s not magic. It’s not guessing. It’s you, fully tuned in.

Final thoughts

We all need to practise using our intuition, me included. It’s a superpower. One that we have access to on a daily basis.

So let us all trust our guts, and let intuition guide us, because deep down, you already know what’s best for you. It’s not magic, it’s just you (and me), trusting our inner light.