10 Myths about Intuition

By Nigel and Maggie Percy

There are a lot of myths about intuition. What follows is a look at the 10 most common ones, the ones which most people will have heard of.

Let's see how valid they are...

First of all, let's make it clear what we're talking about here. Intuition is, quite simply, the sudden access to knowledge which is gained in a way other than through the usual five senses of taste, touch, smell, sound, or sight. That means it can include such things as a hunch or feeling, hearing voices, using tarot cards, palm reading, dowsing, visions, a gut reaction and so on and on and on. If you were thinking that intuition covers just a small area, then think again!

It's often seen as 'feminine' ('woman's intuition'), which is another reason why it is often not taken seriously. Why is it seen as feminine? Probably because women are brave enough to admit to having a feeling about something, whereas men are too busy trying to be logical and rational to admit that they have the same thing too!

Now let's deal with those 10 myths.

1 Not everyone has it.

Oh yes they do! Everyone has this ability to know things which they can't explain. When people say this, they are really saying something like, “I don't have it,” which, in turn, is really a way of saying that they don't listen to it (probably because of one of the myths lower down in the list). But everyone does have this ability. Think back and be honest and you'll agree that you have hunches, feelings, a sense of certainty about something which you couldn't explain at the time. At least once. Probably more. That's your intuition at work.

2 Not everyone can access it.

Everyone CAN access it, if only they believe it's there! If you didn't believe a hotel existed, you wouldn't bother trying to make a reservation, would you? But the main point here is that you don't even have to believe in it for it to work. The mere fact that you have had any sort of response outlined in the first answer proves that it is accessible.

3 It is totally unreliable

The best answer to this is the question, “What in life is totally reliable, apart from death and taxes?” The people who follow this myth are really complaining that their intuition hasn't told them exactly what to do for a precise and specific incident or time. Things like which horse to put the mortgage money on at 300-1, or which place to go to to find their perfect partner. Asking for specific help CAN bring about results, but it isn't some perfect oracle. Life is meant to be for living. If you had a way of finding out exactly what to do / say / act / etc., where would the interest be??

4 Only crazy people say they listen to it / have it / use it.

If by 'crazy' you also mean filthy rich and powerful, then I'd have to agree with you. Bill Gates, Oprah Winfrey, Conrad Hilton, virtually every major entrepreneur and businessperson has owned up, publicly, to listening to their intuition. In fact, they usually say that they feel their intuition was the reason they made a significantly profitable change in their business. Successful people in all fields own up to their intuition. For example,

“Have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” Steve Jobs (co-founder of Apple)”

“Often you have to rely on intuition.” Bill Gates

“I never get the accountants in before I start up a business. It's done on gut feeling, especially if I can see that they are taking the mickey out of the consumer.” Richard Branson

“I guess I feel that I was following my instincts, and at the same time being guided by the best. I became totally intrigued with Louisiana-the people, the food. It is a part of my life. Everything that has happened for me since moving here has just been icing on the cake.” Emeril Lagasse

“The only real valuable thing is intuition.” Albert Einstein

5 It will only work if you spend hours of time perfecting it

It will work whether you want it to or not!! You can spend many hours trying to read tarot cards if that is what you want, but you can know who is phoning you before you even pick up the receiver! In other words, it doesn't always have to be in a form you want or accept. It happens to us everyday in hundreds of small ways and you can, if you feel you should, learn one method of tapping into your intuition. But it will come and find you in different ways as well.

6 You have to be born with the ability

Nope. Not true. Except that everyone IS already born with the ability. There are always going to be people who show remarkable talents at an early age, or just seem to have always been like that. But just as someone can be concert pianist and the next person can pick out a tune, it's a matter of degree. The concert pianist has found his or her way of expressing talent. The tune-picker can probably beat the heck out of the pianist at bridge or water-polo or physics. Everyone, however, does have the ability to listen to their intuition.

7 You have to be religious to believe in it

Again, not true. For some people, it is easier to fit in their beliefs if they see it as coming from God, or as being a gift of God. That doesn't, however, mean that you have to be religious in order to have intuition. This is simply a means of explaining it.

8 You have to be an atheist to believe in it

The same argument applies here as for the previous one. However you believe in it, it is not going to alter its existence. So, if you are more comfortable in explaining what happens when you get a hunch or something similar by using either of these two arguments, it is not going to alter the fact that the hunch (or whatever) happened.

9 Only women have it

Well, it's true that the term 'woman's intuition' is used an awful lot, but the answers above (particularly the answer to number 4) should put the lie to this one!

10 There's nothing scientific about it; no proof that it even exists

What sort of proof are you after here? How about the countless numbers of stories from people in all walks of life attesting to the fact that they knew something in advance of it happening, or that they knew something they couldn't possible have known?

If those aren't good enough, then what about Rhine's experiments in the 1950's with people predicting cards? Hugely boring but carefully controlled.

Then there's the current investigations into the areas of the brain which might explain how intuition works. (Hint, if there wasn't something to investigate, then it is doubtful that scientists would spend time doing it.)

Don't be confused with those people who want to disprove something (like The Amazing Randi). They are determined to prove that people are duping themselves or others when they perform certain actions. This is not a scientific investigation of intuition. It is simply finding flaws in what people do and is not concerned with proof in the wider sense.

So, where does that leave the myths about intuition? Hopefully, flat on the floor. Myths are myths because no-one wants to investigate them. Of course, the real reason no-one wants to is interesting in itself.

What is so bad or dangerous or scary or weird about admitting that there's a part of us which actually does operate in a way we can't quite yet explain? We don't know how the brain works yet, but we're happy to poke around. It's a physical thing, right there, which you can look at and see. Unfortunately, you can't poke around in the same way and discover fascinating stuff about intuition. That doesn't mean that it is not worthy of study, or of acceptance.

Lat's face it, we humans have it....but you knew I was going to say that, didn't you?