Whenever you hear a motivational coach or even a psychologist talk about life lessons, they will tell you to trust your instincts. You know, you are told that you need to sniff out those who are up to no good. You have to trust your intuition when it comes to what place is best to go on vacation and so on. Also, if your gut tells you not to purchase a large item from a particular merchant, you have to listen to that. Is that the best advice? Here is the answer for you: not really.
Why in the world would you not pay attention to your gut? Especially since listening to your gut has worked for you in the past. Here is the thing. Listening to your intuition sounds like that is the thing to do before attempting anything. However, research shows that intuition alone is not going to keep you out of hot water or trouble.
What Do You Rely On If Relying On Your Intuition Is Not The Thing To Do?
Researchers who went to Harvard at the University of La Verne in California say that thinking analytically and logically will get you much further in life than relying on your intuition alone. Certain programs make it known that intuition is best in the empathetic sense but science says otherwise. How did the researchers come to this conclusion? Through many observations, they found that people made much better decisions by weighing pros and cons and analyzing the choices they had in front of them which ranged from how to conduct the best job interviews to purchasing a home.
If they relied on intuition alone, they would not necessarily be making the best choices. Perhaps the emotional side would get in the way of intuition which could be disastrous. That is because your emotions may make you think you are going with your gut feeling when in fact they are not – those are your emotions. You have to use logic and be analytical instead of focusing on your intuition.
However, does that always mean you should forgo your intuitive side and only stick to analytical and rational thinking? You don’t only want to do that or else even though using your rational side and analytical thinking may serve you the best, you may not necessarily be happy with the end result. What is the solution then? You can tie your intuition, logic, and analytical thinking together.
How Do You Tie Intuition With Rational And Analytical Thinking Together?
There are situations when you can go with your intuition. If you feel strongly about something, then you cannot ignore it either. However, you need to take it a step further by examining it to see if the thing you feel strongly about is the right fit for you. You may find that it is not and you will regret it too if you only rely on your intuition.
Here is a scenario to help explain that better. Say if you are looking for a new car, and your gut tells you that the black Honda Civic is the best car. If you ignore your analytical side and logical side and purchase the car, then you may find that even though you felt compelled to buy it, you may not like how it performs and you may end up regretting the decision. If you used your analytical and logical side, you would look into why you like that particular car and examine why it is better than the others. However, if you find that the car is not the best-performing one through deep analysis, then you would look at other options and find the right car that way.
Therefore, you can use your intuition but don’t forget to use your head as well when it comes to making essential decisions or going into situations.