When was the last time you really connected with your inner voice? Have you talked to yourself lately? Written down your thoughts, hopes and dreams? How often have you meditated? Alice McCall offers these types of tips and more in order to help you achieve a better identity through reconnecting with a part of you that you may have forgotten about – your inner voice.
By Alice McCall
Finding and harnessing your inner voice is about tapping into your personal power; your ability to gauge what is the best answer to each question in your life. It is about deeply having a clear vision of self at a soul level, versus the conscious mind. Then not being afraid to listen to and trust the truth that your inner voice shares with you.
Sometimes the message we receive from our inner voice isn’t the one we were hoping for. It could be a call to give up what has become familiar, to take on new challenges. It takes courage to follow your inner voice, courage to surrender, courage to trust, courage to follow a new calling, and courage to make the hard choices.
Listening to your inner voice with courage is leadership in action. It embodies putting yourself and your values first, creatively expressing your authentic self, and honoring what you want out of life. When you take the time to learn who you really are deep inside, and honor that part of you, great things happen!
Each of us may ‘hear’ the call of our inner voice differently. Here are some easy exercises to help you connect with yours. Begin each exercise with a few deep breaths while in a quiet setting.
1. Use pen and paper. When a thought or idea comes to you write it down. Don’t think about grammar or spelling, just let it will flow out.
2. Talk to yourself. It may feel a little odd at first, but talking to yourself can help you connect with your inner-most needs. Recording the conversation is a great way to revisit the entire message, without the distraction of taking notes.
3. A picture is worth a thousand words. It you are visual in nature, use it to your advantage. Sketch, draw, or paint without a conscious purpose. Go with the flow and see where it takes you.
If these exercises aren’t working for you, ask yourself simple questions, like:
– What brings me joy?
– What would I like to change?
– If I could do anything tomorrow, I would…
Questions such as these are great tools for jump-starting your connection with your inner voice.
All of these techniques will help tune you into your inner voice, but the most important avenue for accessing and harnessing it is developing a practice of connecting with your heart.
Why the heart? It is both a cellular mass of muscle that keeps blood flowing, and an electrical transmitter and receiver. Scientific studies have compared the electrical activity (Cycles Per Second) between the brain and the heart. The results are that the CPS of the brain averages 0-30 CPS, and the CPS of the heart is at 250! Therefore, the heart is a much more powerful sender and receiver of energy and information than the brain. The heart is also the only part of our body to be soul and God connected.
If this seems odd to you, take one of your fingers and point to yourself. Where did you point? I’ve done this exercise with hundreds of people and 99-percent of time they point to their heart or chest area. Even your brain that controls all of your bodily functions knows that self, the embodiment of who you really are, resides in the heart!
Each of us are unique creations with special skills, knowledge, and purpose. Although it can be helpful to seek answers outside of ourselves, when we rely on others input, we are receiving that person’s perspective through their unique lens. Information and wisdom tailored specifically for you can be sourced from inside of you with the help of your heart and soul. I begin every healing session and guided meditation by helping clients connect to the inside of themselves for that very reason.
Steps to try a heart meditation:
Focus on your heart. Start with closing your eyes and quieting yourself. Breathe deeply and slowly. Then bring your attention to the center of your heart, your source of wisdom.
Use intention. Set an intention for your meditation, as all follows intention. For example, you could say, “I intend that I will receive information or understanding that will be useful to me in my life right now.” Your intention will set the direction of your heart meditation experience.
Be patient. When I started my practice of connecting with my inner voice through heart meditations, it took sitting in a meditative state many times before I received any information or guidance. Consider the phrase ‘develop a spiritual practice.’ Like anything that requires practice, it isn’t always easy or immediately gratifying. However, with practice, that which is rewarding, inspiring, and enlightening is just around the corner for you.
Make a commitment. Commit to the practice of connecting with your heart and inner voice. Be disciplined about maintaining it and amazing things will happen. Soon you will be so hooked on your new heart meditation routine that you couldn’t imagine ever giving it up.
So you’ve connected with your inner voice, and received a pearl of wisdom, what’s next? With continual practice, your inner voice can become stronger, a guiding force in your life that can lead you to your heart’s desire.
Alice McCall is a Cellular Level Healing Consultant who helps clients remove unwanted patterns, transform health issues, and connect with their heart and soul via phone sessions. McCall’s book Wellness Wisdom and meditation CDs are available at www.HealingPath.info and Amazon.com.