Harnessing Intuition: The Power of Inner Guidance in Business Success
Kc Rossi, PCC 00:00:02 Welcome to Heart Glow CEO™, where high achievers evolve into purpose-driven powerhouses. I'm Kc Rossi, your Integrative Leadership Coach. Join us to break free from people pleasing and burnout, exploring mindset, embodiment, and soul alignment. Discover expert insights, success stories, and actionable tips for wholistic wealth on your terms. This is where transformation meets the modern female leader. Let's go!
Harnessing intuition: The power of inner guidance in business success.
In this episode, we are exploring the profound impact of intuition not only for business success, for conscious leaders and entrepreneurs, but I guarantee that even though you may not be a CEO or solopreneur, that you will benefit from this — because we are going to dive deep into the ways that intuition can guide pivotal decisions, enhance personal well-being, and lead to greater fulfillment.
Alongside practical techniques and inspiring stories, I will share a heartfelt poem that speaks to the physical and emotional symptoms often experienced by driven individuals, and how they serve as messengers, guiding us toward deeper self-awareness and holistic health.
Kc Rossi, PCC 00:01:27 All right. So we're going to start out with this powerful poem. The author is unknown, but I first heard it from psychologist and meditation teacher Tara Brock. These words speak to the very core of our being and the messages our bodies send to us. So get cozy. It's a little bit longer of a poem, but it is completely worth it. It is titled Felt Sense.
“I am the pain in your head. The knot in your stomach. The unspoken grief in your smile. I am your high blood sugar. Your elevated blood pressure. Your fear of challenge. Your lack of trust. I am your hot flashes. Your cold hands and feet. Your agitation and your fatigue. I am your shortness of breath. Your fragile low back. The cramp in your neck. The despair in your sigh. I am the pressure on your heart. The pain down your arm. Your bloated abdomen. Your constant hunger. I am where you hurt. The fear that persists. Your sadness of dreams unfulfilled.
I am your symptoms. The causes of your concern. The signs of your imbalance. Your condition of dis-ease. You tend to disown me. Suppress me. Ignore me. Inflate me. Coddle me. Condemn me. I am not coming forth for myself as I am not separate from you. I come to garner your attention, to enjoin your embrace so I can reveal my secrets. I have only your best interests at heart as I seek health and wholeness by simply announcing myself. You usually want me to go away immediately, to disappear, to sleek back into obscurity. You mostly are irritated or frightened, and many times shocked by my arrival. From this stance, you medicate in order to eradicate me, ignoring me, not exploring me. That is your preferred response. More times than not, I am only the most recent notes of a long symphony, the most evident branches of roots that have been challenged for seasons. So I implore you. I am a messenger with good news. As disturbing as I can be at times. I am wanting to guide you back to those tender places in yourself. The place where you can hold yourself with compassion and honesty. If you look beyond my appearance, you may find that I am a voice from your soul. Calling to you from places deep within that seek your conscious alignment. I may ask that you alter your diet, get more sleep, exercise regularly, breathe more consciously. I might encourage you to see a vaster reality and worry less about the day-to-day fluctuations of life. I may ask you to explore the bonds and the wounds of your relationships. I may remind you to be more generous and expansive, or to attend to protecting your heart from insult. I might have you laugh more. Spend more time in nature. Eat when you're hungry and less when pain or bored. Spend time every day, if only for a few minutes being still. Wherever I lead you, my hope is that you will realize that success will not be measured by my eradication, but by the shift in the internal landscape from which I emerge. I am your friend, not your enemy. I have no desire to bring pain and suffering into your life. I am simply tugging at your sleeve, too long immune to gentle nudges. I desire for you to allow me to speak to you in a way that enlivens your higher instincts for self-care. My charge is to energize you to listen to me with the sensitive ear and heart of a mother attending to her precious baby. You are a being so vast, so complex, with amazing capacities for self-regulation and healing. Let me be one of the harbingers that lead you to the mysterious core of your being, where insight and wisdom are naturally available when called upon with a sincere heart.”
I hope you enjoyed that as much as I do. As much as I was just in awe when I first heard those words, I immediately had to look it up and take some time and be still with even these words. I related to them so deeply. I hope that you were moved as well.
I thought about how this stillness and insight and wisdom that are natural there, naturally there inside each one of us when we call upon them.
Kc Rossi, PCC 00:07:02 I really feel that this perfectly dovetails into understanding intuition.
So what is intuition? How would you define it? I would love for you to just pause for a minute and see what bubbles up from within. Intuition is different from logical thinking with definitive knowing based on facts. It is a feeling. It's an inner knowing which yes, can be definitive once you develop a relationship with your inner voice. Think of it like strengthening a muscle. Some refer to it as a sixth sense. I believe we are all born with this ability. Is it a gift? I think so. It allows you to tap into a deep wisdom and heart coherence. You know, like you know, like you know… your gut instinct without needing external proof to validate the knowing or the feeling. Now, why is this important in your professional life? You tell me. I'm guessing you can think of a time when you had a felt sense and went against it. How did that work out for you? I'm guessing that you have a couple examples rolling around in your head.
Kc Rossi, PCC 00:08:23 I usually do when like a very direct question like that comes about. I'm like, oh yeah, here was a time, here was a time. And on the flip side, when was the last time that you had a niggling feeling within and listened to it? Maybe not even fully 100% knowing why, but that in the end you were so, so glad that you trusted yourself. I mean, it could be something like getting a bad vibe from a potential new hire, and then a couple days later, maybe you find out something of their past that really wouldn't have been aligned with your company culture. Or it doesn't always have to be something where it's like, oh wow, I dodged a bullet. It could be that your perfect right match appeared a couple of days later because you knew you needed to pause. So a lot of different directions that can go in. It could be a timing thing. Tuning in on the best time to have a difficult conversation, ask for that raise, or take time off based on a feeling when you just know that you need to charge your inner battery.
Kc Rossi, PCC 00:09:27 So tuning in to your inner voice, it allows you to lead better, build trust, and make better decisions. That's the shortlist. And I don't know about you, but my hand is raised like, yes, please. I would love to lead better, build trust, and make awesome decisions. Yes!
For me personally, I tune into my intuition every single day. At the beginning of business, like this is going back maybe 33 years ago, I did not have a relationship with my embodied voice. The feeling was very willy-nilly flying by the seat of my pants and the quote unquote “strategy” at best, was hope. Can you relate? So hence starting ten different businesses in a four-year period. My bestie Sher and I just bounced from idea to idea, hoping for the best outcome. And it wasn't until our 10th venture took the world by storm and we experienced rapid expansion did I start to tune inside to make moves - There was like a solid foundation, and I had a little bit more curiosity to tune in and just kind of wait for that inner gut instinct, whether it was, should we attend this trade show? Is this hirer right for us? Is now the time to expand even further? You know, just having this very different way of being while just being — more grounded, expansive, consistent.
Kc Rossi, PCC 00:11:00 Remember, and I say this often, you take you wherever you go. So when you start to develop this skill, you will start to see it show up in your work world, but you will also start to see it show up in different ways that you care for yourself, care for others, make personal decisions…. basically how you navigate in the world. There wasn't this constant need when I really started to tune in, to explore outside and ask everybody and their uncle's opinion. And there's something very empowering about that. Now, I'm not saying we have to do things in a silo and, you know, you have to have this fierce independence because we all need people. And there are so many resources at our beck and call that I highly recommend leaning on. This is something different. This is really talking about this muscle, this strengthening, this inner voice. Now, I'm particularly attuned to auditory messages and can immediately feel an untruth spoken. I didn't have to work at this. It just came by continually building self-trust and following the inner whisper versus dampening down and letting the mental control tower overpower.
Kc Rossi, PCC 00:12:18 Can you relate to that? I want you to just think about that for a minute. How often in your life do you allow your mental control tower to overpower, to overpower you? Your thoughts, your words, your deeds? And as we know, those all lead to your results. That's a really good invitation for a journaling prompt.
So whether you are new to this or have a profound relationship with your intuition, reminders are always welcome at any stage because life is busy and we are bombarded with content and distractions and noise. And in order to tune in, there are a few simple key things. Our breath, listening, tuning in, further attunement, and then action on the messages. Some people ask me, “But Kc, how do you really know?” I've done several podcast interviews with people on intuition. In fact, I will dump a couple of them in the show notes in case you're curious to just even see an interview style with like, the “inquiring minds want to know” questions and then my personal feedback and strategies.
Kc Rossi, PCC 00:13:37 So I'll drop a couple of those links in the show notes.
In a nutshell, I have found that intuition is swift. It's very different than the typical overthinking, ruminating monkey mind rolling through all the pros, cons, rights, wrongs, and SWAT analysis. It's quick, real raw, and may not make perfect sense in the beginning. And that's where the trust comes in. It's a dance, a practice of building trust with your gut. And trust me, it will serve you.
What is essential to know is that in order for your inner wisdom to have a chance, it needs space, quiet, and attendance. You have to slow down long enough to quiet the noise and turn inward. That's it. Right? You don't need a whole ten-step process. It's very simple. But we do have to be intentional about it. So I'm going to give you a few steps just in case. this is absolutely brand new. And that's perfectly awesome. We start where we are and then we just approach ourselves with space and grace.
Kc Rossi, PCC 00:14:50 So very simple, simple simple mindfulness meditation to build your intuition.
So just find a quiet space wherever you're going to be comfortable. Turn off all your beeps, buzzers, phones. You may want to set a timer, but absolutely not necessary. But some people like the comfort of setting the timer on their phone for two minutes and maybe gradually increasing that as they feel more comfortable. Whatever feels good to you - If it starts to feel like a pressure to have a timer, you just skip that. If it feels like I don't know how long I'm doing this, I'm feeling weird about it. You can just set the timer… so whatever feels good for you.
You just want to get really comfortable in like a really open-hearted position. Straight spine. You can rest your hands in a comfortable position. You don't have to sit, cross-legged, you know, it's you can let all of the formalities and “shoulds” drop away and do what feels good to you, even asking yourself, ‘What is the best posture for me to tune into me?’
Kc Rossi, PCC 00:15:59 That could be a really cool way to just drop in versus having a to-do list on how to do this. Are you catching my vibe?
So you can close your eyes. Because when we start to shut down our outer senses, we can really start to tune in a little bit easier to the inner. So when we take out the eyes, that's one sense. When we take out additional external noises, now we're we're shutting down another sense. And so you can really start to harness some of those other inner, maybe less utilized senses. That's a really nice way to start dropping into the breath, see how it moves in and out of your heart space.
And then you can just observe what happens. And you know that thoughts will inevitably arise, right? Don't fight it. Just let them pass through. Just like clouds in the sky. If you were ever, you know, fond of that, where you lay on your back in the grass and it's a sunny day and you're looking at the clouds and they just float by so effortlessly.
Kc Rossi, PCC 00:17:07 That's how we want to approach our thoughts, which are just going to arise. You can let them pass on through. You don't have to get attached to them or make a story.
You can just bring your focus back to your breath each time you notice your mind wandering. And then just tune in. Tune in to yourself. Pay attention to any sensations in your body. You may notice areas of tension or discomfort and you can just breathe into them. Give them permission to relax and release.
And all through this time, as you continue practicing this mindfulness meditation, you'll just start to become more attuned to the subtle signals and the feelings within you. You won't even have to try. It'll come just really fluidly. And over time, this heightened awareness will help you recognize and trust your intuitive insights.
Sound like a plan? I'm so excited for you to practice this. And you know, for me, and I think for many people, it really helps to know like the “Why bother?” question. Like why put the time and effort in, you know, when there are so many demands and there's such a big to-do list and, we're really attracted to shiny things, whether it's a new Netflix series or our inbox or the social media scrolling.
Kc Rossi, PCC 00:18:32 So like, why is this going to be sexy enough for me to say no to those things in order to carve out a little space for this? And here are just a couple of things.
It's going to enhance your awareness. It's going to help you drop into the present moment, making it so easy to notice subtle signs. Now, why would that be interesting if you could have higher situational awareness and increased emotional intelligence… How would that help you at work? How would that help you as a leader? How would that help you as a partner? What would it do to change your motherhood? I mean, something that sounds so simple, like it enhances awareness. You could poo poo that.
But when you dig in of, like, when I'm right here, right now, in the present moment, and because of that, I can easily pick up subtle, intuitive signals. That is a game changer.
Also, we know that it reduces stress. Calming the mind using meditation reduces stress and anxiety, which can cloud your intuition.
Kc Rossi, PCC 00:19:45 And I don't know about you, but I don't know anyone that would not welcome stress reduction because that is a whole nother podcast episode. Because there is a cascade of biochemical disturbances that happen when we're in stress and our cortisol level is high and we constantly go into fight and flight. I'm not going to go off on a tangent, but just trust me when I say that by calming the mind, meditation reduces stress and anxiety, which we know can cloud your intuition.
It also improves emotional regulation. It helps you manage your emotions better so you're not going to go from 0 to 60. There's a little bit more balance which allows you to make clearer, more confident decisions. Again, one of the biggest things I helped my executive clients is with the decision-making piece. When they have to have difficult conversations with their direct reports, when they really need help negotiating for better pay. Those are just a couple of the examples where it's like, how do I just come back to my calm core and make clearer decisions? – Which also enhances your communication.
Kc Rossi, PCC 00:20:55 As a side note. And then the other one that's coming to mind is strengthening your connection with your inner self. And again, you bring you with you wherever you go. So regular practice deepens your connection with you, fostering a stronger, more reliable sense not only of yourself, but of these messages that are just really there for you. They're there for you. You don't have to work hard for them. That's the other thing. You know, sometimes when I see new meditators, they have their eyes closed. They're focusing so strong on their on their point of focus that their brow is all furrowed and they're just like their shoulders are up to their ears and they're like, I can't see anything. Okay, take a breath. Relax, relax. Allow it to come to you. This is nothing you have to force. It will bubble up. Just soften, soften, soften. So by dedicating just a few minutes each day to a mindfulness meditation, you can significantly enhance your intuition, which we've already shared leads to more insightful and aligned decisions in both your personal and professional life.
Kc Rossi, PCC 00:22:08 I want to put a little caveat here. You do not have to become a YogiPreneur. I just made that word up! To benefit from using intuition alongside traditional business strategies. I am a big fan of a hybrid approach. You know this already about me. The sharp, tried and true business practices mixed with that spark of magic that only comes from within your soul. This combo will make you unstoppable.
So, for example, maybe you're ready to grow your business. You may know that you need support to get to the next level, but maybe not exactly sure what kind. Perhaps it's a sales strategist or a money mindset coach, or an online business manager. And on the one hand, you can do a self-assessment to identify the biggest gap or untapped potential. Awesome. Hello spreadsheets, metrics, pros, cons, research, reviews? You get the idea. I am not saying take that away. We trust that that is our foundation. But on the other hand, and this is the part that's often ignored and you're only giving yourself 50% of a chance when you combine these.
Kc Rossi, PCC 00:23:18 Boom, we have synergy. So on the other hand, once you've narrowed down the what, your instinct or intuition may just have a feeling of the who. That gut instinct, the vibe check. An inner knowing of this is the best match for me. Does that make sense? I just want you to see how they work in tandem. And it's just kind of like that, you know, one plus one equals ten. You can 10X your results by bringing in both sides of the coin; the solid foundation of the tried and the true and the metrics and the linear. And then the flip side of that inner knowing… the bubbling up. It is more passive right where it's just going to come. It floats in.
I'm going to give you another personal example. Last year, my partner and I were having some relationship bumps. We agreed to start couples counseling and so I researched, I read reviews, I scoped website after website, and then I stumbled on a conscious uncoupling coach. Now, at first it seemed totally counterintuitive to pick an expert at helping couples break up when our intention was to strengthen our love bond.
Kc Rossi, PCC 00:24:38 But my intuition was really strong, and it was like, nope, this is the woman for us. And we went for it. And nine months later, she's been an excellent partner for us to play this big, courageous game of love. Thank you, Heart Wisdom!
All right, back to you. What is your next step after listening to this? What are you pulled to? Are you excited to start deepening your relationship with your inner voice? The mindfulness meditation is just one example of doing so. I want to put a little asterisk here. It could be as simple as just taking a breath and asking your inner self to allow the greatest truth to arise. Then pause and listen. Don't get tripped up that you need an app, the perfect relaxing music soundtrack, or even verbal guidance. This is about you developing a relationship with you. You get to make the rules and what bubbles up might surprise you. Enter in with an open and soft mind. Release attachment to the outcome. Because even though intuition is powerful, my invitation is not approaching it like it's a magic eight ball that will pop out the perfect answer when you shake it. Deal?!?
Kc Rossi, PCC 00:26:01 All right, again, I am so excited for you to practice and play. I truly mean when I say DM me with what you experience. This stuff lights me up like no other, so I am all ears.
Thank you so much for joining me on this journey of self-discovery and business empowerment. Remember, your intuition is a powerful tool— Listen to it, trust it, and let it guide you to your highest potential.
In our next episode, we'll be exploring the art of mindful leadership and how staying present can revolutionize your approach to leading a team. So stay tuned for that.
And as always, if you found this episode helpful, leave a quick review at www.lovethepodcast.com/brilliance. It really helps to support me and the show. Until next week. Breathe Joy!
