Fear vs Intuition: What’s The Difference?
By Laura Kelly-Pifer
How do you know when your gut is telling you not to do something verses the feeling you get because you are thinking about stepping out and doing something not within your comfort zone? Sometimes they feel the same, right? You get butterflies in your belly and you don’t know what your gut is really telling you. Today, I want to share with you how I’ve learned to tell the difference between fear and intuition.
First off, let me say that sometimes you just know what you need to do. There isn’t a whole lot of thinking involved because deep down inside, you were able to immediately say yes to a project or an idea because you had zero doubt and it didn’t intimidate you. Unfortunately, doubt and fear, sometimes will hold us back from being who we were meant to be and then that can mess with our decision-making. When that happens there are three things that I do to determine whether or not to move forward.
When making a decision, I ask myself this question. “Will I regret not doing ______ in 10 years?” When I decided to start my coaching business, I asked myself this question…”Will I regret not starting my own business to help supplement my income in 10 years?“ And, my answer was yes. I knew at that time, even though it wasn’t my intention to coach full time, that the extra money I made could help our family and I could help “pay it forward” to help others get healthy. Five years later that supplemental income has exceed my full time income and I’m doing what I enjoy, while being able to be there for my family.
After I know the answer to my “regret question,” I will then think about my project or idea and how it makes me feel. Does it feel restrictive or exciting? If it’s something that makes me feel restrictive, that’s usually my gut telling me it’s not such a good idea. If I’m excited but nervous and get sweaty palms, that’s usually just fear and I know that it’s time for me to move out of my comfort zone. When I thought about becoming a coach, it excited me and yet I was scared. I was scared because it was new but, I was also eager to dive in, learn more about helping others and lose a few pounds in the process and the excitement won over the fear.
Last but not least, if I’m still not sure about what direction I should move, I’ll do this. I’ll ask a friend or relative, someone who will be honest and that I trust, to watch my body language and/or listen to the tone of my voice when I talk about this new project or idea. I want them to tell me if I seem excited about it or not. That excitement is the key to deciding if I should move forward or not. When I recently decided to enroll in a course, I used this last exercise to help me decide if it was the course I should take to help me expand my services. I enlisted a family member and chatted about this idea and I am pleased to announce that I am almost at the end of my course. That excitement is still there and yes, I’m still a tad bit nervous but I feel it was the right decision. These three exercises above, helped me confirm that.
Something to think about as I end today’s post, “Nobody ever died of discomfort, yet living in the name of comfort has killed more ideas, more opportunities, more actions, and more growth than everything else combined. Comfort kills!” – T. Harv Eker
Now that you’re armed with the same tools that I use to help me determine the difference between fear and intuition, go out there and use them. It truly is an honor to serve you!
With Love,
Laura
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Laura Kelly-Pifer is a Fitness Coach who strives to help others by giving hope and support to those that are dissatisfied with their current situation. Whether you are lacking physically, emotionally, financially, or nutritionally she is here to help you see REAL RESULTS!