Intuition at Work— Follow Your Curiosity

Photo by Miriam Espacio on Unsplash

Have you ever had a sixth sense feeling that something was off, a small prickling of your intuition? I’ve heard stories from some of my trusted friends about feeling an ache in their right leg, and later on finding out that a close relative had injured his leg at that same time. As a surfer, I’ve had this feeling in the water. A tingling that something was not right. It’s happened multiple times, and one of those times I later learned of a shark sighting at the break I surfed that day. Often we dismiss and forget these feelings of intuition— this makes no sense, it’s not logical.

Most people know me as a skeptic. Full of questions to examine and pick out the most rational and logical answers. I trained in the Stanford computer science department. Despite this, I am learning to trust my intuition.

How do you listen to your gut and how do you express intuition in the workplace?

As a product design leader at Facebook, I remember debating the merits of a gut decision with other technologists. We all could get on board with having an understanding of the qualitative research, knowing what the data & metrics said, and when the direction was ambiguous, having to make a gut decision. We agreed, however, that the gut decision was based on years of experience that is likely a subconscious pattern matching based on prior situations that have been encountered.

While that is a fine approach, it’s lacking an aspect of faith and trust in oneself. We have an instinct for what’s right and wrong about certain situations. Our leadership will show up more powerfully if we surrender to this intuitive knowing without having to rationalize it. We will be more powerful if we embrace the magic of our intuition.

I vividly remember coming home after an interview with a Series B startup focusing on big data cleansing & visualization. I flopped down on my bed and moaned. You see, I knew that I was going to work there and my head was fighting that knowledge. This was weeks before an offer eventually was made and I received multiple other offers and eventually decided to go to this startup. My gut knew that it was right for me. My head said that the product wasn’t the most interesting. I didn’t think that I wanted to return to enterprise software after having worked in the design of consumer products for 10 years. At the same time, I knew that I had had two of the best conversations in my life with the CEO and VP of Product. I knew it in my bones. I had a yearning to spend more time with them and to join them in their vision of building both the culture and the product of this company. And my intuition was right— it was an amazing 2 years with fabulous people working on huge problems.

To listen to intuition at work, follow your curiosity and follow your inklings about people.

What If My Intuition is Wrong?

If I have a gut feel, how do I know to follow it? 
What if I’m just in a bad mood or have indigestion?

There are three strategies you can try to help evaluate if an intuition is true or if it’s a lie.

1. The power of perspective. If you’re facing a decision and have a gut feel one way or the other, take the long view and see what feels right. Look at the decision and see how it will sit in 10 minutes, 10 days, 10 weeks, and 10 years. What does your gut say about those time frames?

2. Let it go. For now. You don’t have to make a decision or act on it immediately. Instead let it go and see what happens over time. When you wake up tomorrow morning, are you still thinking about it? Has the feeling changed? What about a few days later? When designing, sometimes the most powerful solutions to a question will appear in the shower or on a run several days after you’ve first starting considering it. Yield to your subconscious brain, and likely an answer will appear. And if you never think about it again, then perhaps that was also meant to be.

3. Curiosity and intuition are close kissing cousins. What happens when you direct your curiosity to the intuition & gut feel? In product brainstorm sessions, participants are encouraged to phrase questions in the “how might we…” format. This opens up possibility and whitespace to ask the questions.
   - How might we learn more about this feeling? 
   - How might we collaborate together? 
   - How might we sit with if this is true or not?

What If I Don’t Know My Intuition?

What if I’ve never heard my intuition before?

There is a magical witchiness to opening up and listening to what your intuition is telling you. The best way to do this is via practice. Two paths towards intuition are with innate tools that are always with you — writing and your body. A third is through following your curiosity about people.

1. Writing with curiosity. Joan Didion said, “I write to know what I think.” If you’re searing for more intuition, consider starting the practice of morning pages, from The Artist’s Way popularized by Julia Cameron. First thing each morning, write 3 pages in a journal. It doesn’t matter what you write, if it makes sense or if it’s even legible. If you don’t know what to write, write: “I don’t know what to write” over and over again. The mechanical act of connecting pen to paper frees up cognitive resources and opens up access to creativity and intuition. Write from a place of curiosity and your intuition will come.

2. Listen to your body. Stop throughout the day and do a scan of your body. Which parts of your body want attention. Pay particular attention to your core — heart, chest, and stomach areas. If you’re experiencing emotions, such as dread or attraction, where does it originate in your body? Get curious about the sensation. Does that unlock any intuition?

3. Which people are you drawn to? What is it about them that’s attracting you? Is it an idea of theirs, a physical attraction, or simply some unknown chemistry? Get curious about why you’re drawn to them. 
   I’ve found it’s often easier to develop an intuition around people than around things.

Curiosity & Intuition

The opposite of curiosity is certainty and knowing. If you already know the answer, then why bother seeking more. When we are experts, when we have a clear 100% view of what’s right, then there is no place for curiosity.

So, as a path to accessing intuition, follow your curiosity. Each moment of the day, ask yourself: “What am I most curious about right now?” If you follow it, intuition may appear.

Bottom-Line

We don’t typically give ourselves permission to be intuitive, and especially not at work. We second-guess ourselves and need to be rational, logical problem-solvers. What would it look like to open up to more intuition? What would it look like to have a little more magic in our lives? For your next major decision, try listening to your gut. Follow the path of curiosity and it will lead to a more intuitive experience.