A thought by John Townsend from his
book, Leading From Your Gut (p. 14). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. (Click
on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)
And we need to really understand this,
we really do. So what is it?
John says, “Sometimes it is referred
to as your subjective, internal, or inner world. However, at the end of the
day, it is simply your immaterial life. Within you are values, thoughts,
emotions, and passions. They cannot be seen or touched because they are not
physical. But they are real, they exist, they are an essential part of you—and
they will serve you well if you honor and develop them.
“Some theorists define intuition as
the ability to understand something without using conscious reasoning. My own
definition is broader. I see intuition as the capacity to make decisions based
on integrating objective and subjective truth. That is, when we access both
internal and external information, we have a much more accurate understanding
of reality, and a greater ability to make the right decisions. Thus, intuitive
leaders—those who lead from the gut—pay attention not just to numbers and
research, but also to their own heart, as well as other internal realities.”
He goes on, “I believe Jesus was
referring to a similar dynamic when he said, ‘Love the Lord your God with all
your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind’
(Matthew 22:37, emphasis added). When we integrate all of ourselves in seeking
him, our lives work better. In the same way, when we integrate all the avenues
of truth we can access into our leadership, we can make much better decisions.
“There are a few other terms that can
be confused with this understanding of intuition, and it may help to clarify
these:
•Instinct: Instinct is an
innate, inborn behavior pattern that does not have its basis in learning. For
example, birds build nests without seeing how their parents did it. And I have
seen leaders act to protect their people without a thought for themselves, as a
parent acts on instinct to save her child. A good illustration of this is a
business owner friend who, hearing that an employee’s child was very sick, ran
out of a board meeting and went straight to the hospital to help.
•Impulse: An impulse is an
abrupt emotion that is strong enough to drive a behavior without thinking about
it. For example, rather than thinking through the source of the frustration, a
leader may impulsively lash out.
•Spiritualization:
Spiritualization is the tendency to use one’s faith to avoid making tough decisions.
It can be driven by a fear of making mistakes, a fear of conflict, or even by
laziness. For example, a CEO might say, ‘I’m waiting on the Lord for a leading
about whether or not to acquire that company,’ when the truth is that the CEO
is avoiding time-consuming due diligence work or potential conflict with other
leaders.”
John then says, “Intuition, as I use it
with my clients, differs from instinct, impulse, and spiritualization. It is hard
work that requires a lot of thinking, feeling, and talking things through, and
then allowing all those aspects of decision-making to shake hands with one
another. But time and time again, I have found that the best leaders make the
best choices by engaging in this approach.
God gives us so many ways to help us to make a difference and this a good one to look at, understand and accept, isn’t it?
God gives us so many ways to help us to make a difference and this a good one to look at, understand and accept, isn’t it?
Yes, yes!
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