The Difference Between Intuition and Fear by Rina
How do you know the difference between a choice made intuitively and a choice made out of fear?
As a high schooler, I’m faced with decisions every day. From picking what font to use for a slideshow to deciding what colleges to apply to, choice has proven to be a major part of my high school life.
The thing is, though, not all these choices are made confidently. There are choices made out of fear and insecurity, and choices made out of intuition. But how can we differentiate between the two?
Think about the last time you had to make a decision under pressure. Maybe your friends asked you where you wanted to eat, and it was only ten minutes before the mall closed. Or maybe, your parents got divorced and you had to pick who you wanted to live with.
I find that decisions made under pressure are often made very apprehensively, because I don’t know what's going to happen. Fearful decisions are made when I have a lack of knowledge surrounding the situation and its consequences, its like I’m in the dark and asked to press one of two random buttons, not knowing what they do.
However, fearful decisions aren't always made in uncertain times. Sometimes I know full well what the outcome of a choice will be, but external factors–like peer pressure or self doubt–affect my decision to make the ‘right’ choice. It is then I find myself making fearful decisions.
In contrast, intuitive decisions are ones I am far more confident in. The most common situation I find myself making intuitive decisions in is multiple choice tests. Though it sounds silly, a multiple choice test is all knowledge I have learned before–I just have to recognise the right answer. It is then my intuition kicks in, like a guiding light saying yes, over here! You will put your full faith in that light because you are confident in it.
And no, intuitive decisions aren't always correct. But confidence is a major factor in growing as a person and developing a strong sense of self trust. By trusting your intuition, you learn to trust yourself. There is value in that.
The biggest difference between intuitive decisions and fearful decisions though is CONFIDENCE. I am confident mostly in my intuition, because again, I base it off of what I have learned and experienced prior to when I am faced with a decision. Fearful decisions are ones I make almost blind- with no prior knowledge or experience. In our squad sessions, we thought of it like a magic 8 ball, if we’re shaking it—is the answer going to be yes or no? How do we feel about that?
Our decisions should align with our gut feelings, and in our squad sessions we learned how to detect those subtle shifts in our physical being that can point us in the right direction.
In one of the squad sessions, we did a simple exercise of asking ourselves, “Dear body/soul/self, remind me what it feels like when you say yes (or no) to me” and observing the changes in how we feel. I find that that exercise allowed me to be more in tune with my body and my emotions, which is a key factor in making smart decisions. I encourage you all to give it a try too!
Additional tools for when you may be in crisis:
U.S. Crisis Text Line: 741-741
Ohio Mobile Response and Stabilization Services: 1-888-418-MRSS (6777)