Your inner guidance system is your connection to the Universal Mind as well as the sum total of all the wisdom and experiences you've accumulated up to this point in time. Remember that your inner wisdom and experiences come from your soul and that they transcend this one lifetime. The purpose of your inner guidance system is to help you stay on course with your life map.

Think of your guidance system as your conscience. It lets you know when something you may have said or done or left undone is inappropriate. Of course, you have the power to override your inner guidance system, and chances are you do it all the time. Everyone does. Have you ever caught yourself saying, “Why didn't I listen to myself?” It is only natural to get caught in the battle between your ego and your conscience. One is authoritative and looking for instant satisfaction, while the other wants to do the right thing.

Your inner guidance system is loaded with intuitive knowledge. It knows the answers to your deepest questions, and if you will take the time to listen, you will hear them. It is better to have doubt than to race blindly forward with a false sense of security. Remember that the drive of your free will is the stuff that resurfaces in your karma of the future.

Building Trust and Confidence

It takes time to build trust and confidence in your inner guidance system. It is the same as developing any other skill. It takes patience and the willingness to risk making mistakes as you work toward your goals. Many people are overwhelmed easily and give up because the end goal seems unobtainable.

Over the past twenty years there has been a movement to help individuals build confidence in themselves to face challenges in life that they never thought they could. Businessmen participate in fire walks just to prove to themselves they have what it takes. Outward Bound programs challenge participants on treks through the wilderness, over the ocean, or up steep rock cliffs. The common goal is to help you realize that you are capable of facing any situation in life, whether it is career-oriented or personal.

The key to developing your trust and confidence is to start with one step at a time. If you only focus on an obstacle that is too big to climb, you will never have the opportunity to get to the top. If you work toward a small and easily achievable goal, when you reach it, you will have accomplished your short-range objective. You will then have more confidence that you can make it to your next goal. And before you know it, you have accomplished your long-term goal.

These small reachable goals are usually in tune with your inner guidance system. Each step of the way provides a balance. Giving yourself permission to take a small risk, and knowing that you have a safety net created by past success, you will become better and better at reaching toward the unknown. There is a great thrill of adventure when you are traveling in sync with your life map, in tune with your inner guidance system.