By Georgina Barrick
Some years ago I wrote an article about intuition and its value in business, particularly as an indicator of levels of consciousness and the role it plays in the success of high performing 21st century leaders. In our fast-paced, globally-connected idea economy, it has become even more important for business leaders to trust their instincts and intuition. Here's why . . .
Any decision we make – business or personal – will have consequences. But the decision-maker who can make accurate decisions on their feet and take the leap is the same one who will likely learn from the bad consequences and use the good ones to create a continuous pattern of success. The successful leader is one who taps into "sixth sense" thinking in response to making decisions under pressure.
Intuition has become a business survival skill that we all have the ability to tap into – but many don't all use it. Companies that used to run purely on old methodologies and "this is how we've always done it" are being pushed out of their comfort zones– and sometimes out of the market entirely – by the disruptors. Disruptors are innovators who have tapped into their intuition and creativity who don't get slowed down by over-thinking, and spend that time making their next move intuitively.
One of the biggest disruptors we've seen in recent years is Airbnb, now known as "the $1.3bn room-letting website", which has turned the tourism industry on its head. According to a variety of articles and reports, the Big Idea – required for disruption or the creation of new business revenues – came when two 27-year-olds were battling to pay their rent.
Brian Chesky and Joe Gebbia had met five years earlier at Rhode Island School of Design and, knowing there was a design conference coming up and the hotels in their city were fully booked, they came up with the idea of renting out three airbeds on their living-room floor and cooking their guests breakfast.
By the next day they had created a website and six days later they had a 30-year-old man from India, a 35-year-old woman from Boston and a 45-year-old father of four from Utah sleeping on their floor, at a cost of $80 each a night. Says Chesky: "As we were waving these people goodbye, Joe and I looked at each other and just had a feeling that there's got to be a bigger idea here."
And there was. To say that "the rest of the story is history" would not be fitting . . . their gut-instinct idea is growing as you're reading this, and people around the globe are renting couches in Hong Kong, single-rooms in Paris, and entire homes in Cape Town. Not only are the three (Nathan Blecharczyk was brought in to take care of the website and all things techie) making huge money, their "sharing revolution" is enabling anyone who has a property to make money too.
While many may say these guys were "lucky", I believe they went beyond business thinking and tapped into a level of consciousness within themselves that tells us when an idea or a business move is a good one. The concept of consciousness in the workplace is becoming more acceptable in the 21st century as more and more highly successful global leaders share their insights into using creativity, intuition and, of course, time in quiet reflection. The ability to really "feel" our intuition requires a special kind of "listening".
So, how do I tap into my intuition?
The best way I know to access the intuition I need for decisions that will affect my business, clients, team members and even my personal life is to be completely awake to the "gut feelings" I get almost every day. It's easy to ignore them and to be pulled in different directions. Sometimes we worry we don't have the perfect set of information to make the intellectual decision, but if we are quite for a while, most of the time with near-perfect accuracy, we intuitively know the answer. To reach this point often requires spending time in quiet reflection or contemplation. That's contemplation without interruption; focusing on the issue at hand in a calm and measured way without allowing worry or fear to dominate.
Often, the right answer comes when you're in the shower or out walking; when you are not actively thinking and in touch with a higher consciousness that is critical to ongoing high performance. The Airbnb guys didn't worry about their idea – they went with their gut-feel that people would pay for a small place to sleep and a breakfast.
It is this "intuitive knowing" that sets business leaders apart and, when backed by a team that knows the urgency with which ideas need to be implemented, the knowing becomes a real solution or a step towards one.
It's also important to note that if worry - that is, allow a stream of what-ifs, buts and vague misery to interfere with decision-making, we are no longer in touch with our intuition and run the risk of making fear-based decisions. Turn off the TV, radio, mobile devices. If writing your thoughts in a journal help you to stay positive and on track with the result you want to see, do that. Focus on what you feel – not think - will be the best solution for the situation and start looking at ways to implement that.
Remember, while you were worrying about how you're going to pay the bills, three guys in a small room in San Francisco were renting out sleeping bags and making a profit . . . and all of it began with a feeling (or intuition), belief in that intuition – and the action required to make it happen.
Every one of us has intuition – a lot of it unused in a world that demands "facts and figures". Tap into yours and join people like Warren Buffett, Oprah Winfrey, Richard Branson, Henry Ford, Rosa Parks and others who have intuitively known how to garner success without knowing for sure how their choices would turn out.
