Connecting with Your Inner Voice
Norma T. Hollis

Do you listen to your inner voice? This is the voice that speaks within you that no one hears except you. Each person has one. Some recognize it and some don’t. Some are even frightened of the voice. But it’s a voice that is your friend and exists to assist you to claim your higher good. Are you using it?

Your inner voice is often referred to as your GPS system. In today’s life a GPS system for your car is quite common. I received a GPS system as a Christmas present about three years ago. I was very excited about the gift and began using it immediately. I remembered when I moved to the Los Angeles area three decades ago. As a native Detroiter I was accustomed to the Detroit’s layout with perfectly aligned square blocks. So I thought all cities had a similar layout. I found this is not so in Southern California. In my early years of getting lost on the streets of Los Angeles I would make a logical right turn thinking that four right turns would get me back to my starting place. Not so. The blocks in Southern California were not always square. Four right turns would often lead me to a place of greater frustration because nothing seemed familiar. It was hard to find the logic and harder to find my way.

I later learned about street maps that would enable me to find most streets based on a preprinted book. There was even an alphabetical index that led me to places that would otherwise be hard to find. However with books in print it didn’t take long for the information to be obsolete as new streets and bridges were constructed and other places were demolished. Before long the map was no longer viable and had to be replaced.

Then came the satellite GPS system. All you do is type in the address you are seeking and you not only get visual directions but also a pleasant voice guiding you along the way and often telling you that it has to “recalculate” because I made a wrong turn. It’s come to the point that I depend on my GPS system to get to any unfamiliar place. I have even carried my GPS system with me to cities where I was booked to speak so I could find my way around the city. GPS systems are now a standard feature on most new phones. Now I no longer have to carry my GPS system, all I need is my phone.

It’s amazing how much easier life is with a GPS system. Whether it’s a written map, a dedicated system run by satellite or one that is included in a phone, life is much easier when I am guided to the destination I am seeking, especially when it is by a voice that has prior knowledge of where I should go.

This is the same guidance that is available through a personal GPS system. The voice that speaks within gives you direction of where to go and what to do with your life. The voice can be used in many ways, but it cannot be used at all unless it is recognized, trusted and followed.

To recognize your inner voice you must acknowledge that you have a GPS system within you. Then you must recognize how the voice speaks to you. Think about times that you talk to yourself. You may be declaring “I don’t talk to myself”. Well actually, you do. Each time you say to yourself “I’m hungry, what do I want to eat?” or “What shall I wear today?” you are talking to yourself. These are questions everyone asks each and every day. And we usually ask this question silently rather than out loud. And lo and behold, we give ourselves an answer. Unless you go outdoors without clothes or do not eat – you are answering yourself each time you ask the question. By recognizing how you receive your answer you begin to see how the voice speaks within you and gain insight on how to tune into the channel of your voice.

People get answers to their questions about dress and clothes in different ways. Some voices speak through the memory of food previously eaten or how one felt when purchasing or wearing certain outfits. Others get internal feelings that reveal answers. For others it may be thoughts or something in the gut that is a knowing. However you get the answer of what to eat or what to wear – this is a clue to how the voice speaks to you. Learn to recognize it when it is there.

I learned to speak to my inner voice as a young eight year old child. At that time I developed a hole in my eardrum that was only treated by the topical application of an acid feeling solution. The pain was extremely traumatic and the treatment had to be repeated regularly. This was followed by a year of unrelenting ear aches. While the adults in my life were sensitive to my situation they did not know how to help me deal with the pain. As a result I learned to listen to the voice that spoke within. I also learned how to recognize the voice and how to communicate with it. As a result I have a very vivid relationship with the voice that speaks within.

My voice speaks to me within my head. It’s just like having a conversation with someone who is looking me in the eye however there is no one present, only the voice inside of my head. When I first heard it speaking to me I started a conversation and clearly told the voice that I didn’t know what voice it was. I made the conclusion that if this was a “good” voice that was speaking to me then it must also be a powerful voice – after all, it was able to get inside of my head.

Here’s what I did to recognize the voice. I told the voice that if it was real then it would be able to do some phenomenal things. So if someone spoke to me in the next week and mentioned the word “elephant” then I would have some confirmation that the voice was real. But I also wanted a second confirmation so I said that I needed to see someone wearing red socks within the next week. Much to my surprise both requests were granted. And when I continued to ask for confirmation I got it – each and every time. From that point on I was confident that I had to follow this voice because it had the ultimate power.

Try this yourself. Give your voice an instruction and give it time to comply. Once you have done this often enough and received confirmation you will be confident about the voice that lives within you. Find it, test it and trust it and allow your GPS system to lead you.

Author's Bio: 

Norma T. Hollis is America’s Leading Authentic Voice Doctor®. Her Authenticity Audits provide prescriptions to help people find, live and share their authentic voice. Her programs focus on numerous aspects of authenticity – stress reduction, time management, leadership, parenting, communication and overall personal development. She also has in-depth workbooks and audios on each of the nine dimensions. Take her free Authenticity Assessment by going to www.NormaHollis.com and clicking #3. Be sure to sign up for her free Authentic Tuesday teleseminars. Contact Norma for speaking engagements, coaching programs and an Authenticity Audit at Info@NormaHollis.com.