Intuition

I've been thinking this week quite a a bit about intuition. More and more I've come to realize that I'm an intuitive person. I've know this for some time, being identified as an "N" as part of the Myyers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI).

I think I've always known though, that I have a knack for figuring things out, relatively easily without thinking about them much. I also really enjoy puzzles, particularly word puzzles.

One of the moments that's burned in my memory of seemingly pure intuition on my part happened when I was 13 years old. I was sleeping and woke up suddenly after hearing a sound I couldn't immediately identify. After about 3 seconds, the thought popped in my brain battery acid!. It was was one of those moments of intuition where everything all of a sudden makes sense.

So I jumped out of bed, realizing that the batteries in the back of my stereo on my nightside table had busted. I grabbed some towels and started cleaning it up.

For me it was incredible how quickly I was able to identify the problem, simply by the sound. I must have been able to sort through the possible causes of that in a flash.

Since then I've always had a keen sense that I am a highly intuitive person. It sounds arrogant but I that's a misunderstanding of what that means. For me, it means I like to try and figure things out by reasoning myself, and that my thinking is not linear. Often flashes of insight, which have been built up through acquired knowledge appear to me.

It means I also enjoy puzzles and figuring out what acronyms are without needing them explained.I would guess that many intelligent people would have this ability to see shapes and patterns where others simply see data.

In fact, John Ralston Saul in his book On Equilibrium speaks about Intuition as one of the key qualities that makes us human. The others include, Common Sense, Ethics, Imagination, Memory and Reason.

Currently Reading:


Filthy Lucre by Joseph Heath
Welcome to the Urban Revolution by Jeb Brugmann
Black Swan by Nassim Nicholas Taleb