We all have gifts that we were given in order to navigate our lifetime.  Many of us have suppressed these gifts, as we were unsure of how we would be taken by the people around us and didn’t want to appear weird, flaky, or spooky.   I’ve been told I’m flaky and spooky at times, and it no longer stops me from embracing and using my gifts on a daily basis.  Be brave, I assure you, tuning into your gifts is going to give you grace and ease moving through your life.

Here are 10 simple steps to getting to know your intuitive self. Ready to dive in?

1. Know and embrace your ‘weird’ side.  Are you someone who just “knows” things?  You don’t know why you know, you just know?  This is called Claircognizance and is one of the four ways your inner guidance works to support you.  When we are children, we have this inner knowing running through us all of the time. Have you ever noticed how children are comfortable with some people, but immediately pull away from or avoid others?  Or how they just know something even when there really isn’t any reason for them to be aware of the situation?  They are relying on their inner knowing, and it helps them navigate their lives as new souls.
2. Do you dream?  Do you have déjà vu?  Do you have a knack for envisioning something when it’s been described to you, then having confirmation when you see it in real?  Clairvoyance is something we all have a little bit of, sometimes it’s our strongest intuitive gift.  Clairvoyance is being able to see that which isn’t appearing in a physical form before us.  Déjà vu is from prophetic dreaming, meaning that you dreamt about the situation prior to seeing it, the feeling of déjà vu is very odd, but if you have been experiencing it your whole life, it is time to start to paying attention to your dreams so that you can trust that it is coming as a gift to you.
3. Do you sometimes hear things inside or outside your head that are answers to questions, or confirmation of something you were thinking about?  Clairaudience is not only hearing within your own mind, but picking up the lyrics of a song, or pieces of an outside conversation that seem to be relevant to you.  You can also hear the voices in your head of someone who has passed away.  Individual Angels and Spirit Guides can come to you and may also speak to you in your mind, helping you sort out your problems and making suggestions to keep you safe.
4. Goosebumps?  Chills? Feelings of warmth when you make a good decision or have a great idea?  These are confirmations of the empathetic gift called Clairsentience, meaning ‘to feel’.  This is also that really good or really bad feeling in your stomach in response to a person or an idea.  Pay attention to how you respond to something or to someone.  Your body is giving you inside information about whether the decision you are about to make is going to be good or bad for you.  If it doesn’t feel good, you know that it’s not in your highest good.  When you get “the creeps” about someone, you know that something about them is just not good for you, and you need to act accordingly.
5. We all have voices in our heads, don’t worry it doesn’t mean we’re crazy.  The voice in your head that is the worrier, the negative nelly, that undermines our confidence, is your Ego.  You can love your Ego, as it also tries to keep you safe.  However, if you focus on the other voices in your head, you will find they are more conversational, more optimistic and gentle on you.   This is the dialogue with your Spirit Guides and Guardian Angels.  They have been with you since birth, and continue with you, through your lifetime, to guide you, support you and encourage you.
6. Trust – this is a big one.   Many outside forces, predominantly our parents and our peers, have discouraged us from using our gifts, as we need to follow logic to ‘make something of ourselves’.  How then can we explain to ourselves and others that these gifts are not logical, they are intuitive.  So, when you are following your intuition, people cannot understand how or why you make the choices you do, even when you prove to be right.  It is important to allow yourself to start trusting yourself again.  Use your gifts and see what you can determine about yourself and the outside world.  When you get it right, that is good confirmation, and will help you to gain trust, with yourself, that your gifts are indeed real and useful.
7. Be confident.  When you just know or just feel something is right or wrong, step up!  Tell yourself it’s okay to use the gifts and be confident when sharing with other people.  Be confident that you are capable, and able to make decisions for yourself, based on the information that comes to you naturally.  Intuition is natural; it’s not spooky or freaky or odd.  It is the gifts that come with your soul to help you navigate this lifetime.
8. Be respectful of other people’s boundaries and their belief system.  Just as you have things that you believe and don’t believe, so do others.  It is not ethical to share information with people without them asking, or first seeking their permission.  It’s like spying.  The Universe will provide information to people who are open to receive, but that does not mean you are entitled to volunteer information you receive for someone else. If you start to do work like readings and healings, you will be asked and given their permission when you are engaged to do the work.  You don’t want to walk up to someone at a bus stop and tell them that your guides have told you what they need to do to change their life.  Please be courteous and ethical when using your talents.
9. Walk a spiritual path.  This doesn’t need to be anything major, but start looking into yourself, working on your own healing, and living a more optimistic, intuitive lifestyle.   Being spiritual and being religious are two different things.  Being religious focuses mostly on a power greater than yourself and on a series of defined doctrine. Being spiritual, on the other-hand, focuses more on a belief of having faith in a power greater than yourself and seeing your part in how you can contribute to the wealth and health of the universe. Seeing yourself as a loving human being capable of following the steps for the intuitives are your best place to start.  
10. Seek your purpose.  Many of us are overly helpful people and need some guidance.  It is important to find your passion, and find the best way to help others, if you are drawn to do so.  Ask your guides to bring you a spiritual teacher, someone who can help you along the way.   There is a great joy and acceptance of your life when you are doing what you are meant to do, so it is essential to start thinking about this.  Daydream about it, research the options and take the bull by the horns.  Start walking your spiritual path on purpose.  With purpose comes pleasure. When you walk your spiritual path with purpose and pleasure others take notice!

Michelle L Eskdale (Gruendel), AAEP, CCH, Reiki Master, is the founder and practitioner at MoonLightWorkers. Her interest in alternative health practices resulted in her first seeking Reiki. A powerful experience she had while carrying one of her sons resulted in the realization that this was something that Michelle not only wanted to experience, but also to pass to others through becoming a practitioner.

It wasn’t long before she felt the desire to be certified at both her second and third levels. In the spring of 2009, Michelle completed her training as a Reiki Master.  In 2010, Michelle felt a calling to study under Cindy Smith, AEP(tm) and quickly earned her Basic and Advanced Angel Enlightenment Practioner(tm) Designation.  Connecting you with your Spirit Guides and Angels can have a tremendous healing affect.  As of 2013, Michelle is now a Certified Crystal Healer with the Hibiscus Moon Crystal Academy and incorporates information on crystals into her reading and her classes.