The heroine’s journey – honing your instincts

At the end of semester 1 of this year, I decided to take semester 2 off. I had reached the halfway point of my degree; 12 units in 2 years, technically a full-time load, and I was exhausted to my very bones. My instincts told me that if I wanted to get to the end of my degree in one piece, then I needed to rest.

So now, I’m partway through my Semester 2 sabbatical, a break that was one of my better decisions. I’ve had time to spend with friends, go away on mini breaks, catch up on my favourite TV series, read books for fun, start and finish crochet projects, tend to my house, focus on reducing my personal and household plastic use, and even do some personal writing here 🙂 .

It’s also a good time to assess: I’m halfway through the year, and halfway through my studies, a natural time to look back over what I have achieved, as well as look to the future. I’ve been thinking about my job, thinking about my studies; where I’ve come from and where I’m going.

When I did this, I discovered two simultaneously opposing things: I have enjoyed my time and accomplished much at the university I was at; and the remaining degree wasn’t really going to equip me with the skills that I need.

At the same time, I found myself on the website of another university, feeling very attracted to their digital media and communications degree, a degree that looked fresh, modern and practical, that would equip its students with the knowledge and skills to participate in the modern communication world – but I wasn’t one of their students.

I went away and thought about it, wondering if I was just suffering from a grass is greener complex or some kind of undefined midway ennui – and finally decided that I would let the process decide. If they accepted my application, and if they gave me enough credits for the 12 units I had completed, then I would follow my instincts and jump ship.

So, my friends, that is exactly what happened. They accepted my application, and gave me 10 units of credit, more than I was expecting. I could feel excitement and nerves kicking in – lots of these subjects are out of my comfort zone, like video story telling and radio/podcast units – but they’re also things that I’ve been wanting to know how to do. And hey, a good life for me is one where I’m challenged.

On the day that I accepted their offer and enrolled, all the media and communications students received an email from the journalism lecturer asking for applications to be on the reporting team for the Byron Writers Festival coming up in early August. Successful applicants would be blogging and live tweeting from sessions over three days; pretty much my ideal gig.

I applied and was successful, I went, and had an amazing time. It was one of those jobs where I knew that I was exactly where I was supposed to be, and doing what I am good at, and most importantly, I felt that my intuition had led me down the right path, even though changing universities halfway through a degree is not something that anyone sensible recommends, including me.

me and my writing friends ❤

colourful birds greeted us on our way in

proudly displaying my media pass 🙂

dinner out with friends

beautiful Byron Bay sky

That was a dream gig for me – but I would never have had that opportunity if I hadn’t acted on my instincts and taken a risk. I certainly wouldn’t have been able to write this post that had the highest engagement for the festival!

When you reach the end of what you should know, you will be at the beginning of what you should sense.
― Kahlil Gibran

As part of the heroine’s journey – getting to know ourselves and taking ownership over our lives – we need to get intimately acquainted with our intuition.

Getting to know your intuition is a little strange, especially if you’re used to running everything through your mind, deconstructing and analysing, or following wherever your emotions lead, up and down, round and round.

Intuition is not like either of these things – it bypasses both the mind and the emotions, coming from deep inside, that silent space within. It can use the mind – a thought may pop into your consciousness, an idea or an answer to a problem. It can use the emotions: if you’re an emotional intuitive, your emotional response to a person or a situation will be a good guide; but intuition is neither the mind nor the heart.

In order to hear your intuition, you must have your radio antenna regularly tuned into yourself. This requires some kind of daily practice, where you are quiet and undisturbed, like meditation, journaling, walking, yoga or whatever you do.

Know this: your intuition is always speaking to you. There is nothing too small or too large for it to concern itself with, because your intuition comes from your Higher Self, and your Higher Self’s only concern is you.

The more you use your intuition, the better you get – the clearer the radio signal, and the more reduced the background noise. You get in the habit of checking in with yourself first – before anyone else. You automatically ask, is this right for me? Does this feel good?

And your intuition will tell you the truth, but only all the time.