Self-Authority Isn’t Isolation
Many of us who care about spiritual growth and “doing good” in the world hold community and interconnectedness as ideals. Although we value these ideals, we can often find ourselves wrestling with the conditioned culture of individualism .
The systems we’ve grown up in have taught us to rely on ourselves, sometimes to the point of isolation. This makes it challenging to experience the interconnectedness we’d like or from seeking the support we need.
In this context, self-authority can sometimes be misunderstood as isolation or hyper-independence. But true self-authority isn’t about going it alone or ignoring support. It’s about taking responsibility for your own inner guidance and learning to discern whether your choices are coming from intuition or from old patterns.
Self-authority is the practice of listening to and following your intuition to support your desires as well as your spiritual growth plan.
Self-authority recognizes that it’s OK to be supported by others and by community, even as you learn to listen to your intuition and follow your own inner-knowing.
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Conditioning or Intuition?
So much of what we think, believe, and how we behave is because of our conditioning. While this helps us learn how to “human”, these patterns can feel so much like instinct that we don’t even question them. They’re often the background programming that limits our growth and tells us to stay small and comfortable, or “safe”.
A conditioned-instinct often shows up as fear or resistance. It may feel like it’s there to protect us, but it can also keep us from exploring new possibilities.
When we have strong emotional responses like fear, it can keep us stuck because we don’t want to disturb our perceived comfort and security. It can cause us to dismiss our intuition or guidance especially because it feels so strong.
Intuition is usually more subtle. It invites us to trust that inner-knowing and take steps toward our growth, even when it’s uncomfortable. Sometimes our intuition can trigger our conditioned doubts and fears because it’s not “logical” or we can’t prove or justify it.
Instead of questioning our conditioning, we learn to doubt and suppress our intuition.
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Seeking Clarity
When we lose trust in ourselves and intuition, we run our thoughts and choices by others for external approval and validation, or consensus. We then may talk ourselves out of what our intuition is trying to communicate to us. This is especially true when we’re afraid of making a “wrong” decision, so we consider what everyone else needs or thinks we should do.
Most of us start searching for answers and clarity when we sense it’s time to “do” something different or when we’re stuck. Maybe we sense our intuition is trying to get our attention but we’re too clouded to hear it clearly. Or we may hear our intuition clearly but we don’t trust our ability to make choices and take the next step.
Sometimes when we’re stuck, we look for permission to stay where we are or even be told it’s OK to go. But often, what we’re really seeking is to trust our own inner truth of our Higher Self speaking to us through our intuition. We want the clarity to hear the inner-knowing that’s always there under our fears and conditioning.
It’s OK to want more insight and clarity.
When we continually override our intuition, we waste a lot of time, resources, and our inner-peace trying to figure things out but never actually addressing the inner-guidance.
Self-authority is the ability to listen clearly and trust your inner guidance, and then make choices that support that inner-knowing. To do that, requires a foundation of comfort, safety, and trust within yourself.
This type of inner-comfort helps regulate your nervous system, diminishes feelings of overwhelm, and creates the inner space needed to hear your intuition clearly.
When not based in avoidance or bypassing, comfort supports your self-authority and strengthens inner-awareness and your ability to act from grounded clarity rather than exhaustion or fear.
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Connect With Your Intuition
It takes practice and gentle self-compassion to build trust in your intuition and learn to choose from self-authority.
Here are a few practices to help you tune in, regulate your nervous system, and create the inner space needed for clarity. These make it easier to hear your inner guidance, even when old patterns or fears get loud.
- How Am I? Check-Ins: When you’re stressed or feel like your intuition is trying to get your attention, place your hand on your heart, and ask, “What am I feeling right now? What do I truly need?” This helps you tune into your intuition beyond the noise of conditioning.
- What’s going on? Is this true?: Notice your thoughts and feelings especially during decisions or discomfort. Ask, “Is this coming from my intuition or from conditioned fear?” This builds discernment over time.
- Choice Journaling: I recommend handwriting this, but you can use dictation or type it in your notes-app too. At the end of each day, write down the choices you made and explore whether they were guided by fear, habit, or your inner knowing. Over time, this practice reveals patterns and strengthens clarity.
- Nervous System Regulation: When you feel overwhelmed, give yourself a gentle “timeout to tune in” and unplug from the noise and mental swirl that creates anxiety and cloudiness. It can be as simple as a few intentional breaths, a short walk, or closing your eyes and creating a light sphere around you. When you restore some calmness, it’s easier to access your intuition.
My blog offers several additional ways to connect with and strengthen your intuition.
Some days, self-authority can be clear knowing and action and other days, it’s about allowing yourself to rest and receive support. Both will help you move forward with more trust in your intuition and yourself.
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You Don’t Have to Do It Alone
Self-authority is a practice of listening to and following your intuition to make choices that support you.
It’s great when your intuition is clear and you can take your next step, and it’s also OK to receive support to gain clarity for your choices.
If you’d like help to find the signal through the noise and connect with your Spirit Team, I offer Sessions that provide energetic support and intuitive insight to help you gain clarity and strengthen your trust in your own inner-guidance.
Much love,
Angela 💗✨🌸
