The Three Types of Intuition (And Which One You’re Probably Ignoring)

For years, I thought intuition was just one thing.

You know—that “gut feeling” everyone talks about. The thing that tells you something’s off when you meet someone, or that makes you take a different route home for no logical reason.

I thought that was it. That was intuition.

Turns out, I was only listening to one channel.

About 10 years ago, I was at a real estate function having a casual conversation with another woman. Someone walked into the room, and I noticed their body language immediately. “Oh,” I said without thinking, “someone looks upset.”

The woman I was talking to paused and looked at me. “Oh, you’re one of those.”

I had no idea what she meant. “One of what?”

“You’re an intuitive,” she said. “An empath. You read other people’s energy.”

That moment changed everything for me. Because once you realize you’re intuitive—once someone points it out and you can’t unsee it—things start coming to you more naturally. You start noticing the whispers you’ve been missing your whole life.

But here’s what I’ve learned since then: intuition doesn’t just speak one language. It speaks three.

And chances are, you’re only listening to one of them.

When You’re Not Listening to Your Intuition, the Universe Gets Louder

Before I understood how intuition really works, I missed a lot of signs.

In college, I was in a pretty toxic relationship. Looking back now, I can see that my guides were trying to protect me. They were sending me message after message, but I wasn’t listening.

My boyfriend kept doing things that should have made me break up with him. Friends kept telling me things weren’t right. But I kept ignoring the signs, convincing myself everything was fine.

Then came what I now call a “tower moment.”

I walked in on him with someone else.

That was the Universe finally getting my attention. That was the sign I couldn’t ignore anymore.

Here’s what I’ve learned: You keep going through the same things over and over again until you listen.

This applies to relationships. It applies to jobs. It applies to life paths you’re not meant to be on.

The Universe is persistent. Your guides want you to hear them. And if you’re not listening to the whispers, eventually they become shouts.

So how do you start listening? First, you need to understand that intuition doesn’t just speak one way.

The Three Types of Intuition

Type 1: Gut Instinct (The Protector)

This is the one most people know about. It’s that feeling in your body—physical sensations that warn you something’s not right.

Gut instinct shows up as:

• Goosebumps down the back of your neck
• A stomach ache when something doesn’t feel right
• Physical reactions you can’t explain logically
• That immediate “something’s off here” feeling

Here’s how to recognize it: Gut instinct is a hell yes or a hell no.

There’s a very strong line. It’s not wishy-washy. You feel it that strongly, even if you can’t explain why.

The Difference Between Gut Instinct and Anxiety

This is important, because a lot of people confuse the two.

Gut instinct is clear, definitive, protective. It feels like certainty—this is safe or this is not safe.

Anxiety is living in turmoil. It’s mental noise. It’s worrying and “what ifs.” You can often breathe your way through anxiety, but gut instinct? That’s your body giving you non-negotiable information.

When I Didn’t Listen to My Gut

I was hemming and hawing about leaving my real estate brokerage. I wasn’t 100% sure about the move, but I did it anyway.

Big mistake.

The new firm seemed too good to be true—and it was. The owner was shady, doing things under the table. The commission plan that looked amazing on paper? Not so much in reality.

Within a few months, I knew I didn’t want my name tied to that company. I had to get out.

But here’s the thing: even though I didn’t listen to my gut, the Universe still had my back. That terrible experience forced me to leave real estate entirely—which was actually what I needed to do all along.

Sometimes when you stray from your path, the Universe gets you back on track. It might not be comfortable, but it’s always purposeful.

Type 2: Inner Whispers (The Guide)

These are different from gut instinct because they’re not about danger or protection. They’re about guidance. Direction. Alignment.

Inner whispers show up as:

• A conversation you overhear that resonates deeply
• Songs that keep playing with meaningful lyrics
• Signs that bring you joy or clarity
• That feeling of “yes, this is mine”
• Clear inner knowing pointing you toward something

Unlike gut instinct (which is purely physical), inner whispers come from outside—but when you hear them, something inside you lights up.

Following the Whisper That Changed My Life

The biggest inner whisper I ever followed? Going through with my divorce.

It didn’t make logical sense. We had a life together. A son. A home. From the outside, maybe it looked like I was throwing it all away.

But I followed the whisper anyway.

And you know what happened? I grew. Spiritually. Mentally. Emotionally. Entrepreneurially.

The divorce created space for me to become who I was meant to be. 

It forced me to ask myself a question I’d been avoiding for years:

What do I really want?

When I was deciding about the divorce, I asked for a sign. I needed confirmation that I was doing the right thing.

A few hours later, I was with a friend, and she pulled out a new phone case. It was covered in butterflies.

The feeling that washed over me was immediate: calmness. Like “there it is—there’s the sign I asked to see.”

It was almost a relief. Because it was a confirmation I was making the right decision.

Here’s what I want you to understand: when you’re stuck in something and can’t see outside of it, it’s so hard to think clearly. There are so many layers when you’re in the thick of it—emotions, other people’s feelings, fear of the unknown—and it blinds you from the future ahead.

But when you ask for a sign and you receive it? You know.

I work with a lot of clients who struggle to tell the difference between following their intuition and just hoping for what they want.

Here’s how I explain it:

True alignment feels like contentment, harmony, joy. You feel in sync with your daily life. You’re not chaotic or out of sorts. Things come naturally. Yes, you still need to do the work (meditation, journaling, showing up), but it doesn’t feel stressful or forced.

Wishful thinking feels like you’re trying to force something in your life to feel right when it just… doesn’t. It feels stressful. Forced. Like you’re pushing a boulder uphill.

If it comes naturally, it’s alignment. If it doesn’t come naturally, it’s wishful thinking.

When Inner Whispers Feel Scary…

Let me be honest: inner whispers can absolutely feel terrifying.

Especially when they’re asking you to:

• End a relationship
• Start something new on your own
• Make a major career change
• Leave behind what’s comfortable

When I got the whisper for “Whispers Within Us”—the name that would become my book and my business—I was scared.

“Leave the job. Burn the boats. Move on.” These whispers can elicit real fear.

But here’s the truth: fear is just an emotion. We can move through it. We don’t have to live with it.

What it really comes down to is getting comfortable being uncomfortable for a while. You’re putting yourself in a whole new situation you don’t know anything about, and you have to act the part until you figure it out.

That’s actually my 2026 mantra: 

“Get comfortable with being uncomfortable.”

Because that’s where the magic happens.

Type 3: Downloads (The Messenger)

This is the type people find the hardest to explain—and the one that most people miss—but once you experience it, you’ll never forget it.

Downloads are information that drops into your awareness almost instantly. Fully formed. And complete.

They show up as:

• Vivid images or visions that appear in meditation
• Names that suddenly come to you
• Visual downloads (seeing something clearly in your mind’s eye)
• Angel numbers that keep appearing everywhere
• Messages that feel like they came from “outside” you
• Clear signs that mean something deeper

Downloads usually come when you’re in a true zen state—meditating, drifting off to sleep, deeply relaxed. Your conscious mind gets quiet enough for the information to come through.

When I Received the Download for My Book Cover…

I was in Playa del Carmen, Mexico, on a yoga retreat. We were doing tribal yoga, sound healing, flute sessions that put you in deep hypnosis and meditation. All of it was designed to open your awareness.

One day during meditation, I saw it: a beautiful abstract leaf.

I didn’t think much of it at first. Just a nice image.

But then leaves started following me everywhere.

I’d wake up from meditation and leaves would be laid around me—they’d fallen while I was still, landing in this perfect circle. Walking down the trails, breezy leaves would do this little wind tunnel thing, blowing down the path right in front of me.

The message became crystal clear: “Capture this energy of breezy leaves on the cover of your book.”

And if you’ve seen my book, you know—that’s exactly what’s on the cover.

“Whispers Within Us”

When the phrase “Whispers Within Us” came to me on a walk, it felt like someone was standing there saying it out loud.

I actually looked around because it was so clear.

If I hadn’t paused in that moment and put it in my phone, I probably never would have done anything with that name. I didn’t know what it meant. I didn’t know why it mattered.

But I paused. I listened. I wrote it down.

And that pause changed my entire life.

So, Which Type of Intuition Are You Ignoring?

Here’s what I see most often with my clients: they’re ignoring the feelings in their body.

When something doesn’t feel right, they go ahead and do it anyway.

Why? Because we’ve been taught to override our intuition.

People Ignore Their Intuition for Two Reasons…

1. They ignore whispers that come with too much baggage.

Whispers that would require big changes. Signs asking them to leave relationships, quit jobs, walk away from what’s comfortable.

It’s easier to stay where you are than to leap into the unknown—even when the unknown is where you’re meant to be.

2. They want to fit in.

Your intuition is always talking to you, but sometimes people go against what their inner whispers are saying because they want to be accepted.

When my son Jake was little, he’d come home and tell me about something his friends did. I’d ask, “How did that make you feel?”

He’d say, “It didn’t feel right, but I didn’t want to get in trouble.”

That’s his intuition talking to him. But he—like so many of us—wanted to fit in more than he wanted to listen.

We do the same thing as adults. We override our knowing because we don’t want to rock the boat. Usually because we don’t want to be difficult. And we don’t want to be “too sensitive.”

But your sensitivity? Your ability to pick up on things others miss?

That’s not a weakness. That’s your superpower.

How to Start Listening to All Three Types if Intuition

“But I Don’t Think I’m Intuitive…”

If you’re reading this thinking, “This all sounds great, but I just don’t have intuition,” I’m going to tell you something:

You’re not letting yourself be still.

We all have intuition. It’s inherent within us. You DO have it.

You just need to slow down enough to listen.

The Problem: We’re Drifting

We’re going through our days without a thought. Rushing from one thing to the next. Never pausing. Never being present.

Let me give you some examples:

Rushing Through Your Morning

I used to throw an ice cube in my coffee and slam it down because I was in such a rush to get to the next thing.

You know what I’m doing now? I’m going to enjoy my coffee. I’m not going to slam it down.

That might sound small, but it’s everything. Because when you’re rushing through your coffee, you’re rushing through your life. And when you’re rushing through your life, you can’t hear the whispers.

Mindful Eating (Or the Lack of It)

We tend to eat just to get food in us rather than actually enjoying it.

If you watch someone who’s mindfully eating, they:

• Cut their food into little bites
• Put a piece in their mouth
• Chew it slowly
• Actually TASTE what they’re eating

As humans, we eat to eat. We eat fast. We grab a granola bar, head out the door, and eat it in the car.

Here’s why this matters: Not being mindful of how you’re eating can actually affect your digestion. And poor digestion? That causes anxiety. Your gut is literally your anxiety center. When you’re not digesting properly, you create a perpetual anxiety loop.

So what’s the alternative? Take 20 minutes and enjoy your lunch. Sit down. Be present. Let your body actually process what you’re giving it.

It’s not just about food. It’s about creating space to hear yourself think.

One Simple Practice to Strengthen Your Intuition

Meditate—but not the way you think.

I’m not talking about sitting crisscross applesauce in silence for five minutes, forcing your mind to be blank.

I’m talking about:

• Going for a walk in nature
• Getting outside
• Leaving your phone behind
• Leaving your headphones behind
• Just being calm
• Letting your mind settle

That’s meditation. That’s how you strengthen your intuition.

When you create space—when you get quiet—the whispers can finally get through.

Real Stories: When People Learned to Listen to their Intuition

The Client Who “Wasn’t Intuitive”

I was working with a client on decision-making, and I told her what I always say: “It’s either a hell yes or a hell no.”

She looked at me confused. “I don’t get that. What if it’s a maybe?”

“There is no maybe,” I said. “Maybe is gray. There’s a line. You just have to find it.”

I explained: If something excites you, it’s a hell yes. If it’s going to put you in $20,000 of debt and it’s giving you anxiety to the point where you’re throwing up, it’s a hell no.

But she still didn’t understand. “How do I know what resonates with me?”

So I broke it down: There are certain things in life that when they’re talked about or presented to you, you think, ‘Oh, I could fit that into my life in this little area right here.’

That feeling—that’s what it means to resonate. You can feel it fit into your life.

Here’s the assignment I gave her: Every day, pay attention to your surroundings. Pick up on THREE things your higher power might be telling you.

Maybe you see yellow chickadees in your yard every day for a week. Look up the spiritual meaning. Read through the different explanations. Pick the one that resonates with YOU.

That’s what it looks like to listen to your intuition.

Helpful tip: Some people need to put a visual on it—little bubbles, little boxes, mind map it out. We all process differently. Do what works for you.

The Funniest Way Intuition Showed Up for Me

I had put off writing my book for SO LONG.

It turns out it was almost a year and a half. I thought it was less time, but when I really looked back at when I got the download for “Whispers Within Us” versus when I actually took action? Yeah. A year and a half.

Then one week, everything shifted.

Multiple people in different conversations kept using the word “whispers.”

Saying things like, “Well, you know, when you get the whispers…”

By the third or fourth time, I literally looked up at the sky and said out loud: “I’m listening! Okay! I’m on it. I’m going to do it!”

You know why I finally took action? Because I’m a strong believer that you’re presented with something several times, and if you don’t act on it, your higher power moves on to the next person who will.

That scared me. I did NOT want the Universe to give my book to someone else.

So now when signs come through clearly, I just laugh and say, “I know! I’m listening!”

Fun Bonus: Parking Fairies and Stoplight Fairies

Want a playful way to work with your intuition every single day?

When you’re running late and guaranteed to hit every red light, try this:

Say out loud or in your head: “Please, please, just let me hit the green lights today.”

Then every time you hit a green light, say: “Thank you, thank you, thank you! More please!”

Say thank you three times, then ask for more.

I know it sounds silly. But it works. And honestly? It makes the whole experience fun.

The One Thing I Want You to Take Away

If just one person reading this could take away one thing, it would be this:

If you listen to whispers—however they’re going to show up for you (gut instinct, inner whisper, download)—if you just take the time to PAUSE, it could change your life.

You just don’t know it yet.

When something comes at you that’s not normal—like hearing a phrase so clearly you think someone’s standing next to you, or seeing the same sign over and over, or feeling a pull you can’t explain—pause.

You don’t have to know what it means right away. You don’t have to know why it matters.

Just pause, listen, and write it down.

Because that pause is where everything begins.

You’re Not Broken

If you’ve been ignoring your intuition for years, you’re not broken.

If you’ve made decisions that didn’t work out because you didn’t listen, you’re not broken.

And, if you feel like everyone else is more intuitive than you, you’re not broken.

You’re just learning to listen.

And here’s the beautiful thing: the Universe is patient. It’ll keep sending the signs. It’ll keep whispering. It will keep showing up in your coffee, your conversations, your cardinals, your downloads.

All you have to do is slow down enough to notice.

Your intuition has been speaking to you your whole life. In three different languages.

The question is: Which channel have you been ignoring?

And more importantly: What will you do now that you know it’s there?

Ready to learn more about strengthening your intuition and trusting the whispers within you?

Whispers Within Us walks you through practical tools, real stories, and guided practices to help you recognize signs, trust your inner knowing, and live in alignment with your purpose.

Love, Light, and Gratitude 🩵
– Kathleen