Tuning in, learning from, and following your “hunches” can help you reach your full potential.

The 13 principles outlined by Napoleon Hill in his landmark book, “Think and Grow Rich” have been studied and elaborated for many decades since the book was published in 1937. After years of studying the practices of the successful of his day, he summarized 13 principles and elaborated on each one.

Without doubt, there is benefit in studying this work if you want to “think and grow rich.” I have done so and benefited from the effort, though I add the qualifying comment from Jim Rohn; “Napoleon was weird.” With that qualification he still admonished his listeners to “do the good stuff and ignore the weird stuff, unless of course, you’re weird. Then you can do the weird stuff.”

In the eyes of some, the thirteenth principle, the “Sixth sense”, may be classified as the weird stuff. (More than likely the winner of weird is the tenth principle, “Sex Transumtation”). Here are some of my reflections and experiences so far using the principle of the “Sixth Sense.”

What is the “Sixth Sense”?

Mr. Hill explains that through the sixth sense “Infinite Intelligence may, and will communicate voluntarily, without any effort from, or demands by, the individual.

“The SIXTH SENSE is that portion of the subconscious mind which has been referred to as the Creative Imagination. It has also been referred to as the “receiving set” through which ideas, plans, and thoughts flash into the mind. The “flashes” are sometimes called “hunches” or “inspirations.”’

Tapping in to your sixth sense

Most human decisions are made with emotion rather than reason. In fact we tend to use reason to rationalize our emotional predispositions. Some studies have shown that we actually make better decisions based on our emotions, rather than logic. I believe these are examples of our sixth sense, however with better understanding, we can greatly facilitate our ability to recognize and learn from that “Sixth sense” or as Napoleon also refers to it, “Infinite Intelligence.”

The practice of meditation can help facilitate our ability to listen to our sixth sense, infinite wisdom, or the universe. We live in a world that bombards us with information and distracts us at every turn. Taking time each day in a quiet setting free of interruptions to reflect and project into the future mentally, gives us the opportunity to “listen” to the ideas and thoughts that might come our way. Effective meditation for me takes place in the morning, with a note pad and pen, in order to capture in writing the ideas that may come to mind. (See this previous article on Napoleon Hill’s Self-confidence formula for some related ideas).

In his book, Tools of Titans, Tim Ferris has a section reviewing the practices of the world-class performers that he has interviewed over the years, particularly as it relates to meditating. He says, “More than 80% of the world-class performers I’ve interviewed have some form of daily meditation or mindfulness practice.” Of all the practices that he’s noted in those he’s interviewed, he says, “It’s the most consistent pattern of them all.”

If that’s true, shouldn’t we all be developing the habit of morning thoughtfulness or meditation to improve ourselves and tap in to our sixth sense?

Being raised in a religious environment, I’ve heard the phrase, “prayer and meditation,” my whole life. My interpretation of that was that during and after prayer a person should take time think and listen periodically to your own thoughts, and see what ideas you might have. I believe that practice provides an opportunity for us to receive input from the sixth sense that Napoleon Hill is referring to.

If you don’t have the practice of prayer or meditation, I invite you to give it a try. Here are some recommendations to help you be effective as you do:

Meditate in the morning. There are fewer distractions and your mind is not as cluttered and frenetic as it likely will become as you go throughout the day. Start small. Try to meditate for 5–10 minutes to start. You may be surprised how difficult it is to focus your thoughts even for this short period of time. As you develop the practice and habit you can increase that time for greater benefit. Create a “Self-guided” meditation recording that you can listen to each day. What I mean by this, is to write down on paper the things you want to focus your thoughts on, then record yourself talking yourself through relaxing and clearing your mind, then visualizing the things you’ve outlined on your meditation “script.” For me, I talk myself through visualizing successful outcomes or accomplishing future goals. As part of your script include time to listen. In some cases I visualize interactions with other people, or with my future self and I give them (or me) the opportunity to share their thoughts with me as I meditate. These are prime opportunities to receive “voluntary” communication from your sixth sense. Have a notepad and pen with you during meditation. When I do have ideas come into my mind I jot those down on the notepad so that I can put them into practice later. Otherwise those flashes of insight or ideas become fleeting and I am likely to lose them.

If you would like to tap into your sixth sense, I invite you to apply the above suggestions. I would note that Napoleon Hill indicated success with this last principle of his 13 principles was contingent on mastering the previous twelve. While that may be true from his perspective, I have gained many insights from listening to the sixth sense, though I still consider myself in development, or not working on some of the previous twelve principles.

James Stephenson is the author of Small Steps, Big Feat. Take this ten-question quiz to see how you’re doing overall in your personal development.