In my new book, Second Sight, I show how to keep an eye out for intuitive experiences in everyday life, and what they can teach us. Drawing from my own experiences as an intuitive along with new scientific studies on the value of intuition in decision making, I include strategies anyone can use to develop their intuitive intelligence. In the book, you will learn how I came to be a pioneer in intuitive medicine, using my intuitive gift as a potent healing tool and incorporating it into my medical practice.

From Second Sight, here are five types of intuitive experiences you may encounter, and what they can teach you:

Body signals. Your body has many ways of getting your attention. It could be goosebumps when something feels right or strikes you as true. Or it might be your hair standing up on the back of your neck when you sense danger.

How to use it. Most commonly referred to as a “gut reaction,” your body’s response to the world around you is often instant–quicker, in fact, than your conscious thought. Next time you sense your body is trying to alert you to something, check in with it. Are your shoulders tense? Is there a knot in your stomach? Or do you feel energized and excited? When you learn to read your body signals, a whole new type of information will be available to you.

Déjà vu. This is when you feel as though you’ve had this exact conversation before, or you’ve been to this place before and know what’s around the corner and up ahead, even though that’s impossible.

How to use it: Instead of thinking it’s strange and then moving on, don’t let the experience go unremarked. Discuss it with a friend. Write it down. Bringing a déjà vu experience into the open energizes it, acknowledges its significance, and enables you to find out what it’s trying to tell you or where it’s trying to lead you.

Synchronicity. This is the experience of perfect timing, such as when you’re thinking about a word right when you hear it on the radio, or a person you just met offers you the perfect job.

How to use it: Stay aware and look for synchronicity everywhere. Such moments let you know that you’re in the flow–in the right place, at the right time. See if you can uncover its hidden significance.

Seeing beyond. This is when you’re tuned in to an event that’s happening right now, but in a different place. For example, you think of a long-lost friend, and then she sends you an email in that instant Or you get a feeling to turn left on the way to work and avoid an accident.

How to use it: Your entire body–not just your brain–acts as an intuitive receiver, so the more conscious you become of your whole body, perhaps through a discipline like yoga, the more likely you are to tap into realities outside of your immediate setting. They will come to you in snapshot-life flashes–a taste, smell, sound, or a feeling in your body. Jot down your impressions. The better you get at tuning in, the clearer the messages will become.

Intuitive empathy. This is when you “pick up a vibe” from another person. For no apparent reason, you suddenly sense a person’s deep loneliness, or you feel hostility coming from a person who is smiling at you.

How to use it: Being sensitive to other people’s nature is a valuable skill–but it comes with perils. If you feel drained after talking to someone at a party, for example, pay attention so you can protect yourself from him or her next time. Learning to “read” other people’s feelings will improve your personal and professional relationships, as long as you don’t “take on” others’ moods and emotions.

Judith Orloff MD is author of the new book Second Sight (Three Rivers Press, 2010). She is a UCLA Psychiatrist and New York Times bestselling author of Emotional Freedom. Her recent TV special, “Emotional Freedom Now!” aired on PBS stations nationally. To develop your Second Sight and for inspiration, visit www.drjudithorloff.com.

These eight steps will help you turn communication into a hot skill, pivotal to advancing both your career and your company’s agenda:

The first step for leaders is to constantly keep internal and external communication lines open. Quick and responsive replies to all queries will ensure that everybody is on top of the game and keeping evolving situations transparent.

The second step for leaders is to be their staff’s most valuable resource. This is done by having a constant open door so staff can feel comfortable to ask for help, share issues and problems and get advice in relation to their personalized tasks and roles.

The second step is about leaders being able to respond to all communications without interfering in their daily responsibilities. This can be done by prioritizing situations expressed in communications and practicing effective time management through vetting each communication on its individual merits.

The third step is enforcing corporate values and acceptable behaviors. This powerful tool cannot only address concerns but recognize the value of the communication and the person communicating it. It’s also a means of expressing appreciation and confidence in staff.

The fourth step is to remain focused on company/client communications through the feedback loop. This works by maintaning constant and open communications with each and every client. This level of communication accounts for the individual differences between clients. Its personalized nature improves retention and sustains the company’s advantage over competitors.

The fifth step is for companies to support their leaders in learning to communicate effectively. Not all leaders have fine-tuned communication skills. Some may need a coach or specialized training. Others may not feel comfortable making presentations, therefore requiring help in overcoming stage fright. However, if company leaders are not given the support they need, then the messages from the top can be lost or not communicated clearly to other staff.

The sixth step is overcoming resistance to communications improvement. It’s fundamental that every leader hones hiss/her skills in effective communications. Failure to do so will result in miscommunications, missed opportunitiies, customer/client/staff dissatisfaction and failure to meet objectives. If a leader refuses to cooperate, it may be become necessary to replace this leader with a new one.

The seventh step is providing communications training. Varied levels can be made available beyond the basics. This can include motivational speaking, public speakikng, media relations and effective listening/persuasion/influence. It mahy also be necessary to hire a communications specialist who will evaluate presentations and all other types of communications to see where the strengths and weaknesses lie. In turn, this person can advise, mentor and propose both changes and needed training.

The eighth step is to have a tam of communicators that can represent that company. They should be actively involved within the company and visible to others at all times.

Monster.com’s and Eons’ founder and CEO Jeff Taylor is very much aware of art daily communications. He accepted that communicating clearly so that all staff undersand the purpose and vision are critical to company success and continued profitability. Most improtantly, he recognized that the only way to pass on company messages is through all company leaders learning to communicate properly. In fact his understanding of my eight important steps in the art ofcommunications has helped him and his satff insure that this business clearly succeed.

Communications with any company is not only critical to the company’s success but an art form that cannot be ignored. Communicating daily is a top priority. Statements and other forms of communications must be directly linked to company objectives, goal, staff motivation and company values.

However, successful communications cannot be achieved simply by expressing an idea. How ideas are communicated can make or break a company. Open lines of communications must exist between leaders, staff, clients and customers. Leaders must also act as a resource for all staff, and enforce acceptable behaviors and transmit company values, and focusing on feedback from within and without the company must be maintained.

Most critically, companies must support leaders and staff in developing their communication skills. Such support has to include training, confidence in their abilities, effective communications and clearing out communications resistance. However, the best stratewgy is to create a confident team of well-trained communicators who can act as positive representatives for the company, both publicly and within company walls. With all these elements in place, success and communications become permanently linked.

Suzanne Bates, CEO of Bates Communications, is author of “Motivate Like a CEO: Communicate Your Stategic Vision and Inspire People to Act!” (McGraw Hill 2009) and the best-seller “Speak Like a CEO: Secrets for Commanding Attention and Getting Results.”  She also writes The Power Speaker Blog.

I wouldn’t call this news, but it’s certainly a macro-trend: as corporations morph from multinationals into transnationals that establish talent centers around the globe, talent management becomes a more strategic skill set for aspiring executives. Some b-schools are starting to teach these skills, but mostly it’s on-the-job training.

The key takeaway for job seekers is that you want to work for a company that doesn’t try to replicate its culture around the globe but instead embraces diversity as strength and not a weakness.

IBM CEO Sam Palmisano, rapidly reinventing Big Blue’s corporate culture to become transnational, talks about global workforce management:

“The big issues for us are: Where do you put them? How do you retain them?  How do you develop them? How do you move work to them or them to work?”

According to the article IBM is employing an internal social network called Beehive to help build ties between workers in different countries. Somehow participating in a social network controlled by an employer doesn’t have the same luster as LinkedIn or Facebook, at least from my perspective.

Other companies profiled in the article are applying innovative collaborative solutions, such as EMC, the storage giant, which established internal wikis to promote cross-border collaboration and product development.

The articles also talk about retention strategies such as:

• Putting more workers on a management fast track that includes on-the-job training
• Moving workers between countries to train them to work cross-culturally, exchange best practices and build global connections.

The editors say that the report was timed to relate to Davos, a global conference on economics for world-class schmoozer’s.  True, I might feel differently about the World Economic Forum if I were there rubbing elbows with Bono or Richard Branson. Let me know if your company needs to send a cultural ambassador to Davos. I have a bag packed and a Powerpoint presentation ready to go.

Well, not really, I suppose I could have held out for an in-person meeting and then I would have been obliged to accept his location. That’s the thing about negotiations – you have to know when to press for what matters to you and be very selective about it. We agreed I would call him, but I’m no pushover.

A lack of good negotiation skills can hold back career advancement – and worse – says Hird who in addition to running his own firm also teaches an extension course at UC-Berkeley. “The most popular topics for [my students] are how to get a raise, and how to deal with a bad boss,” he says.

Pardon the generalization, but it turns out that two groups in particular are most in need of his instruction: women and immigrants. “Anyone who enters a negotiation with individuals from another culture needs to understand how they process information and come to decisions,” he says. “It has been quantified and proven that women are at a self-inflicted disadvantage when they negotiate for themselves. They [typically] don’t ask and don’t take care of themselves.”

This is an axiom shared by Deepika Bajaj, the force behind Invincibelle, a site that “empowers” women in the world. “In a corporate setting you need to be very clear about what you want,” says Bajaj. “If you get what you ask for you will be more productive in your job.”

Don’t Ask, Don’t Receive

“In this particular market most people would agree it’s a pretty good time to assert yourself – there’s pretty low unemployment,” says Hird. “You don’t ever threaten to walk because you have to be prepared for them to say ‘Don’t let the door hit you on the way out’. If you get a ‘no’ to a raise … ask ‘What do I need to do and by when?’ And you negotiate those terms so they’re aggressive – and make sure that you can clear the bar.”

And yes, he adds, “You have to be willing to walk. A lot of students look like deer in the headlights when you say that to them.”

Here are five bullet points about negotiations that Hird would like you to know:

• Be prepared. You have to do your homework. It doesn’t do any good to ask for raise if the company can’t pay it. If you’re going to go in and shoot from the hip and you haven’t armed yourself, you get caught up in the heat of the negotiation.
• You have to be willing to walk away.
• You’re trying to create value not divide it. Even if it’s 60-40 both sides should get more. A big mistake is people walk in and negotiate the interests of the asset. But before they divide it they should try to expand it.
• Rationality and fairness are relative. What’s rational and fair to you might be unfair to someone else.
• You have to practice asking for raises and promotions. By the third time Hird’s students get it down.

Here are some suggestions for “training” indecisive clients and weeding out the bloodsuckers:

Cap getting-to-know-me meetings. Bloodsuckers are fans of meetings with agendas like “let’s spend the next four hours talking about how you’d execute our project were we to actually offer it to you.” For this reason, I have a rule about complimentary getting-to-know-me meetings: One hour max is all you get – by bat phone, webcam, or in the flesh – and then I’m billing you for it. Likewise, I don’t dress, drive, and give up my morning for just anyone. Unless there’s big money, repeat business, or real PIE potential, I phone it in.

Use templates. Although I have a bio and work samples on my website, I still need to email interested clients my references, additional samples, and a more detailed bio or resume from time to time. The materials I send vary wildly, depending on whether I’m talking to an arts organization that wants me to teach, a potential copywriting client, or a news website that wants an article written. Rather than reinvent the wheel each time, I have a nice collection of templates I emply: ShamlessInstructorPromo.doc, Fortune500Bait.doc, and MediaWhore.doc.

Create a FAQ. Rather than answering the same questions over and over, email a “How I Work” doc to interested clients. Or post a FAQ page on your website. “Before I do any illustrations, I send clients a detailed breakdown of how I work, how many sketches I do, what sorts of changes they can ask for, and when payment is due,” says freelance illustrator Molly Crabapple. “So many headaches averted!”

Send a questionnaire. Besides having a helpful FAQ and Design Process page on her company’s site, Emily Carlin of Swank Web Style cuts to the chase by sending a design brief for interested clients to fill out. We’re talking twenty-plus questions about everything from the site’s purpose and number of pages to preferred colors, graphics and layout. Considering how many people will call a web designer before they have any idea what they want, this saves her a load of time.

Make a video. For Erin Blaskie, who runs Business Services, ETC, a virtual assistance company based in Ontario, Canada, creating a ten-minute video called “How to Work With a Virtual Assistant” was “the smartest thing I’ve ever done.” Not only has it greatly reduced the time she spends answering potential clients’ questions about how she works, it adds a personal touch. “What’s nice about the video is instead of it being written, they get to see who I am,” she says. “It’s a great way to get that trust built.”

Do have a business-savvy pal in your industry weigh in on any FAQs, web pages, or videos you make before you send them to potential clients, especially if you’re new at this. You don’t want to be so demanding – “Only green M&Ms in my dressing room!” – that no one wants to hire you.

(C) Michelle Goodman. Excerpted from My So-Called Freelance Life: How to Survive and Thrive as a Creative Professional for Hire (Seal Press, 2008).

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