Creative people often function as channels in only one area of
their lives (such as one of the arts, science, or business) and may
have no idea how to do it in other areas of their lives.
Thus, their
lives can be terribly out of balance. (See the section on Highly
Intuitive People in the chapter on Trusting Intuition.) This is one
reason why we often equate genius with emotional instability.
I believe we are all geniuses — each in our own unique way. We
will discover the nature of our particular genius when we stop try-
ing to conform to our own or other people’s models, learn to be
ourselves, and allow our natural channel to open. Through trust-
ing and acting on our intuition, it’s possible to bring our natural
creative inspiration into every moment, in every area of our lives.
When I speak of a channel, I have an image of a long round
pipe with energy flowing through it. It’s somewhat like the pipe in
a pipe organ, with the music coming through.
This channel image has three important features:
1. It is open and unobstructed inside so that the energy can
move through freely.
2. It has a definite physical form; a structure surrounds the
open space so that the energy is directed in a particular way.
Without this structure, the energy would be free-floating, without
any focus.
3. It has a power source — something that moves energy
through the channel.
In a pipe organ, the power source (the organ) sends energy
through the open pipes. The particular combination of open space
inside each pipe and the structure — the size and shape of the
pipe — causes a certain note to be sounded. The power source is
the same for all the pipes and the energy moving through them is
the same, but because each one is a different shape, each one makes
a unique sound.
We can think of ourselves as channels similar to these pipes.
We have a common power source (the universal life force) and the
same creative energy flows through each of us. Our body and per-
sonality form the structure that determines the unique direction
and function of each of us as a channel. It is up to us to keep our
channel open and clear and to build and maintain a strong, healthy,
beautiful body/personality structure as a vehicle for our creative
energy. We can do this by constantly tuning in, asking where the
energy wants to go, and moving with it.
A strong body/personality structure is not created by follow-
ing anybody else’s rules or good ideas about what you should eat,
how you should exercise, or anything else. It is created primarily by
trusting your intuition and learning to follow its direction. When
deciding what to eat, how to exercise, or anything else, gather infor-
mation from reliable sources, then check in with yourself to see
what feels intuitively right for you, and do your best to follow your
own inner guidance.