Ask for Signs to Guide You

Most close friends know I look for signs from the universe to guide me. I wrote Cosmic Signposts to share what reinforced my belief in them, but I've felt compelled to write a follow-up post to share something I've learned. 

If you want a steady stream of signs from the universe to help guide your decisions, my experience is this:

You must ask for them.

It took me too long to grasp this concept. When I'd find myself at a decision-making crossroads, I would look for signs, but sometimes they wouldn’t show. I started wondering why. The question etched itself into my brain until I recalled a vital sign I received years ago, one so bold it might as well have flashed in neon. In remembering, I noticed a common thread between it and the events in Cosmic Signposts.  

Years ago, I wanted to write a novel but only had a vague idea of the premise. I also had Learning to Fly as a working title, but those two things were all I had. Back then, my doubt stood larger than my bare-bones idea, leading to many questions: Do I want to put so much work into a novel? Can I add that to my already busy life? Is the idea good enough? Do I even have the writing chops to pull it off?

The decision felt paralyzing, especially given the time investment.

Nothing would have deterred me from making that leap had I possessed a crystal ball to show me I was meant to write it. But crystal balls were, and still are, in short supply. Who knows why? Perhaps the raw materials needed to make them have been exhausted. The only thing I knew for sure was no one had shared that crystal sphere with me. All I wanted was an assurance my desired path was right.

After brooding on it too long and not knowing what else to do, I threw my hands up one day and said aloud, "If I'm supposed to write Learning to Fly, give me a sign."

Nothing happened. No voices sung above. No magical sign dropped from the heavens. 

But I felt better. Better because the frustration lifted. It felt like I'd passed the problem on to someone else.  

Then I promptly forgot about it. 

Hours later, I pulled up behind a car at a stoplight. The working title Learning to Fly and the sign I'd asked for were miles from my mind when an electrical surge flickered through my body. The license plate on the car ahead of me read:

LRN2FLY

I blinked several times and then blinked again. It was still there. I gripped the steering wheel hard to tether me because it felt like I could float out the open window.

Remembering that experience and thinking about the events in Cosmic Signposts made me realize that both bold signs came after I'd asked for them. And each time, I'd also asked for something specific.

Seems straightforward, right? But sometimes, the simplest concepts are elusive when life distracts us. Once I realized this, you may guess I started asking for signs all the time, right? 

Not exactly. 

I'll binge-ask for a period and get my answers, but something funny happens. When life starts to go well, I forget to keep asking. But once life gets a little rocky again, I'll wonder why things aren’t going my way. That's when I hear a distant voice that sounds eerily familiar to my own.

You haven't been asking for your signs to guide you, dummy.

Oh. Right.

That’s when I get back on track. At least for a short time until the cycle repeats.

I could end the post here and move on, but there's something else to share. A pitfall.

Occasionally, I choose the opposite way when the sign shows I should choose the other direction.

Why?

It's sometimes hard to override intense emotion, faulty logic, or whatever gleaming object tempts me to ignore my sign. We’re human. We're complex. Sometimes we don't do what's right.

We may be forgiven for our humanity here, but I'll say this from hard-won experience: when you ask for a sign and receive one, know that ignoring it could have a steep cost. Ignoring a few of my signs has not worked out well, and I've regretted those decisions immensely.

But what a wonderful world we live in where we can ask for help and get answers to guide us but still have a choice. We simply have to practice asking for the signs. Then work on having the grit to heed them. Right now, I'm trying to do both as much as possible.

As for the novel, I did follow that sign and wrote the book. Over time, the working title Learning to Fly became Flying Colors. You'd have to read the book to understand why. If I explained, I'd give too much away.

I can relay one thing. Choosing a title was extremely hard. Throughout the writing and polishing of the book, I experimented with almost ten titles but still needed a better one. Finally, I asked the universe for help. I asked for a sign around a final title. Soon, a friend phoned to say she did well on a significant exam for work. I immediately said, "I knew you'd pass with flying colors!"

Cue another electrical surge. The moment flying colors came out of my mouth, I knew I’d found the title of my book and couldn’t believe I hadn’t thought of it before. The moment was magical. I'm incredibly grateful for that friend’s call and the universal muscle behind it.

Following the sign to write the novel was the right decision. I’m thrilled I heeded it. The trek was long and arduous at times, but I was meant to take that journey.

Is there a decision vexing you right now, one you'd like clarity on? Ask for a sign to guide you, then relax and get on with your day. An answer will come if you have enough faith. But are you ready to go in the direction you’re shown?

That's something you can only ask yourself.