Compensatory intution: how to develop

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So I have severe NLD and low processing speed (10th percentile), but I'm pretty functional in some areas just because I don't consciously think things through. I just operate on the basis of intuition or instinct, and it often works quite well. Basically, guided impulsiveness. I use it in social situations too, and it works well those times I can manage it correctly.

It's basically like a very fast, very accurate stream that lets me do amazing things; once I actually manage to tap into it, it just carries me along. But tapping into it is super hard. On Lumosity, for example, on the color match game, I'll be struggling along, and then suddenly, I'll hit the stream and run up my score quite high. If I actually could tap into this stream more consistently, I think I would have an IQ of around 180 rather than an unscorable IQ due to learning disabilities.

This even goes for things like solving a rubix cube, which I can typically do in less than 1 minute if I'm in the proper "mood." The same goes for taking tests -- since I have severe learning disabilities, according to my psychometric testing results, and a way below-average IQ on most things measured by academic tests (processing speed and working memory), but have never received accommodations and have always done at least fairly well. This includes standardized tests such as the SAT (99th percentile), the GMAT (96th), and the LSAT (98th). I practiced these a lot, however, which made it easier to get in the mood.

Typically, when it doesn't work, it's because of anxiety/pressure, which causes me to start thinking about things consciously--which destroys all my abilities. Is anyone similar, and if so, what is a good way to make sure that anxiety and pressure don't get in the way of these instincts? If my IQ subtests are really this bad, and I have an instinct that compensates, what is a good way to develop this instinct and make it more reliable so as to lead to flawless, consistent performance in social and academic situations?

I think I know what you're talking about. I noticed that with things like tetris I would shoot WAAAAY above everyone else when playing, but only when I was upset and was playing it while thinking about something else, like I was playing it unconsciously. I've had this happen to me for other tasks, where my subconscious is clearly 10 or 20 times better at doing things than my conscious mind is.

I have no idea how to tap into that, though. medication or meditation, maybe? I'm sure there's some group of monks in Asia somewhere that knows how...

Figurative speach we could say it is a habit of letting things flow freely or leting go of your emotion, not restraining oneself.

I know exactly what you are talking about, and make use of it constantly.

It is very instinctual, and intuition based. I've found in serious situations, life and death stuff, it always kicks in and saves the day.

I too wish I had more conscious control over it, to somehow harness it. It is incredibly powerful.

But, the harder I try to control it, the less likely it is to manifest. It really is a subconscious ability, and trying to control it is counterproductive.

Back before I knew the difference, I used to rely on it for doing math in school. Look at the question, and just et my hand write the answer. I relied on it so heavily, and it was so accurate, it wasn't until 8th grade that I came to realize I didn't consciously know how to do any math at all. I had to relearn everything from addition/subtraction on up the conscious calculated way.

I still have perfect spelling when writing, but if I'm asked to spell something, I haven't a clue... again, unless I'm distracted and am not even thinking about it. Then I can just blurt out the correct sequence of letters without any notice until later.

It is this same intuition based ability that keeps me safe on the road, too. Especially when I zone out and am on autopilot. I've pulled off some amazing maneuvers on the road, to avoid collisions and such, and do it without the slightest conscious thought about it. I also know if there is a police vehicle in sight... instantly, at any distance, or in any direction, even if they are partially hidden. My subconscious seems to have flagged those guys as an imminent danger, and it warns me of their presence. Probably because I always speed.

Sometimes it'll kick in while playing games, sometimes while reading, sometimes while doing just about any activity... if I'm not focused on it, or am distracted by other thoughts.... and the results are always amazing.

It would be nice to harness it, I fully agree. It is like there is a smarter, funnier, quicker, more aware me, a better me, waiting under the surface of my mind, just waiting for me to be distracted to come out and play.

But I've never figured out how. So I just accept it is there and am glad when it does something amazing for me... and otherwise leave it be. But, if I could... I would tap this resource in a second if I knew how.

PS. Tyrion… I’ve identified with quite a number of your posts.

So, I got to thinking on this subject again after replying here. And of course what followed... web searches.

I stumbled on an interesting forum post over on the Intj forums, that talked about intuition. (I'm an intj, btw)

The gist of the discussion was about what intuition really is, or as it is referred to on personality type boards, introverted intuition. (Ni)

Someone made the analogy of processing of language. That intuition is required for our ability to assign meaning to words, but more than just that, to assign meaning to strings of words. While even though this can be superficially explained by us "learning" a language... that intuition is still what allows us to decode and assign meaning to strings of words in combinations we have never experienced before.

An example of how the combination/sequence changes the meaning of the words.

Only he drove the car.
He only drove the car.
He drove only the car.
He drove the only car.

And it is our intuition that enables us to assign meaning and understand these statements despite them containing the exact same words.

But for some people, this sort of understanding, this "knowing"... extends beyond language. That we can perceive the events, things, people, in situations and "know" the meaning of what is going on, on a deeper level. The same way someone knows not only the meaning of the words used, but also the meaning of the words used in the sentence as a whole.

Intuition allows us to connect smaller meanings together and from the connections form fuller and deeper understandings.


So, after reading this... (I only summed it up here). I started thinking about what it is, this thing that is always there, just beneath the surface.... and this has to be it. It isn't a conscious or calculated thing at all... it is a function of the mind that is wholly subconscious and can only ever be subconscious. But that doesn't mean we cannot use it.

In fact, I suspect we can use it with greater strength, frequency, and accuracy with the same methods people use to improve their comprehension of the written word.

Exposure. Practice. Some of it is likely inborn... but it must be enhanced and utilized to fully blossom. Much like a muscle and exercise, else it will never grow. Thoughts? Am I off target you think?

I can relate to this a bit. Intuition is my greatest asset. I have the opposite of a NLD profile (visual-spatial reasoning is my strength), but I also recall not doing so great on timed exercises. I notice all the time that on timed tests with a multitude of somewhat "easy" problems I don't score as high as other people with similar intelligence because I rarely have enough time to finish. However on non-timed tests I'm able to figure out hard problems nobody else is able to answer. My working memory and processing speed isn't that great even though people see me as exceptionally intelligent. I didn't have much of a problem academically until I got to a high level though. In graduate school I took some graduate level applied math courses and ended up failing the tests because I just couldn't work fast enough.

As for the intuition thing, I remember in fourth grade there was a contest where we had to guess the number of candy pieces in a large jar. There was a smaller jar as well. Anyways, out of a class of 30 I ended up winning both. The teacher gave the smaller jar prize to someone else but in private told me I had also guessed the closest on that one. I also know for a fact that I didn't put a whole lot of effort into my guesses. I didn't try to count them or do any kind of estimation through volume calculations which I didn't have the mathematical knowledge for anyways. It was just pure intuition.