Recently, I consulted with a student who had invested heavily in a business which was now making money but involved dealing with seedy individuals.

He was very conflicted about this. He’d put quite a bit into this venture. It was profitable, thus doubly hard to walk away from. But he didn’t feel good about what he was selling or who his customers were. His head and his gut were duking it out.

I don’t like just coming out and telling people what to do in situations like this. Here’s what I did say to him…

One of the most valuable skills I’ve honed is the ability to listen to my gut.

I learned this the hard way. There was an investor in the company I worked for who I personally liked but every time he’d call I’d feel a subtle, almost imperceptible wave of fear. Only much later did I realize his mission was to slice my fingers off one bloody joint at a time.

My head didn’t know it, but my gut did.

Ignoring my gut was a costly mistake.

Your gut can signal good people to you, too. When I interviewed Mendy Butler, who is now my Most Excellent Customer Service Person, I didn’t know her at all. My head just wasn’t sure about her. But as she got up to leave, a cool song started playing in my head. “Time and Motion just cranked up, that means we likes Mendy.” I did follow through and check all her references to be certain, but hearing that song in my head was the green light that she was the right gal for the job.

At my Chicago seminar, David Bullock stole the show. I got waves of raves about his presentation about Taguchi and online testing and tracking. He was totally tuned in with great information. He was entertaining, fun, even arresting.

You know what?

He’d never had any speaker training.

He’d never spoken to a seminar audience before.

He’d never even been to that kind of seminar before.

But I made him my keynote speaker and he totally rocked.

My gut told me to feature him.

He’s now got speaking invitations from major seminar promoters all over the biz.

It’s not easy at first to discern the conflicting voices inside. But little by little you begin to see through the haze and hear that inner voice more clearly.

I told my student that if he ignored his gut today it would be harder to detect its voice at all tomorrow.

Never disconnect your most reliable instruments.

I think he’ll do the right thing. And in the process he will teach his Inner CFO a lesson: We’re in charge of the money here, boys. The money is not in charge of us.

Small seeds grow and multiply. Little hinges swing big doors. Seemingly insignificant choices have far-reaching consequences. A decision to heed your best instrumentation and become even more reliant on it instead of less, benefits you in unforeseeable ways.

Listen to your gut.

Perry Marshall

About the Author

Perry Marshall has launched two revolutions in sales and marketing. In Pay-Per-Click advertising, he pioneered best practices and wrote the world's best selling book on Google advertising. And he's driven the 80/20 Principle deeper than any other author, creating a new movement in business.

He is referenced across the Internet and by Harvard Business Review, The New York Times, INC and Forbes Magazine.