Intuition

[scaleface]

I had a gut feeling today that there would be bass in the middle of the creek by the channel . I was wrong .

[Bluebasser86]

It happens all the time. Sometimes I listen, sometimes I don't. It's not always right when I listen, seems like it always is when I don't. 

[Catt]

Thought I would buy a new reel but my gut said momma gonna kick your butt! 

[GRiver]

I don’t have an updated fish finder, I got a hummingbird 170 it’s basically is a depth finder compared to what out there today. If I had the new stuff I would use it, but it’s not the new electronics that tell you to stop and fish that little cove that you NEVER have caught anything ….EVER.
It’s intuition, that gut feeling that says “ they’re in today”. 
got to use the tools you have and listen to your gut a lot of the time. 
I still haven’t caught anything in that stupid cove…

[billmac]

I don't think you can have intuition without experience.  I think intuition is simply our brain connecting dots based on the knowledge and experience we already have.  Like when we solve a problem when we are sleeping.

 

And to play devil's advocate, we tend to count only intuitive successes, not failures.

[Catt]

1 hour ago, billmac said:

I don't think you can have intuition without experience.  I think intuition is simply our brain connecting dots based on the knowledge and experience we already have.

 

I was literally getting ready to say the same thing!

 

I think it's a subconscious reaction based on pasted experiences. 

 

This right here is why I chuckle when someone says not to fish "history". If we eliminate our history we eliminate who we are as an angler. 

 

One of the reasons I'm good at feeling a t-rig/jig bite is I've been there felt that!

 

Time on the water, still the best teacher out there!

[CrankFate]

It’s a lot like luck.

 

Either you got it. Or you don’t.

[Tennessee Boy]

I've enjoyed reading this thread.  We can always count on @Mobasser to come up with a good one.  I'm not sure everyone here is working on the same definition of intuition. What I'm going to describe may be different than what you meant in your post.  

 

I've done some fascinating reading on the subconscious.  Most people underestimate the role it plays and what it's capable of.  The subconscious reacts much faster to sensations than the conscious mind.  It can tell you to run from danger before you even know why.  You hear a loud noice and you immediately duck before you even think about what caused the noise.  That's your subconscious at work and it can save your life.  The subconscious is also stupid.  It tells you to eat a piece of pie when your conscious mind knows it will make you fat.  It's tells those suffering from PTSD that they are in danger when their conscious mind knows they are not.  When the subconscious and conscious minds disagree,  the subconscious mind usually wins.  That's why smart people sometimes do stupid things.

 

The subconscious plays a roll in everything we do and that includes fishing.  If you've ever had that feeling that something's different with your lure,  that's your subconscious telling you to set the hook!  If you train your subconscious to do the strike detection you will set the hook much faster.  When we talk about training our thumb to prevent backlash,  we're really talking about training our subconscious to control our thumb.  The conscious mind is way too slow to perform this task well. 

 

The subconscious also wants to play a roll in decision making on the water.  Because it's stupid, this is were it can steer you wrong.  It may associates some spots with the great feelings you've experienced when you've caught fish on similar spots.  It might be helpful in this regard.  It might also like a spot because it associates it with where you caught that big one while fishing with your dad when you were 12.  That feeling may be so strong that it overrides the 1000 times you got skunked on similar spots in the 50 years since that day.  We don't need to make split second decisions about where to fish so the conscious mind is much better at making these decisions.  It might comes down to a choice between what makes sense and what feels right.  I think it's best to go with what makes sense.

 

Again,  I think people have defined intuition differently on this thread but I'm defining it as that gut feeling you get from your subconscious.  When I'm fishing I want my subconscious to help with things like strike detection and thumbing the spool.  When I make decisions I want to do that using logic that only my conscious mind is capable of.   There will always be times when I just get that feeling that I need to go fish over there.  I'm human so I usually go fish there for the same reason I'm going to go eat a bowl of ice cream right now.  It just feels right. 

 

 

 

[MIbassyaker]

8 minutes ago, Tennessee Boy said:

I've enjoyed reading this thread.  We can always count on @Mobasser to come up with a good one.  I'm not sure everyone here is working on the same definition of intuition. What I'm going to describe may be different than what you meant in your post.  

 

I've done some fascinating reading on the subconscious.  Most people underestimate the role it plays and what it's capable of.  The subconscious reacts much faster to sensations than the conscious mind.  It can tell you to run from danger before you even know why.  You hear a loud noice and you immediately duck before you even think about what caused the noise.  That's your subconscious at work and it can save your life.  The subconscious is also stupid.  It tells you to eat a piece of pie when your conscious mind knows it will make you fat.  It's tells those suffering from PTSD that they are in danger when their conscious mind knows they are not.  When the subconscious and conscious minds disagree,  the subconscious mind usually wins.  That's why smart people sometimes do stupid things.

 

The subconscious plays a roll in everything we do and that includes fishing.  If you've ever had that feeling that something's different with your lure,  that's your subconscious telling you to set the hook!  If you train your subconscious to do the strike detection you will set the hook much faster.  When we talk about training our thumb to prevent backlash,  we're really talking about training our subconscious to control our thumb.  The conscious mind is way too slow to perform this task well. 

 

The subconscious also wants to play a roll in decision making on the water.  Because it's stupid, this is were it can steer you wrong.  It may associates some spots with the great feelings you've experienced when you've caught fish on similar spots.  It might be helpful in this regard.  It might also like a spot because it associates it with where you caught that big one while fishing with your dad when you were 12.  That feeling may be so strong that it overrides the 1000 times you got skunked on similar spots in the 50 years since that day.  We don't need to make split second decisions about where to fish so the conscious mind is much better at making these decisions.  It might comes down to a choice between what makes sense and what feels right.  I think it's best to go with what makes sense.

 

Again,  I think people have defined intuition differently on this thread but I'm defining it as that gut feeling you get from your subconscious.  When I'm fishing I want my subconscious to help with things like strike detection and thumbing the spool.  When I make decisions I want to do that using logic that only my conscious mind is capable of.   There will always be times when I just get that feeling that I need to go fish over there.  I'm human so I usually go fish there for the same reason I'm going to go eat a bowl of ice cream right now.  It just feels right. 

 

 

Very well said.

[schplurg]

Intuition = experience, nothing more. No magic, no mystery.

[OldManLure]

Intuition is a shortcut to the knowledge we possess.  You may not be able to articulate the reasons for a choice you make, but you know it seems like the right one or a good one ( or conversely, the wrong one or a bad one).  It allows us to make a calculated decision without having to spend time calculating.  It’s invaluable.

[scaleface]

Hers my intuition at its best . I was  walking through the woods with a friends dog . I got an uneasy feeling on what was up ahead . Maybe I heard a rustle or a tree frog quit chirping , I dont know . The dog was sniffing around then stopped , looked in the same direction and growled with hair standing up . I backed out .