Mahatma Gandhi upon arriving in England to seek a solution of India's problems，said： "I'm doing this because a voice within me speaks."
Gandhi referred to"something" from within.Call it a power，call it something supernatural，call it anything you wish.Some refer to it as the subjective mind.Others call it the subconscious mind.Some，universal thought.Still others refer to the impulses coming from within as hunches.Divine messages.Spiritualists refer to it as a voice from beyond.No matter what it is，it gets results，and you should learn how to acquire it.
I don't mean a voice that you hear externally.I'm sure Gandhi didn't mean this，either.But" something" within spoke to him，unmistakably，recognizably，positively； and when it spoke，Gandhi followed the directions he received，followed them to England，and would have followed them anywhere.He knew that this "voice within" could be depended upon for guidance，that when he properly prepared his mind to "hear" this voice，he could await，with expectation and confidence，a definite message.
Gandhi didn't try to force this "voice" to speak to him at any certain time，or to influence what it might say by wishful thinking.Gandhi was a spiritual leader of great humility and self-abnegation.He always placed purpose and principle above his personal needs or desires.Therein lay his great power over governments and people.They had nothing they could offer him except—justice.They knew they couldn't bargain； that when they came into the presence of this saintly man，they had to face ...the truth.No matter how much pressure they tried to put upon Gandhi，he never moved until the "voice within" spoke.
You will do well to cultivate this "voice." A11 great men and women listen to it.They may not describe this inner direction in the same words，and the "voice，" to them，may be an indefinable feeling or conviction which always comes when important decisions have to be made，if they make themselves quiet without and within，and just listen.
It's hard to listen！ As a child，you may have felt you had to shout and kick up a rumpus before anyone paid any attention to you.As an adult，you may have gained a measure of success in the world by overshadowing and dominating.If so，developing the art of listening with your inner ear and your inner mind for counsel that comes from your deeper self，the God part of you，a higher intelligence，or whatever you choose to call it，will not be easy.
The late Thomas A.Edison was an adept at listening to this "inner voice." When he was working on an invention，trying to get the basic idea that would make the invention function，he would accumulate all the known facts with his conscious mind and then lie down on a bench or couch in his laboratory and wait for the idea to "flash to him out of thin air."
Edison's assistants would keep plugging away while the "old man" was taking a "cat nap." But Edison would eventually get up with the answer.He sometimes had to take quite a number of "cat naps" before the answer came； but it always came that way，when Edison was prepared through proper research and had stimulated the creative power sufficiently，to supply the answer to him.
How Edison did it！
A newspaper story，dated October 2 l，193 l，tells how Edison，working with his two associates of more than fifty years' standing，Fred Ott and Charles Dally，finally solved the secret of making synthetic rubber.
The news article says： "On Monday，he [Mr.Edison] started to sink into a stupor.[He was giving the "voice within" an opportunity to speak to him.] But Dally and Ott were still pounding doggedly at their experiments.And，on Tuesday night，the solution flashed out of the mysterious nothingness."（This is a fine way to refer to Edison's inner mind or the inner minds of his associates！）
What happened，very plainly，was that the creative power within the minds of these three scientists finally produced the answer they had been seeking.This answer came like a "bolt from the blue." It was not the result of any conscious thinking or cogitating.Wham—and there it was！ The inner voice had spoken...crystallizing and distilling all their past work，now stored in consciousness，and presenting to these men，in a flash，the answer to their problem： how to make synthetic rubber！
The little voice always speaks when you make up your mind what you want，and when you go after it.It is only when you are undecided，disturbed，upset，worried，doubtful or fearsome that you can't hear the "voice within." You drown it out with your own static or interference.
If your own little inner voice suggests that you ask for something，do not be backward about asking.You have nothing to fear.The other person will never help unless he knows your wishes，so you must ask.Or if you feel you should speak to someone about something，don't hesitate.Go and do it！
A man wrote me from England that he had been reading The Magic of Believing and that it had already altered his life.He said： "I was being used by someone in an indirect way to do something that I did not believe in.I was most unhappy about this but I did not want to anger the person who was doing this.（Fear，you see，held me back.） All of a sudden，while I was weeding my garden and thinking about this situation，something seemed to come over me—an inner voice spoke and gave me orders and I was no longer afraid.I dropped my hoe and went and told this person just what I thought and I have been able to stop this persecution，as a result.I tell you，I've felt like a different person ever since！"
Learn to recognize your inner voice
When the "inner voice" really speaks，it is a sign you are ready to act.Drop your hoe，as this man from England did，or whatever you are doing，and do what you feel impelled to do.But be sure you have learned to recognize the "inner voice" and that it is not just your wishful thinking or imagination or fears talking to you.
