How to get better at trusting your gut? Skims CEO Jens Grede offers valuable tips

It's a common saying that trusting your gut is important. However, Skims co-founder and CEO Jens Grede challenged this notion by stating, “If you think that your intuition is something you are born with, think again. It’s a muscle you can train and strengthen.”

Speaking on his wife Emma's ‘Aspire’ podcast, the founder of one of the most popular shapewear brands explained that one can only effectively develop a strong intuition if they don't hesitate to put themselves in uncomfortable positions.

“Your gut is really your collective memory, your collective experience and learnings ... Every book you read, every article, every conversation, every wrong or right decision you’ve made, that becomes your gut.”

Overcoming decision hesitancy

For people who are risk-averse or tend to procrastinate while making decisions, trusting their intuition can feel unnatural. Grede observed that people sometimes use self-descriptions like, “This is the way I am. I overthink. I procrastinate.′ This is how people come up with excuses for not getting things done, he added.

To actively strengthen his own intuition, Grede shared that he commits to reading newspapers for an hour every morning. He also regularly listens to podcasts hosted by people with whom he disagrees and constantly asks questions to gather different perspectives.

“I’m not a fast runner…But if I committed myself to it, maybe I could run a little bit faster ... You can develop that muscle and become a faster decision maker. You can become a bigger risk taker. You can be more in tune with what your gut is telling you,” he said.

Intuition as an essential professional skill

The ability to make high-quality decisions swiftly is considered an essential skill for all professionals as it signals confidence, fortitude and one’s capacity to get things done efficiently, a CNBC report said earlier.

This skill is likely to become even more important as artificial intelligence is reshaping workplace. “AI is going to change literally every job,” Walmart CEO Doug McMillon told The Wall Street Journal in an interview, adding that human skills like critical thinking, decision0making and intuitiveness may be what differentiates the best employees.

Ultimately, Grede advises people to learn to trust their instincts, especially in situations where they might regret ignoring that voice in their head.

Skims is a US-based shapewear and clothing brand which was co-founded by Kim Kardashian, Emma Grede and Jens Greds in 2018. The company was most recently valued at $4 billion after a July 2023 fundraising round.