Why Start a Journal?
Journaling empowers you to live true to yourself. It teaches you to make more intentional choices, grounds you when you feel overwhelmed or out of control but ultimately, no matter how you format it, journaling is about self-awareness. Think of it like carrying out a research project; you’re observing your actions and your feelings so you can get to know yourself better. This self-awareness is the key to getting off the treadmill and living an intentional, meaningful life.
Unraveling Your Feelings
Journaling gives you space to work through emotions in a way that leaves you with a feeling of clarity. Use the journal as a platform to process complex or difficult emotions. Don’t hold back, the paper can take it.
Types of Journaling
- Classic Journal – This is simply a diary, and you can write whatever you want in it every day. It can be long or short, you can skip days if you want to, and there doesn’t have to be any structure or specific flow to your thoughts.
- Gratitude Journal – A gratitude journal is a collection of things that you are grateful for. You can use a gratitude journal to focus on the positive things in your life and to record the people that you are thankful for.
- Goal Planning Journal – Goal planning journals help you focus on your goal and stick to them through a series of prompts and checklists. The trick to these journals is the variety available. The journals are themed to different goals such as academic, career, physical goals, and more! Have a checklist with a small writing area or prompts giving you tasks to complete and thoughts regarding those tasks.
- Bullet Journals – Bullet journals are the sandbox of journaling. You can use these with calendars, lists, bullet lists, and task lists. It is all open for you to create and use different methods to arrive at your short term tasks, long term goals or as a record for any thoughts/ ideas you have throughout the day! You can use different symbols for different bullet entries!!
- Morning Pages – A great way to begin is to write “morning pages”, which is a term used by Julia Cameron in The Artist’s Way (a great book for anyone who wants to develop their creative wellness) to describe stream of consciousness writing. The idea is to just start writing whatever is on your mind (even if you write “blah, blah” or whatever). Don’t overthink it—just keep writing!
How to Start
First and foremost, relax and let go of any ideas about doing it the “right” way— because when it comes to journaling, there’s no such thing! Your journal is a personal space for you to use however you see fit. If you don’t know what to write about, a great place to begin is by asking questions. Some favorites include:
- How do you feel right now?
- Why do you feel that way?
- How do you want to feel?
- What can you do to feel that way?
Alternatively, imagine you were having a conversation with a close and trusted friend—what would you want to talk about? Try talking to your journal like you would a trusted friend (because I promise that with time, it will start to feel that way!).
Creating a Journaling Habit
One of the most important things to know about journaling is that you need to stick with it. The more you write, the easier it will become and the more you’ll notice the benefits.
The easiest way to start the habit is to schedule a time for yourself that will be consistent every day. Get a notebook that you love looking at or touching, or if you prefer to go digital, try Evernote or other note-taking apps. Of course, there’s always blogging if you’re ok with being more public with your mental processes. No matter which route you take, journaling is a worthwhile life practice to start.
Something to Think About
You’re not alone in practicing journaling as a habit. Some of the most influential leaders, artists, inventors and activists in history have kept a journal. Kurt Cobain. Abraham Lincoln. Leonardo Da Vinci. Andy Warhol; they all kept journals. If it worked for them, who’s to say what you’ll get from the practice of journaling?
– Omar K, Student Assistant