Yesterday, I felt down all day. It seemed that I couldn’t get the energy to do anything productive. Instead, I sat and scrolled through social media all day, feeling bored despite all the content at my fingertips. Lying in my bed last night, as I reviewed the day in my head I felt ashamed to realize I had wasted the whole day.
I began to think back on times in my life when I have most felt content and purposeful. What had I done differently on those days?
I dusted off my journal and wrote down my thoughts. Just getting them out on paper, I felt much calmer. I realized that while I used to write in my journal every day, I hadn’t picked it up in more than two months. I had been missing the clarity journaling brings.
Journaling brings clarity, understanding, and aligns your thoughts and goals. I don’t know about you, but I definitely need that more in my life.
Because of this experience, I’m taking the first step to reviving this habit. I decided to challenge myself to a 30-day challenge.
The rules are simple: for the next 30 days, journal every day. That’s it!
Find the conclusion of this challenge here. If you’re taking the challenge, let me know in the comments below. I’d love to hear your thoughts. Together, we’ll gain more clarity, understanding, and alignment.
If you are interested in this challenge, but you’ve never consistently journaled before, keep reading. In the rest of this post, I’ll outline how to create (and consistently keep) a habit of journaling.
Decide on a time
Try to keep this time you decide on consistent each day. Make it part of a morning or nightly routine for consistency. If you find you have time at lunch each day, bring your journal with you to work. If you can find time by staying up for an extra 15 minutes, do it before you go to sleep.
Consistently journaling at the same time will begin to make this second nature (and a lot easier to follow).
Create a reminder
I forget a lot of stuff. If I didn’t have reminders for things, nothing would get done. My alarm serves as a reminder to wake up in the morning. My shower reminds me that I’m ready to start writing. The tasks in my planner remind me of my responsibilities.
The thing is, even if I had a great memory, a habit is something I want to become second nature so I’ll do it without thinking.
You can create a reminder on your phone or an alarm that goes off every day at the same time. You could add the task into your planner each day. If you sit at a desk most days, add a sticky note to your computer. The point is, find a place where you’ll see your reminder daily.
Keep it physical
Rather than keeping a digital journal, try writing in a physical journal. Putting pen to paper forces you to slow down and collect your thoughts. Our brains go so many directions, and sometimes it is difficult to focus on what we actually want to say. Writing makes us sort through those thoughts and record the important ones.
Decide on your writing topics.
My favorite journaling is free-writing where I just write what is on my mind without worrying about staying on any particular topic. However, if you are not as consistent with journaling freestyle yet, it may be helpful to use a prompt for each day. If this is you, check out the calendar below with a prompt for each day. Here they are if you want to copy/paste the list for elsewhere.
- What worry has been on my mind lately?
- What am I grateful for today?
- What makes me content in this present moment?
- What makes me most happy?
- What positive change can I make in my life?
- Who inspires me?
- Write a letter to your past self.
- When have I felt most content and purposeful in my life?
- What is an issue that I am passionate about?
- What brings me genuine joy?
- How do I want to feel when I wake up each day?
- How would I define success?
- What am I afraid of?
- What do I love most about myself?
- How should I show self-love?
- What do I want to be remembered for?
- How do I respond to challenges?
- I’ve always wanted to….
- What would someone have to watch, read, or listen to in order to understand me?
- Who has made the biggest influence in my life?
- What is one word to describe me? Why?
- What is my dream job?
- What is something I want to learn?
- What are my current priorities? Does something need to change?
- What am I happy about today?
- What does my ideal life look like?
- When have I done something I thought I couldn’t?
- What advice do I need to give myself right now?
- How can I serve others today?
- What have been my biggest improvements this year?
- How can I be mindful today?
Journaling can be miraculous for self-discovery and focus. I find that journaling helps me sort through the millions of thoughts that fly through my head. You may find that it is therapeutic to put pen to paper or that you understand yourself better. Let know how it works for you. Tag me on Instagram @artofpureliving with your thoughts!
I’ll be back in 30 days to report how it went on my end and check up on you. Until then, happy journaling!
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