I talk a lot about journaling at Lunar Cove. It’s a big part of my Spring Reset Challenge too. It’s an amazing way to process and think, to get everything out of your head and to pinpoint an idea, a notion or a thought. If you find that you struggle to start your day for all of the thoughts swirling in your head, or you find you can’t settle down for sleep on an evening because you’re thinking of everything, you may find journaling really beneficial to add to your morning or evening (or both) routines.
What is Journaling?
- Journaling is more than just keeping a diary. It’s a way that you can reflect and grow as a person. It’s a way of recording your thoughts, feelings, reflections and goals. I personally love the feel of writing on paper, although you may prefer to keep a digital version where you type, or even a recorded version in which you speak. It’s about what works best for you.
- Journaling can help you stay focused and destress. Writing about our experiences can help us to accept and come to terms with events, allowing us to move forward. When we take on a large mental load, our productivity drops- writing everything down means you no longer need to keep it in mind which in turn allows us to focus on tasks at hand.
- Journaling can help you problem solve issues in your life by writing them down or speaking them into a recording and perhaps seeing them in a different way. The answer can quite literally be right in front of you.
- Journaling doesn’t need to be perfect. Journaling is about processes, inner-exploration and inner-reflection. As long as you can read it and it makes sense to you, then its perfect for you. Spelling mistakes, things not written chronologically or crossing things out is absolutely fine.
What Can You Journal About?
When I first started journaling, I didn’t know what to write. What did you journal about? What could you journal about? I was obsessed with it being perfect, and not really knowing what to talk about with so much going on in my head that I just ended up collecting empty journals with beautiful paper and nothing written down. When I came across journal prompts, it helped me massively. I worked on letting go of perfection, using a brain storm to get some things out of my head. I found that the more I wrote, the more that came to mind and on more than one occasion I’ve answered a question I’ve pondered on for a while, or found a deeper meaning to something or a way forward in a situation that I wouldn’t have found without exploration with pen and paper.Here are some based on different themes.
What you can journal about is a list in itself- there’s no end of things that you can journal about! Here are some ideas to get you thinking:
- Things you want to achieve
- Goals and/ or wishes
- Reflections on your life (current, past or present)
- Things you are greatful for
- Tracking your moods to find patterns
- Problems you want to solve
- Dreams you want to analyse to have a deeper connection with your subconcious
- Things that come to mind whilst you’re reading
Forms of Journals.
Much like the list is endless for things you can journal about- the way you can journal is also a long list. From digital to creative, here is a list of different journal forms. This is not an exhaustive list but hopefully will give you an idea of what form of journal works best for you- try some and see if it resonates.
- Bullet Journal
- Blank Journal (freestyle what comes to mind)
- Dream Journal
- Garden Journal
- Travel Journal
- Gratitude Journal
- Stream of Consciousness Journal
- Nature Journal
- Lunar Phases Journal
- Tarot Journal
- Menstrual Journal
I hope you’re beginning to see the power of journaling, whether you’ve been doing it for years, or you’re just starting out. The most important thing to remember for journaling is that there is no right or wrong way- find a way that works well for you; experiment with different forms and styles. Let me know your relationship with journaling, and if you found any of these ideas helpful!