On how to journal

if you're struggling with journaling, this one's for you

Image description: closeup photo of my writing on a page from my journal, with a blue uniball pen next to it. The title is “What is life”

Don’t write for an audience. Write for yourself. That’s my one universal advice for journaling.

I actually had to unlearn this habit of writing for an audience. Every time I’d write in my own damn journal, I’d often write like someone was going to read my entries later. It was performative.

How annoying though -that we feel the need to keep up an “act” to perform even within the confines of our own private, literary space. I dislike thinking about this unfortunate truth. Most of us have learnt this behavior of performing, constantly. And, it makes me wonder - when, then, are we not?

Unlearning that and peeling the layers from my own writing has taken time and conscious effort.

To remind myself that my journal is my own space. Not for anyone else’s eyes (unless I choose otherwise).

But you know why I had to do it? Because once I started writing for myself, I started trusting journaling more. Journaling started feeling more like a sacred space I couldn’t wait to go back to, instead of feeling like another action item on my to-do list.

It was liberating. I could be as raw, and vulnerable, and human as I wanted.

I could write all the terrible things in my head, and I could write all the good things, and I could write whatever the hell I wanted.

How powerful, right?

That’s the power of journaling. It’s your space, and you can be your most honest, raw self when you do. No judgements. No performing. Soul writing, almost.

Going back to how to journal - I do have a few specifics steps that may help you

1. Recollection. Start with recounting your day. What happened in it? Write down the flow of events that you feel like writing about. At some point, you’ll realize certain moments stand out more than others. If you feel like elaborating, go for it. Don’t restrict yourself. Write what feels natural. Of course, if nothing feels natural, then I do have a solution (yes I do love problem solving).

2. Feelings. Look through the flow of events and think about how you’ve felt. Did you feel good? Excited? Bored? Sad? Angry? Maybe you felt nothing, which is also a feeling in itself. So, write that down. There’s no right or wrong here - it’s literally what you make of it.

3. 10 Minutes. Start with 10 minutes. The thought of journaling may seem daunting at first. Setting aside a lot of time for journaling, especially when you’ve got a million and one things to do feels less than ideal. Almost like a luxury. But it’s not. Stop with the perfection paralysis. A clumped schedule or not, 5 minutes is do-able. I do suggest finding 10 minutes at least, but 5 minutes will do if nothing else. Start from there. More often than not, I find myself journaling for longer once I’ve started.

4. Distraction. It’s okay to feel distracted. You may find your thoughts wandering, or your attention diverted. That’s okay. Aim to get back to writing on the paper, and maybe even write about what you thought about in these few moments of mind wandering. I like looking at my random thoughts later on - it’s amusing.

5. Patterns. Is there something noticeable? Anything that’s standing out? Anything you want to explore more as you think about it? It’s almost like having a written conversation. Think about what you’ve written. Think about what you’re writing. Our mind makes amazing connections and recognizes patterns in real time. Use that to your advantage.

And that’s really about it. I love journaling now, and I often go to it when I’m trying to make sense of my thoughts. Something about writing them down makes me feel more at ease, and allows me to think more clearly. I’m able to separate emotions from actions, and process better. That doesn’t mean it’s always easy. Some days journalling feels easier than others. And, like most things, there really are countless ways to go about it. But you figure out what works for you, and take it from there.

To journaling, and journaling honestly. <3

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If you’ve got a specific way of journaling that works for you - please reply back and share it with me. I’d love to share it with the folks here. We’re all here to live and learn (or unlearn), at the end of it aren’t we?

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