Before we research more about “Easy Journaling Ideas,” let’s answer a few questions to help us set context.
Do you dedicate enough time to this important person in your life? Are you absolutely certain?
I reckon most of you don’t even acknowledge this person. Wondering who?
Let me drop a hint: This person has been with you since birth, stood by you through every triumph and setback, been there when you fell in love, and nursed you when you were sick!
Figured it out? Yes, it’s you.
We often get busy in our lives and forget to spend time with ourselves, or reflect on ourselves. We are going to talk about a method or a way to talk to yourself and reflect – Journaling Ideas.
Wait, let me try and simplify it even more. Let’s talk about some Easy Journaling Ideas that will act like your “2 minute recipes” to get you started. You can then later explore more of these terms.
What Is Journaling?
Cambridge dictionary defines Journal as “a written record of what you have done each day, sometimes including your private thoughts and feelings.”
You jot down everything that unfolds during your day on paper or on your computer. It’s your space to sit down and have a conversation with yourself, to ponder your feelings, reactions, and the direction you’re headed in.
Initially, you may not notice much of a change or benefit from it. However, with time and perseverance, you’ll begin to notice a shift. You’ll gain more clarity in your thoughts and actions, and you’ll develop a deeper understanding of yourself.
And let’s be honest, you don’t need me to emphasize how important it is to have clarity in life.
Why is Journaling important?
Yes, it provides clarity and deepens self-awareness like we saw in the previous section. However, daily journaling offers additional advantages. Here are a few:
- Help you get a clarity in life
- Promotes self-discovery
- Aids in problem-solving or uncovering solutions
- Offers a fresh perspective on challenging matters
- Reduces stress levels
- Increases awareness of emotions or reactions, aiding in regulation
- Improves communication skills
How do I start Journaling?
After understanding a little bit of journaling and its benefits, the next question most of you will have is “How do I start Journaling?”.
While there isn’t a correct or wrong way to journal, it is important to keep in mind to cover all the areas of your life or day.
There are multiple questions available on the internet to help you with your journaling.
One of the Easy Journaling Ideas, especially for a person who is just starting out, would be to jot down everything that comes to your mind or write down everything that happened in the day.
Though it feels time taking in the beginning, after a few days you will observe a shift in your day to day activities, your thought process, your work efficiency.
Few things to remember
Also, remember, you don’t have to write down everything as and when it happens. Start by writing your journal at the end of the day, so that it gives you a chance to reflect on the whole day.
Once you get a hang of it, include journaling in your morning routine. This Journal will be to help you set your goals for the day, to define how your energy levels will be, to plan for the day, remember things you are grateful for etc.,
When you are journaling at the end of the day, reflect on what you wrote, were you able to achieve everything as you planned in the morning, could you have done anything different today etc.,
One more thing, do not consider journaling as a task or work and stress to accomplish the things you note down in it. This is a way for you to reflect on yourself.
If in any situation you couldn’t write your journal or do the tasks as you planned, it is ok. Start afresh from the next day, do not give up on the whole Habit just because you missed it for one day.
Get back on track the next day. Remember this is you working on yourself, for yourself.
And there also isn’t any hard and fast rule that, you have to journal only in the morning or in the evening, you can journal anytime you feel like it.
If there is a significant event you want to write about, write it.
If you are feeling stressed or lost, write.
If you are happy or over the moon, write.
Visit these or any of your previous journal entries often, these special mentions or write ups can be your ground zero. They will help you get clarity and understand about a lot of things you probably didn’t think about.
Easy journaling ideas
Here are a few Journal questions to get you started,
Morning Journal Ideas
- What are three things you’re thankful for today?
- What are you anticipating today? (Could be a specific task, event, or meeting someone.)
- What are the three primary tasks for today?
- What’s your ideal vision for today?
Read more about how Journals can be part of your morning routine here Morning Routine: Your Bueprint to success
Evening / End of Day Journal Ideas
- What was the highlight of your day?
- What was the low point of your day?
- Which emotion did you feel most intensely today?
- Did you complete all the tasks on your to-do list?
- Is there anything you could have handled differently today?
Specific or Personalized
If there is any area in your life you want to improve or change, you can add questions to track your progress or improvement.
For Example, Let’s say you want to reduce the time spent on Social Media.
- How much time did you spend on the Social Media Apps today? (Enter specific duration spent)
- Which Apps did you use the most?
- What is your plan to reduce the usage?
Let’s take another example, where in you are trying to cultivate a new habit like reading a book
- What is the goal you want to achieve in terms of reading the book?
- What is your current situation?
- What are your plans to achieve your goal?
- (If you decided to set aside 30 minutes to read everyday) Did you spend 30 minutes today reading a book?
- Were there any challenges? How did you overcome them?
Similarly you can add Journal questions to keep track of your progress and include new ones once all your goals are achieved.
Conclusion
Though journaling may seem straightforward, many struggle with it or avoid it altogether simply because they’re reluctant to introspect. Initially, it can be challenging as it demands self-awareness throughout the day. However, over time, this practice of observation can lead to positive changes and improvements in your life.
Just as we’re accustomed to outlining our “Today’s To-Do List” for work, let’s begin applying the same principle to our personal lives by journaling at both the start and end of each day.
You can get started with “Simple journaling ideas” I have provided in this article. Let me know how your “Journaling Journey” started and how it’s going in the comments section below.
Peace