"But Why Should I Journal?"
Journaling can be used as a way for us to express ourselves and gain clarity over the way that we may be feeling. For sure, journaling isn't for everyone - such as a friend of mine who struggled with writing down his thoughts but found great benefit in videoing himself at the end of the day to get his thoughts and emotions from his head to his phone. Putting pen to paper has the same intention but there is something special about that 5-10min at the end of the day when it's just you, your thoughts and your journal... A deep level of connectedness. Here are our top 3 reasons for why we believe journaling will benefit you.
1. A Chance to Understand Yourself Better
It is so easy to become clouded or even overwhelmed throughout the day with so much 'noise' going on. Taking time in the evening to sit in a quiet space and write down how you are feeling overall or how certain scenarios throughout the day left you feeling is an immensely beneficial way to truly understand yourself. Personally, journaling has shown me ways to handle my reactivity to situations in my life that would have previously rattled me. When these moments arise, I identify what has happened, why it's bothered me and what I can do to progress forward so when something else in my life doesn't go to plan (which happens a lot... it's life), I have put myself in an advantageous position to effectively work through it.
2. It Show Us Where and How We Can Be Better
"What gets measured gets managed". Accurately identifying areas of our lives where we didn't give our best effort is one of the greatest ways that we can level up to actually be better. Again, wrapping up the day by looking back on how it went, how you showed up for the people around you and where you could have been better, gives you the chance to do so the next day. This isn't a time to kick yourself for not being your best self - it's an opportunity to remind yourself that you are human, you have days where you are firing on all cylinders and others where you feel like you are running off just one. But identifying these times can help us to see why we may have been feeling off in the first place, and, of course, what we can do moving forward to combat that.
3. Organisation
I feel like now, more than ever, we are all doing so damn much. A three-minute scheduling session in the morning will give you clarity and direction like nothing else. Jotting down the layout of what your day is looking like, along with the most important tasks you need to get done, will help keep you on track. Putting in the work to get to where you want to go is a non-negotiable but you want to be investing that time into things that are going to get you to where you are trying to go. For this, you must be organised. This leads to a whole new level of productivity which means progression. Progression towards your goals, towards your best self, towards the life that you want to live.