Keeping A Journal: A Quick Guide

Journaling is a great way to clear your mind, track goals or ambitions, promote creativity, help yourself think things through, or provide a safe space to vent without judgment to collect your thoughts on any issue you might have in your life. There are endless reasons why someone may keep a journal, but sometimes it can be hard to know where to start or how to keep a journal going effectively; that’s where we come in. 

This blog offers tips on how to keep a journal better.

First, you’ll want to figure out what to write about. It can be ANYTHING you want. As we mentioned above, there are endless reasons to journal. Just remember that it is your safe space, there is no judgement, and it’s for you, so don’t judge yourself.

Some people write what’s on their minds when they sit down with a pen and put it on paper. Others doodle until they fill pages, while others may use journal prompts (more on that soon!). There’s a lot of freedom in journaling.

There is no specific length, limit, or expectation: you can write two lines, 12 lines, or 200 pages.

Another critical fact about journalling that people don’t consider is that there is no specific medium that you have to write in. ‘Putting pen to paper’ doesn’t have to be literal; you can use a Pen and a book/paper style journal or a digital journal on a tablet, cellphone, or computer.

It’s only essential to use a medium that suits you best when journaling.

You can use journal prompts if you’re stuck for ideas on what to write. These are short prompts that give you things to write about, such as;

“Today I….”

“One day I want to…”

“I was sad because…”

“In ten years, I will…”

“My mother once told me that…”

These prompts are the start of a sentence that you will finish by going into detail, either with your personal experiences or by creatively writing whatever works best for you.

Pro Tip: Search the phrase ‘journaling prompts’ in Google, Tumblr, or my personal fav, Pinterest, for endless options.

Updating your journal regularly creates a consistent habit, which is crucial to long-term journaling. Start by setting aside a few minutes a day that you can dedicate to your journal. Over time, if it’s something you love, you’ll stick with it because it’ll become a habit, much like having a morning coffee or something similar.