After almost 10 years I think I’ve finally found a journaling practice that actually works for me!
I’ve wanted to be a person that journals regularly for a very long time but it wasn’t considered “cool” and back then I didn’t want to do anything that would cause me to stand out or be ridiculed. Over the years I’ve tried many different methods of journaling but none really stuck.
For the last 8 years or so I had a leather journal that I really liked but I wasn’t consistent. Earlier this month (October) I had a revelation. I want to be able to journal where ever I am but I don’t want to carry my journal with me everywhere. I’m worried I’d lose it or leave it some place.
While in NYC at the New York Public Library I saw a small journal and had to get it. I started immediately jotting down things as I was out and about and putting it back in my bag. Let me back up. I bought a new journal for my trip to NYC, as one does. I really wanted to document the entire trip, how I was feeling, what I was seeing, what I was eating, how the streets felt…Everything! Every night when I got back to the hotel I would write about the day.
That’s when it hit me. Because I didn’t want to risk losing my big journal I would use the brand new smaller journal to write down while I was out and about. That would make it easier to write about the day in my big journal back at the hotel.
It worked perfectly!! I would write down a few sentences in bullet form and then back at the hotel I could build the entry from that. I’ve been doing it since I got back and it’s changed the way I view journaling.
The first thing I did when I got back was “close out” my 8 year old journal. There’s a lot of … stuff in that notebook. Heavy stuff. I think that played into me not wanting to write as much too. I picked a brand new journal off my shelf, because yes, I do also collect journals! Then I got started. My small journal comes with me every where I go. When I think of something I want to remember I write it down. When I get home at night I go through it and transfer that idea over to my main journal. Then I put a little check mark by the entry in the little journal and put it back into my bag ready for the next day!
I haven’t missed a day of journaling since I started this! I do have some heavy stuff in the new journal as well but I find myself writing more pages than I did in the old journal. My brain feels less cluttered getting those thoughts out during the day and then re-examining them at the end of the day. I feel more creative and I just feel so much better overall mentally. I also feel like blogging more! This is not only my second entry this month but on back to back days as well!
While I was in NYC I bought a new 5 year “one line a day” journal. That’s another habit I’ve wanted to do but one that hasn’t stuck. I just sum up the day in this journal with a sentence or two. It will be fun to look back on entries from the same day years ago!
Here’s a few things I’ve done to make journaling a habit.
- Keep a journal with me where ever I go
- Get a journal that I like looking at, that makes me want to use it
- Set reminder in my phone to journal (just in case I get side tracked)
- Put my journals where I see them. I’m very “out of sight, out of mind” so having them out makes me use them more.
That’s it! I’m just really happy that I’ve found a process that works for me. I see and feel the benefits of journaling so I want to keep doing it for as long as it makes sense to do so! Journal pics below!
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