Journaling 101- Redefining the Practice

Do you feel like you understand the purpose of a journal? Maybe you don’t know how to journal, why you should do it, or really don’t have an affinity for writing. Well…. it may not be what you think. I hit up the Google and looked for a general definition of “journaling.” Here is what I found: Journal: noun jour·nal \ ˈjər-nᵊl \ : a record of experiences, ideas, or reflections kept regularly for private use Notice anything in there that says this needs to be some deep, dark, written documentation of your inner most secrets? Nope. Guess what? Journaling can be whatever you want it to be. It’s a common conception that it needs to be this diary of thoughts you don’t want anyone to know about. It is meant to be for you and and can be intimate, but it doesn’t need to be just that. The biggest reason WHY you should journal is to relieve your mind of all the thoughts floating around. This makes room in your head for ideas to generate, flow and conceptualize. Writing these thoughts down also puts them into motion. I could go on and on about why you should journal, but let’s leave that for another day. Today, I want to set you up with success and give you 3 easy ways to document your experiences, ideas & reflections. #1 -The Written Journal I’m an advocate for writing in the traditional sense…1000% There is power in putting pen to paper and something so freeing about being able to put your emotions and ideas into words, then solidify them in writing. I am forever writing about the things I am grateful for, affirmations, the things I wish to manifest, my limiting beliefs, letters to myself, letters to other people… the list goes on. This is an intentional practice for me and I do it on purpose each day. No entry is exactly the same and I allow the thoughts to flow through me, into my pen and onto paper. I feel as if I am creating my life one word at a time.   #2- The Spoken Journal I don’t always have paper and pen handy (you’d think I would being so obsessed with journaling!) Many times I get really good ideas or I need to talk something out before I can fully process my thoughts. I use a spoken journal for this! My favorite usage is the Podcast… duh. However, I utilize voice memos on my phone for this as well. This first began as capturing thoughts I had for work, but slowly progressed to having conversations about things that were on my mind. Yes, I began talking to myself. Sometimes I feel like that is the best way to release my current thoughts and have record if it. This is great for those who are not natural writers, who have writers block or find they have  lot of resistance to the practice.   #3- Photo Journal Most of us already do this… it’s called Instagram! However, there are many photos in my cloud that are for me only. No, not those kind of photos! For many of us, photos are an expression of our creativity, our emotions and are a reflection of our lives. Some people are so much more visual and are able to express themselves better through photos than with writing or speaking. If that sounds like you, give this a go! One of my favorite things to do is review every so often. Its so cool to reread your words, listen back to your voice and see the growth you have gone through! At the end of the day, this should be fun, inspiring and something that feels good.   Go Journal your hearts out!!!   Get the full schpeal on the Podcast!