So you're sitting there, staring at your leather-bound notebook, wondering what you should put on those nice clean pages staring back at you. You're not sure where to start or what good it would do if you did. Would anybody ever read your work—or does that even matter? What's the point of putting all your thoughts out into the world? Aren't they fine living in your mind? People have been journaling for years but is there a good reason for it or was it just something to do in a world that was much simpler than our world is now. Today I want to talk about the effects of personal journaling and whether you should start your journaling habit today.

Opening Up

Journaling allows you to be honest with yourself. It’s so easy to try to be someone you are not by filling your mind will lies. If left their long enough we can begin to forget what our lives really look like. We forget who we really are. Journaling can help you sift through all the things you hear or your say to yourself and help you determine what is true and what is real.

We can turn all the emotional chaos that exists in our minds into black and white words that exist somewhere in the world outside of ourselves. This can help us see our situation for a new perspective. It allows us to be more open about situations that we may have wanted to just believe were okay or normal.

Releasing Stress

We have all felt it before. A deadline approaching. A relationship that you don’t know where it’s going. A big test you need to pass in order to move forward. A big interview for your dream job. Stress builds up and we feel like we are going to explode. It seems like their is no escape for us and we are trapped in this feeling.

You may be wondering how can starting a journal help me relieve my stress. Being able to release your feeling and not keep them bottled up can give your mind the peace it needs. We were not designed to hold all of our emotions in and not all of us have a therapist to call 24/7. So why not use your journal as your own personal therapist. By writing down what you feel you are able to process things easier and see the bigger picture.

Understanding Emotions

Journaling not only helps us release stress, but it also helps us better understand our emotions. Through writing down our feelings, we can see how emotions connect to specific events in our lives. We can track our emotional responses to different tasks and activities. This awareness helps us prepare better for future situations. Through this process, journaling becomes a powerful tool for improving our emotional intelligence.

By tracking your emotions and feelings and life events through your journal you can begin to see patterns in your life. Maybe you enter into a state of depression every time you see a certain person. Maybe what you learn through that is it may be best for you to find new friends or people who encourage you and motivate you in the right ways. By understanding these things you can make decisions that can improve your quality of life.

Boosting Creativity

Writing in a journal can be fun. You don’t have to just write about what’s happening in your life. You can make up stories and create new worlds. There are no rules for your journal so have fun. Whatever happens on those pages is up to you. You have all the creative freedom in the world to bring to life what your heart desires. If you feel so inclined— please share in the comments what you’re creating or want to create through your journal. We love to hear all your stories!

Your journal doesn’t have to be limited to a certain style of writing, in fact it doesn’t have to be limited by words. You could draw pictures that tell stories in your journal. You can write poetry or lyrics. There is no limit to what your journal can become!

Putting it into Practice

There are many different ways you can start to journal. Here is a list of five different ways you can start to use a journal today.

1. Daily Journal

   Keep track of what is happening in your life. Write about your life and what is going on. Anything exciting happen today? Maybe something fun or scary or sad. It doesn’t matter what it is you can write about it.

2. Mood Tracker

   Our moods can be a finicky thing. By keeping track of how you feel at different times can help you learn about how your emotions work.

3. Gratitude Journal

   Being grateful for things in your life can be a very powerful thing. Maybe you don’t realize how many good things you have in your life. By writing them down you can see how many blessing you may actually have.

4. Dream Journal

   It’s always important to have goals and dreams you want to accomplish. By writing them down you can track your progress and see what you need to do to accomplish those dreams.

5. Creative Writing Journal

   This last one is for fun! A journal doesn’t always have to be serious so write down whatever is on your mind. Make up a new world with new characters. The only limit to what your journal becomes is your imagination.