#journaling tips

[whilereadingandwalking]

A year of journaling, a year of Moleskines. I was steady about journaling this year. In harder times and better, I wrote long entries, but in between, I kept entries shorter. In the past, I’ve used 6 journals for a year, and this year I used 5, including my chunky Japan travel notebook, which I saw as a win. I hope to collage more in the upcoming year—I did a lot of “scrapbook” style but not much creative collaging, which I love and used to do once a month. I already have my big Moleskine for our Australia trip, but I’m actually starting the year off with a cute wombat journal gifted to me by an Australian pen pal who I’m finally going to see again this March after more than 20 years!

[golden222petal]

My Reflection Practice

Daily morning meditation

Reflection Planner - every morning I journal whatever is on my mind. I also log my mood and my morning habits.

Gratitude Journal - every morning write down 3 things you are grateful for, followed by weekly affirmations

Weekly check-in: Recovery Planner

I usually complete one on Sundays to set myself up for the week.

Reflection questions:

What is taking up space in my mind?

Where have I been selfish, dishonest or afraid? What can I do differently?

Do I need to fix something? Do I owe anyone an apology?

What have done well? What victories can I celebrate?

How can I help others or be of service?

Monthly: Spiral Planner

I am looking for a new way to track my monthly goals and intentions. Right now I'm using a physical planner, but I am looking to incorporate Notion.

Reflect on my goals from last month

Set goals for the month

Set intentions for the month

Note bill dates

Note important meetings

Journal Suggestions if you don't know where to start:

Bullet Journal

Answer shadow work prompts

Manifesting Journal

Career Journal

[monstress]

hii. if u dont mind, could u please share that "change of attitude" towards journaling? i feel like i really need that.. since i myself changed my attitude towards drawing and have been much more productive and happy doing it this last year. however Writing About Myself its another beast completely.. hope u r having a nice day! 🍃

hope you're having a lovely day as well! anyways as i was typing this up, what starts as a small tidbit has gone off the rails so i suppose this is my blanket advice as a newbie in journaling:

the materials!

choosing the titular journal aka notebook:

soft vs hard cover - i didn't realize this is SUCH a deciding factor until much later. most people prefer soft covers since journals can get massive with use but it's very subjective. be tactile - if it just don't feel right in ur hands, it's not gonna be something u reach out for when u have free time.

size - the most common sizes are A5, A6 or regular aka travelers notebook. you have to think abt who you are as a writer. do u have a large handwriting that takes up pages and pages? do you like space or are you overwhelmed by a blank page? do you travel a lot and do u want something unobtrusive in your bag? choose something that will reasonable work as a part of your daily life.

paper texture - paper that is smooth to write in are a great source of pleasure. notebooks with 100gsm paper is a good benchmark.

price - pleaseeee do not break the bank to purchase a fancy notebook. an expensive notebook can become an unloved one. you'd be too stressed to ensure every entry is perfect and pretty enough and the notebook eventually becomes too intimidating for you to fill in. check out your local hypermarket or online stores for quality notebooks. moleskins are overrated--in my country, they are v v expensive so don't feel pressure to buy a certain stationary just bc you see them often on ig/tiktok like my journal cost me approximately RM10 (USD2.34) and my new one w 100gsm paper cost me RM17 (USD4) like affordable options are out there!

build a connection with your notebook - listen...this sounds strange but having an attachment with your journal and making it inviting as possible is a great source of motivation. personalize it: add stickers, doodle or paint the cover. get a fabric/pvc cover to keep it clean if you'd like (you can add lil papers/stickers on ur actual notebook cover before putting on the pvc cover! very cute and easy)

and your pens:

again: less is more! use any relatively cheap pens you like - be it for the ink or smoothness. if you want to journal a lot, expect to lose a few pens during traveling or just around the house lmao

for fans of darker inks like me, i use Uni-ball Signo Broad, M&G R3 retractable gel pen and my favorite: Faber Castell RX Gel Pen 0.38mm - which cost like RM1.49 (i dont wanna convert - it's change money in america)

final note: i don't use fountain pens so i'm afraid i'm not well-versed enough to advise in that department but i deeply respect (and a little in awe) of journallers who use them 🫡

the tenet!

purpose: what do u plan to use the notebook for? daily journal? art journal? planner? all three? it's your life! live deliciously! since i have a 9-5 job, i know i can't keep up with more than one journal so i've been using mines as a diary and i dump my daily activities/thoughts/reviews of all kinds of media i'm currently obsessed with and it fills up quick!

don't be too hard on yourself: if you missed a day or two of journalling, it's fine - take it back up. write down anything memorable you'd like in the past few days. if you come across a certain blank page your brain is blanking to fill, perhaps after a previous dark entry, skip the page. skip two pages if needed. don't be scared of blank pages. if it needs to be blank, let it be.

it doesn't have to only be words! add stickers, dried flowers, receipts, ticket stubs, other ephemera you collected in the day. be artful! go crazy on page decoration!!

if there's anything you take away from this post, it's this: if you truly want a journal that is used up quickly, do not have plans to share it on social media. personally, i find once you are in the mindset of sharing your journal for an audience's consumption, you get worried whether it's "aesthetic" enough or is it too boring or too ugly or too dark or that you don't upload regularly enough. social media can be inhibiting your creativity or motivation to journal like let your animal brain ruminate in private! stay free from the shackles of responsibility!

[sneakers-and-shakes]

3 Easy Methods to Start Journaling

If you’ve always wanted to start journaling (or just try something new) but don’t know where to start or find it all overwhelming, this blog post is sure to help!

This month I’ll be outlining 3 simple and easy ways you can start journaling and kick off the new year!

To begin let me break down what I believe are the basic concepts of journaling: documentation, goal-setting, and self-reflection.

In this post I’ll be outlining 3 simple ways you can accomplish these basic concepts, with each method covering a different concept.

Let’s start with the easiest and my favorite method to start journaling: buying a calendar.

This method is to tackle the documentation aspect of journaling. If you find that writing things down in a traditional journal is hard, then the calendar method, as I call it, is a much easier way to document your life.

1. Expo Calendar (Exhibition Calendar)

This is exactly what it sounds like, it exhibits your life. Basically you get a calendar (I get mine from the dollar store but you can also print cute templates for free online) and fill it out after you’ve done something. And so you essentially get an archive of your month.

As for what you put on the calendar, it can be anything you consider notable. Whether it’s completing a goal like finishing a book or working out, or fun plans or activities like dinner with friends or painting, just write them down on the calendar the day you did them.

This not only helps you keep track of everything but also makes you feel accomplished when you look back and see just how much you have actually done. Often times we don’t remember the things we do and when we think back it seems like much less than it actually is.

This calendar gives you an at a glance view of everything. It can also motivate you to do something noteworthy, so to speak, if you notice a week looking particularly empty.

Below is an example of how you could fill out an Expo Calendar. (If you want to take it a step further you can color-coordinate by choosing a color for goals or plans/activities.

This is something I’ve been doing since 2019 and I’ve really enjoyed going back through the calendar (especially at the end of the year) and realizing how much I’ve actually done.

-.-

The second method is to address the goal-setting concept of journaling.

2. Monthly Notes

I’ve talked about this on my blog multiple times because it’s something I truly stand by and implement in my life for years now. Basically, the idea is to write down 3 goals you hope to accomplish in a given month.

(I’ve dived deeper into this in these blog posts and I highly recommend checking them out for more information: Different Kinds of Goals and Organization and Goals)

If you’re not sure where to start on the 3 goals then the easiest way is to make one of each type: Fun, Achievable, and Challenging. Essentially, make one goal that is fun for you to do, another goal that you’ve been meaning to do that’s achievable and one goal slightly more challenging.

You can write these in an actual journal, on a post-it note, or even digitally, whatever works best for you. A month, I find, is a good amount of time to try to get things done, not too long and not too short, but it’s good to check in midway to make sure you’re on track to accomplishing these goals.

If you follow the method of setting one of each type of goal, you will likely have at least one or two of them checked off by the end of the month when you re-evaluate. This method is an easy way to make sure you’re staying on top of the things you want to accomplish.

-.-

The last method is to cover the last concept of journaling which is self-reflection.

3. Journal Prompts

I know this may seem obvious, but a bottleneck for a lot of people with journaling is they don’t know what to write. This is where just choosing from a list of journal prompts comes in handy.

If you’re just starting out, I recommend making some time once or twice a week to go through one or two journal prompts and answer them. Doing it daily can be a lot for people who haven’t adjusted but by doing it weekly you can slowly build up the habit. Once you answer a few journal prompts, coming up with what to write might even become easier.

Below is a list of Journal questions I came up with a while ago (also posted on my Instagram highlights).

-.-

I hope these 3 easy and simple journaling methods assist you on your journey! These are all things hat I personally do and work for me and I’d love to hear about your experience with them, so feel free to leave a comment!

Thank you for reading!

[ibycaceres]

How to journal! For mental health 🌟

Tips and prompts ~

I have been journaling for many years now and for a long time I did it “wrong”, of course there si no real wrong way of journaling but there are ways to do it better and in a more insightful way! And I’m going to share how I do it!

First some useful prompts/ questions for daily reflections

What sparked joy? This is for all the things that made you happy or glad you are alive so you’ll know to do more of it.

What drained me of energy? This si helpful cuz you’ll start to see patterns (like you’ll keep on seeing the same things -social media, bad habits, certain people, etc- and you’ll know what to avoid and get out from your life.

Did I learned something? This will show you that you learn something new every day even if it’s silly and you can come back to old lessons in the future since there are all written down!

What I’m I grateful for? This is really helpful to realize that there are so many thing we tend to take for granted. Also great to look back when you need it. I have to admit this I don’t use very often cuz it’s similar to the first one.

How did I push forward? This si about the goals you are constantly working on and how you are working towards them. This helps you see if you are being consistant or if there are changes you have to make to reach your goals.

Tips

Write at the moment! This means that it’s best to write when you have a thought rather than to wait till a specific hour of the day.

Write it even if it’s stupid or ugly. This means to write things even if you are ashamed or unsure about it, your journal is yours alone and it helps to address things as they are or as you perceive them, also seeing them on paper can help you analice them and realize they might not be accurate to reality.

Take inspiration from outside of your life. This means that you can use some prompts for situations from a book or someone else’s life to reflect on them and widen your perception of life (maybe not this specific prompts lol).

Write on a specific theme or subject. For example about school or family, so you will ask: what drains me of energy at school?

And that’s it! I hope this helps some of you that are starting to journal or that want to do it or even if you need more ideas for your journal ^^ it can really help to write things down not just to remember moments of your life but it’s good to take things out of your chest, and once they are on paper you can analice them and find some peace of mind.

If you want more tips or prompts please let me know! I would love to share more of this with you! 🌟🌟🌟

[manifesting-grotto]

Journaling Method ✨

🌸 List every area of your life where you have limiting or negative beliefs, then write down those beliefs and anything that may be holding you back

🌸 Make a list of affirmations for each one, for example, if you have had financial struggles, affirm "Every dollar I spend comes back to me." If relationships are your problem area, affirm "I am worthy of love."

🌟 Bonus: Make a list of everything you've manifested for when you need motivation and/or a reminder that LOA is 100% real.

💖 Keep calm and manifest on!!

[sandramiksaauthor]

Journaling for Beginners: find your voice, change your life, and manifes...

[elysian18]

The importance of writing

There are many things that can affect our mental health. There could be changes in our home life, stressing out over school, trying to get a new job, etc. So what can we do to identify what is going on? A lot of the time writing helps many people. Now I know what you are thinking, why would I write when I would rather be watching T.V. or scrolling tik tok and trust me, I get it. The vampire diaries sound so much more entertaining than writing sometimes, but trust me it helps. I know personally that when I get stressed it feels like a tornado of thoughts going through my brain, getting them down on paper helps me see that it isn’t as much to worry about than what I thought. Even just making a list of what I’m thinking about helps. Another form of writing is bullet journaling. Bullet journaling is for people who like to be more creative with their writing. There is no limitation to what you could write about. You could make it aesthetic, act as if you are talking to other people, or add drawings to it. Pretty much any way you want to get your emotions onto paper, you can do it. Even if you don't know how to journal, there are thousands of prompts and ideas on Pinterest, tik tok, youtube, you name it. Let me know if you want me to share what I do and don't forget that the world is a better place with you in it. Love you! 💕

[veesoren]

tbh i think i wanna start journaling this year. any tips??

[penningthoughts]

Lesson Learned for Journaling

Use hard cover books so I can more easily write in bed or any other area than a desk -- IF the goal is to more conveniently journal.

For something like study materials, hard cover may not matter much cuz typically we study at a desk. May still try to go for hard cover if showcasing in bookcase in nice format. Often not the case however.

What else lifehacks have you learned?

[servantofthefates]

Other signs when drunk: *reveal everything about themselves*

Scorpio when drunk: *reveal everything they want you to believe about themselves*

[kingingqueen]

Journaling is big deal now and it is super helpful in managing your emotions and feelings, great for in-depth self-reflection and self discovery I have often been asked how do one start journaling so today I will share with you some journaling tips to help you get started

It is all the rave now not because it is something you should do because people you know are journaling but because journaling is powerful and hugely benefits your mental health and well-being. Journaling is also known to ease your anxiety and depression and stop suicidal thoughts.

Journaling is basically the practice of using a journal or diary to document your thoughts and feelings from events and your life generally.

This is where these journaling tips on how to begin journaling comes into place.

#journaling #kingingqueenblog

[christiannotebook]

This is the style notebook. The size of this notebook is perfect for traveling and fits perfectly in your pocket.

Whether for writing down Sunday sermons, Bible study notes, or remembering the personal quiet time with the Lord, this prayer journal is the perfect book to reflect on and build a stronger relationship with Christ. For more info check our book on Amazon.......

[nicolanlang]

How to Journal: A Beginner's Guide to Daily Writing

Introduction Welcome to the world of journaling! You may be wondering: what exactly is journaling? At its core, journaling involves putting pen to paper (or fingers to keys) and recording your thoughts, feelings, and experiences as they unfold in your daily life. Developing a consistent journaling habit isn’t just about creating a personal record of your days. It’s an incredibly powerful tool for…

[beegalactica]

real 'glow up' advice i wish i had

Imagine getting to the point in life where YOU are your own vision board; where you are that girl who has the life that you want, and you don't have to seek it out through other people. That should be the ultimate goal.

Here are subtle things that you should be doing to channel your ideal person and improve yourself for the better FROM THE INSIDE

take care of your hygiene: brush your teeth every day, wash your face with soap, wash your hair, take meaningful showers

be kind to yourself: speak nicely to yourself, treat yourself every now and then, love yourself exactly the way you came

make the effort: do your hair and wear something cute, even if you're only going to the supermarket. I bet your ideal self looks stunning wherever she goes, so make that effort if you really want to become her

move your body: dance to some music for just 5 minutes, take a walk, get off the bus a (reasonable) few stops earlier and walk the rest of the way

romanticise the hell out of your life: wear those bows, create that vision board, play that aesthetic background music even if you're just washing the dishes, wear that outfit!!!!!

admire yourself: look at yourself in the mirror and remember what you look like, take a million selfies to look back and smile at, give yourself a compliment every time you pass your reflection

get creative: if you want cute decor, make it! if you want cute clothes, find some easy DIYs!

focus on what you can control: if you cannot change the situation, let it resolve itself. don't waste your precious time obsessing over something you cannot change

get to know yourself (again): rediscover your hobbies, try new activities, learn to appreciate your solitude, get out of your shell

I really wish I was part of a community like this when I was going through a really insecure and lonely phase of my life.

Instead of deciding to wake up a 3am every day from now on, and trying to reach 20k steps every day, start small and walk your way up to greatness!

[biscuitdolly]

channels for mental , physical , and spiritual improvement ♡

히니HEENY - makeup tuts , clothing hauls , vlogs

짜잔씨 misstada - vlogs , makeup tuts

A Coreana Beauty 소연뷰티 - glow up tips , skincare , routines

Alex Bondoc - productive vlogs , self care

bossgirlified - skincare , self improvment , glow up tips

electrasoul - spirituality , self love

Free Tea - law of assumption , manifesting , self concept

Garima Verma - productive vlogs , self care

Hinafit - workouts , pilates , dieting tips

Hitomi Mochizuki - self worth , spirituality , life tips

hyler - manifestation , self concept

Iyzah♡ - self love , self care

jaila abriana - vlogs , self improvment

Janika Bates - hygeine help , routines , vlogs

justina mendez - sexual help

lay luv  - makeup , vlogs

mei monte - wonyoungism , glow up tips

mira daisy - pink pilates princess , vlogs

Olivia Yang - pink pilates princess , self care

Persephonesmind - self love , confidence , life tips

SHOW NEMOTO - self concept , self improvment

Teaira Walker - vlogs , beauty , skincare

Thewizardliz (obv) - self improvment , self love , confidence

Vickita Trivedi - life tips , feminity

WokeupCupid - spirituallity , self concept