Starting a journal isn’t something that you needs a lot of thought. Yes, there are numerous types and styles of journals and ways to do this that may or may not be more effective depending on your goals, get some paper or a blank journal, as a last resort, use your computer and get started today.
* Dust Off Your Pen and Paper – You don’t need anything special to keep a journal; in fact, purists believe that using pen and paper is the best way to journal because you involve more of your senses when you physically write things down and you don’t need technology. So, there will be no excuses.
* Do It First Thing in the Morning – Don’t procrastinate about keeping your journal. It’s best to do it in the morning before you begin your day so that you have the right frame of mind for the day. Plus, you only need five to ten minutes, so it’s not that big of a deal.
* Do It Last Thing at Night – Another time to do it is before bed. This works exceptionally well for gratitude journals. That way you can go to sleep thinking about all the things you are grateful for instead of things you’re worried about.
* Write Every Single Day – Whenever you choose to do it, try to set it up so that it becomes a ritual and a habit. Journaling every single day is going to be more effective than just doing it when you feel like it.
* Keep it Simple – Don’t start being worried about style and substance right now; work on the daily habit with pen and paper (or if it’s easier for you, a computer or smartphone). Don’t make it hard - get going.
* Begin with Today – Start right now and write about your day today. That’s the easiest thing to do. What of significance happened today? How did you feel about it? What would you do differently? What would you do the same?
* Try Different Types of Journals – Once you develop the habit, you can start trying different types of journaling like a bullet journal, or a vision journal, or maybe even a project journal for your next project.
* Keep It Private – The main thing to remember about your journal is that it should be kept private. The exception is if you want to share thoughts with a therapist, counselor, or coach. Or if you're going to turn it into a book or course, to help someone else overcome whatever you overcame.
Keeping a journal will help you deal with the things that happen to you as well as the things that have not occurred to you. The main reason is that writing it down helps you remember what you did right and what you did wrong. It enables you to improve your decision-making capacity for similar situations. The main thing is just to get started journaling in any way that works for you.
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