Journaling 101

Journaling! Arguably the best thing since sliced bread, and certainly one of my favorite pastimes. Wait — before you exit this page and say that journaling isn’t for you, I say, don’t knock it ‘til you try it. Chances are you fall under one of the common reasons why people usually say that they don’t like to journal, or have never tried it.

1. “I’m not a good writer.” With maybe the exception of reading, practicing writing is the single greatest thing you can do to improve your writing. Journaling is the perfect space to do it; you can write about whatever you want, with no expectations of perfect, eloquent sentences, and free from the judgment and pressure of teachers.

1a. “Well, it’s not like I’m going to be an English major.” But writing is a critical form of communication, and being a good, effective, and eloquent communicator is sure to benefit you leaps and bounds in whatever career path you choose. It’s an invaluable skill that people tend to let fall in priority when compared to something like math or science. (Yes, this is an advocacy for English classes in disguise.)

2. “Even if I want to write, I have nothing to write about. My life is boring.” That’s just not true. You don’t have to be telling crazy stories all the time, just what’s important to you. Like one of my notebook covers will tell you, it’s about finding joy in the ordinary. Sometimes, my entries might be as simple as, “I just went to the library and the gym today, but it made me feel productive and therefore good about myself!” When was the last time somebody sat down and asked you about all the small details of what mattered to you, and what was going on in your life? Your journal will. It literally doesn’t matter what you write, because the only person it’s meant for is you. You can delve into serious emotional topics, or keep a simple log of your days. You don’t need anyone else’s approval on whether something is “interesting” enough. Most of all, it could very well end up being a great way to get to know yourself better (oh god, emotions?).

3. “I don’t have time.” I will admit, I’ve definitely used this excuse, but again, journaling is something you do for you, so feeling like you have no time for it might be an indication that you aren’t taking enough time for yourself. Plus, it doesn’t have to take more than 10 minutes out of your day, or even 10 minutes a week, if you choose.

With all that undying support of journaling I just spewed, you’re probably thinking that I’m some kind of hardcore meta-hipster journaler. Nope, my journey to journaling has been a long time coming. I first started journaling at the start of 2016, but even with a really tiny notebook, I couldn’t bring myself to fill the whole thing by the end of the year. It would sit on my nightstand for weeks on end, untouched. Aside from just doing the natural thing of forgetting about it altogether, I often didn’t have the motivation to pick up a pen even if there was something I really wanted to write about. In 2017, I was slightly better about it, but it wasn’t until this year that I really started to make journaling a habit. I found that the more and more I brought myself to just pick up that pen, the more and more I wanted to go back and write more.

From top to bottom, those are my 2016, 2017, and 2018 journals.

As for the all the reasons I just listed, I can certainly attest to benefiting from all the upsides I mentioned. Save for the English class I took this past year, maybe, I can safely say that the number one reason why my writing has noticeably improved over the past year or so is because of journaling. Although the area of academic eloquence probably seeks a different kind of training, my writing has certainly improved in terms of effectiveness and natural ease. Much more than that, I’ve become a lot more comfortable and clear about who I am, the good parts and the bad parts. In an unexpected way, this introverted hobby has built up my confidence. It’s very much in line with that self-love mantra: you have to know/accept/love yourself before you can expect others to do so for you. I will say, though, nothing is ever absolute. It’s not like journaling has worked miracles in my life, and maybe it really isn’t meant to be your form of expression, but in my experience, it has been every bit worthwhile.

You don’t need any fancy journals to start journaling (although you can find great $5 motivators in Michaels, Marshalls, Target etc.), only a pen and any paper you have lying around. I mean, why not try something new while it’s summer, anyway? One last final tip: don’t feel discouraged after the first few entries. All good things take time. Happy journaling!