Today’s issue will kind of be different but bare with me.
I strongy feel one of the most underutilized skills anyone can do is journaling.
If you want a way to organize your thoughts, increase creativity, store information for later and even help in problem solving - journal regulary .
Wait wait wait before you close this page, hear me out! Promise you will get atleast one useful thing.
Most people have tried some form of journaling at one point or the other. For most the experience was probably a drag, unproductively nerdy and overall nothing to gain hence, a waste of time.
The way I like to think of journaling is like brushing our teeth; you don’t see the benefits of brushing your teeth just there and then but, done consistently over days and years here we are. Its the accumulation of doing it daily
We of course know the consequences of not following daily dental hygiene.
Journalling has so many benifits. It would just be plain wrong to not tap into the benifits of doing it regulary.
The biggest challenge in people not sticking to journaling is that they do it with no structure so everytime they sit down to journal, it is like reinventing the wheel.
If you are new to journaling, you need to keep in mind a consistent structure and time limit. Once you are more consistent you can branch out to whatever style you like.
I have done it relatively consistently for this year sofar and I have only good to say. I’ll share how I am doing it.
Ok lets jump right in.
Morning Routine
1. Mind Dump
This can be done anytime of the day but mornings have been the best for me. You simply write down any thoughts that came to your mind as you wake up to revisit later. Its just to clear or unclogg your mind.
You can write it down to create a voice note on your phone. This should be done in just 2 minutes and move on.
Revisit during the day and document for the future.
2. The Morning Kickstart
Got this from a writter named Dickie Bush and helps give some focus for the day ahead. Here are the steps with my comment in italics on the importance of the question.
Step 1: Set a Timer for 5 minutes. The importance of setting time is and prevent wondering for hours on end.
Step 2: Answer the questions below in only 1 sentence:
What’s one thing I’m grateful for today? - The world and life get to be is a crazy sometimes, its good to be reminded of the good you have.
What’s one thing I’m excited about today? - Gives you something to look forward to for the day.
What’s one virtue I want to exhibit? - What is the type of person I want to become
What’s one thing I’m avoiding? - Type of person I don’t want to become
What’s the one thing I need to do? - Major focus activity for the day if you could only do one thing. The biggest bang for your buck that day.
Evening Routine
This is to wind down for the day and account for what you have done that day and also prepare for the next day.
Step 1: Set a Timer for 5 minutes.
Step 2: Answer the questions below in only 1 sentence:
What were my biggest wins of the day? Quick review of what your achievements were.
Did I have any major realizations? Insights from what you came across during the day whether negative or positive.
What’s on the agenda for tomorrow? Focus for the day ahead.
Quarterly Challenge
This is probably my favourite.
A lot can happen or change in 90 days. These prompts help me ensure that I am on top of my longer term goals and not stuck at the same spot not growing. I love a qoute I once heard that goes in the lines of -
“Time will pass whether you make the most of it, just let it pass or plain waste it.”
Step 1: Set a timer for 30 to 40mins minimum.
Step 2: Answer or review the prompts below.
Change: What do you want to change in the next 3 months?
Write down a maximum of 3 things you would like to change or be after 3 months (12 weeks or 90 days)
This could cover finances, health, spiritual, work etc.
Why do you want the change?
Life gets busy and change is genuinely hard. Your whys will give you the push to carry on when things get tuff.
Write down your whys for each change you want to see.
The more whys you put the better.
What activities are you going to do the next 7 days to take you a step closer to the change you want to see?
Small activities done consistenly build up. Every sky scraper we see is an addition of smaller building blocks.
This prompt ensures you are consciously making steps towards the change you want to see.
Ideally have 1 action each of those seven days.
To help have the habit of journaling stick, do it after a habit you already have. Say just after you wash your face when you first wake up, after breakfast or morning jog. Remember to ensure as when you start to stick to the time limits.
Jouranaling gets you in the habit of asking yourself “what am i thinking today?” which will lead to clarity of mind, creativity, personal accountability towards your goals and so many other researched backed advantages.
Not journaling won’t kill you but you will miss a chance to take advange of a 5 minute discipline that could help bring out exponential potential.
If you stuck all the way to the end thank you. I would love to hear your experience with journaling or writing in general, leave a comment below and share the post with anyone you feel would benefit from it.
See you next week.