I remember going through college desperately trying to journal every day, but I just couldn’t keep up the habit. I would do it for a few days and then forget about it and not write for months. It took me a long time to start journaling consistently, but I am finally writing just about every day using some journal prompts. I feel like this has really benefited my mental health!
In the past few months, I have been journaling consistently. Sometimes I just write about my day or the thoughts and events I am experiencing, and occasionally I will use journal prompts or answer questions. Journaling has been an excellent way for me to examine my thought patterns and emotional states. I have found that this has greatly benefited my life and my relationship with myself and others.
I think journaling every day, or as often as possible, is a vital piece of the puzzle, especially if you are journaling for self-development. Writing every day about how you are feeling and your reactions to situations you experienced will really help you gain a sense of who you are.
Since graduating college, I have been going through a journey of self-development. I am working to recognize my unhealthy thought patterns and beliefs and taking action to change them. I don’t use a specific journaling method, and I’m still very new to the world of journaling, but I have found many journal prompts and exercises that have helped me already, and I want to share them with you!
Questions
Where does your mind go when you are happy, sad, nervous?
I particularly like this prompt because it allows me to reflect on how I react to certain situations. If you’re sad, do your thoughts automatically go to negative self-talk? If you’re nervous, do you immediately shut down? Looking at how I react, especially when I am sad or nervous, has illuminated areas where I can work to make improvements.
What are your core beliefs?
Core beliefs are beliefs that bring up strong emotion and that you believe to be true at the core of your being, even if there are no facts to back them up. These beliefs can be about yourself, others, the world, or anything else. I took a few days to think about my core beliefs, and anytime I noticed one come up, I would write it down. Identifying these thoughts is the first step to making positive changes in your life. You can then acknowledge that the beliefs aren’t true and identify new beliefs that will help you grow. Then take actions that you think someone holding those new beliefs would take. This will help you begin to believe the new belief.
When was the last time you felt truly alive?
This is a fun question because it helps you reflect on your daily activities and see what is truly serving you, what you are grateful for, and what you can include more in your life. For example, as I’m writing this, the last time I felt truly alive was when I was dancing around my kitchen making spaghetti. Therefore, I should try and incorporate more random dance parties into my life! We tend to get caught up in the daily routines and mundane tasks of life, and we forget to enjoy the life we are living and show gratitude.
Exercises
What makes up you?
I have found this exercise great for self-discovery. You basically just write down everything that makes up you. Likes, dislikes, physical qualities, frequent behaviors. Try to be as objective as possible! Then split the list into things you like about yourself and things you don’t like. Once you have the list of things you do like, you have a great list of positive attributes to look back on if you struggle with negative self-talk. With the list of things you don’t like, you can create a plan to improve those attributes. Maybe you don’t like that you yell at your partner when you’re stressed with work. You can write down a plan to improve that trait, such as taking three deep breaths if you feel like you want to yell.
What is the best version of yourself?
Picture your ideal self and then write about what makes that person. What do they do for a living? How do they treat their friends? How do they act around strangers? What do they do in their free time? Once you have that list, think about the steps you can take to become more like that person. Then create an action plan for how you can work towards becoming the best version of yourself. For example, if the ideal version of yourself makes pottery but you have no idea how to make pottery, try to find a class!
Reflecting on areas of your life.
Reflecting on different areas of your life is particularly beneficial when trying to find and build your self-identity. For example, I chose to write about social, physical, mental, career, familial, and financial areas, but you can write about anything! Breaking your life into different areas makes it easier to see the areas you excel in and the areas where you can make improvements. Ask yourself what is going well in certain areas and what can use improvement. How can you start to make those improvements? Try to find and write down tiny steps you can take to improve the areas of your life.
Takeaways
And finally, I want to remind you that it’s not just writing in a journal that is helpful; it is also rereading what you have previously written. I will often read past journal entries to see how my mindset has shifted (or not shifted). This helps me identify areas where I could still use improvement and areas where I have grown, and I can give myself some recognition and praise for that growth.
Also, you don’t need a fancy, expensive journal to reap the benefits of journaling! You can reflect and answer journal prompts in the notes app on your phone, on a scrap piece of paper, or just sit and think about them. The real goal is to look at yourself and your life and work towards acceptance, improvement, and satisfaction!
This is just the beginning of my journey, and I hope to learn more about methods of journaling and discover more prompts and exercises to aid in self-development! What are some of your favorite methods of journaling or journal prompts?
Journaling is a great form of self-care! Want some more self-care ideas? Check out THIS post about my favorite self-care practices!