If you’ve ever kept a diary, you can understand the need for writing down your thoughts. There was something magical about keeping secret pages about a crush back in fourth grade. Now that you’ve gotten older, a diary may seem a bit childish. Fortunately, you don’t have to abandon the idea of writing for stress relief altogether. Journaling is a well-known and effective method of relieving stress and building creativity.
The concept of journaling is still the same: writing as a means of remedy. By releasing your thoughts on a page, you will free space in your head for more important matters (other than what sandwich you plan on eating for lunch). One advantage to journaling is the lack of structure. You can doodle, write in cute fonts, cut out bits of magazine clippings or posters and personalize whatever notebook you choose to write in. Not sure what to write? Don’t stress over it. Since there’s no structure to journaling you can start by writing whatever comes to mind first. Even if it seems like nonsense, getting it out on paper will help you see your thoughts from a different perspective.
Some cool ideas for journal entries include:
- Inspirational quotes and what they mean to you
- Describing a memory
- Giving advice to your past self
- Recalling life milestones
- Writing out a letter to a friend
- Creating a mini moments bucket list and start living it out
The beauty of journaling is that you don’t need to be an artist or a top class writer to get started. The process alone helps you build your creativity while being a comforting outlet all in one.