In order to start 2021 on the right foot, I have decided to dedicate this new year to self-improvement. So as time passes, I want to choose to add onto my daily routine with more positive and mindful practices. Besides making my bed in the morning, cleaning, and working out, I needed to include another activity, which is journaling!
From having discussions with my friends to observing infographics on Instagram, I was seeing and hearing a lot about the benefits of journaling. So, I decided to add this activity to my daily routine. This past summer I had begun journaling after I experienced my first heartbreak. After a week of journaling, I was already seeing positive outcomes. Journaling truly did help release all of my emotions and helped me to get over heartbreak. In that same time period I would go back to write my goals for the rest of the summer and the beginning of my semester.
Yet, I forgot about the journal and didn’t pay any mind to it for weeks at a time. That is until I had a second heartbreak at the end of the fall semester. After noticing this pattern, I didn’t want my journal to just continue to be my heartbreak journal.
Instead of just goals and the occasional entry about heartbreak, I started to journal down daily affirmations, love letters to myself, and self-reflections. With goals and affirmations, I wrote the goals in a way that made it seem like I was already in the process of it. Phrases like “I am ready to” or “I’m grateful for” helped to put me in a more positive mindset. With this method, I felt like my goals were more attainable and the positive language made me feel more motivated to achieve these goals.
During the first few weeks of 2021, I added this new journaling process into my night routine as well. Whenever I felt like something was bothering me or I needed to let off some steam, I’d pull out my journal and start reflecting on what I was feeling.
Want to start journaling? Here are some of my tips on getting started:
- Find any notepad, notebook, or journal that you like! You could even buy one that fits your personality or favorite color.
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Start off by writing down whatever you like! It could be something that’s on your mind, a fun event that happened that day, or a letter to yourself.