10 journaling tips to grow into your best self
By Hanin Najjar
A couple of years ago, one of my friends surprised me and our other friend by buying us all matching journals. The three of us live in different states, so opening the mailbox to a beautiful blue journal that would connect the three of us was heartwarming.
Since then, the matching journal trio has been sharing journal prompts and meeting on FaceTime to discuss our writing. It was a therapeutic way to connect with my long-distance sisters (as we endearingly call each other) and grow our friendship.
A couple of years (and journals) later, journaling has become a pillar in my mental health. It helps to calm down the spinning tornado of thoughts, pull me out of the deep pit of overthinking and set goals and plans for what comes next.
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Journaling helps me connect with myself to discover what I want and need. It’s a valuable vessel for reflection and healing.
But it’s not always easy to sit and write. Sometimes I fill up pages and pages before my thoughts quiet down and other times I’m staring at a blank page for what seems like an eternity before finally giving up. To help, here are some tips I discovered along the way to keep me writing:
Be messy
Don’t worry about your handwriting, your spelling or if something doesn’t make sense. No one else has to see this. You can cross things out, doodle or switch languages (as someone who is bilingual, I do that a lot). Just focus on getting your thoughts out of your head and onto some paper.
Write about something that’s going on right now
How was your day? Did something big happen today? Was it the first time you experienced something? Did someone piss you off or make your day? Write about what’s going on in your life right now and go from there. You can always change the topic later or go on a tangent.
List the things you are grateful for
We often get wrapped up in the things that go wrong and forget about the things that go right. What are some things you are grateful for? What are things that you were wishing for six months ago or a year ago that you now have?
Practicing gratitude, especially when you’re going through a hard time, can help you feel happier and heal easier.
Reflect on your past
An experience you had in your past might be the reason you act or react a certain way. By reflecting on your past you’ll learn a lot about who you are. Don’t be afraid to confront your shortcomings or faults. Identifying what’s wrong can help you change for the better.
Make goals for the future
What do you want to accomplish in the next month? Next year? Next five years?
Make goals and lists of all your dreams. If you write them down, it’s one step closer to them becoming a reality.
Go with the flow
Have nothing to write about? Sit with a paper and pen and write the first thing that comes to your head — a word, an image, a sound — and go from there. Just keep writing and see what comes out. You don’t have to write a lot or about just one topic.
Be creative
You don’t have to write in just one language. Being bilingual, sometimes I express things better in Arabic than I do in English, so I’ll start a sentence in one language and finish it in another.
Journaling doesn’t just have to look one way. You can write paragraphs or make lists. Try writing a poem or drawing a picture.
Find inspiration
Take your journal to a park or a coffee shop. Start writing about what you see, hear, feel and smell. If you’re sitting at home you can play a song or album and let your mind wander. What images do you see as you’re listening? What colors? What are you thinking or feeling? Does this song remind you of a certain place or experience?
I often play songs that get me in my feels and in the mood to write. Create a playlist of songs that calm you down or bring up memories.
Use prompts
Getting writer’s block? There are so many journal prompts out there that you can use to get the juices flowing. Find a prompt you like and start writing.
You don’t have to stick to one prompt either. You make the rules. You can combine prompts or start writing about something that has nothing to do with the prompt.
Write a letter
Write a letter to yourself or someone else. You can write a letter to your past or future self, or write to a loved one who died or an ex. If you want to get creative, write a letter to a place, a moment, an insecurity or whatever else you can think of.
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