A relaxed approach to journaling
As a teenager I kept a diary on a daily basis. It went from mundane, short accounts of school days when I was 11 or 12 to page after page of feelings and angst in my later teens. This fizzled out in my early twenties, but I continued to think about journaling as a fairly formal, daily habit, something you either did regularly or not at all. I took it up again, occasionally, over the years, but it never quite stuck.
There is so much advice out there about journaling as a form of self-care or therapy, as mindfulness or gratitude practice, with the promise of a better, happier life. I don’t doubt that these are very valuable, but I prefer a more relaxed and informal approach to it all. Journaling is a very personal thing, and finding your own way to something that feels useful to you is key – whether that’s a recipe from someone else or your very own messy cocktail.
These days I have two journals. I write every evening in my ‘One line a day’ five-year journal (it’s actually a few lines rather than just one). I like the limited amount of space, and that it only takes a couple of minutes every day. I write whatever comes to mind, whether it’s a summary of my day, highlights I’ve enjoyed, or my general state of mind. I’ve been doing this for three years now, so looking back on entries from previous years as I write can be fascinating too – a sprinkling of memories and a healthy dose of perspective.
I also have another journal, which I pick up whenever I need to figure something out, or feel that putting some words down might help me ride an emotional wave. I like the freedom of it: no rules or expectations, just a tool waiting there by my desk if I ever need it. There are huge, months-long gaps in between some entries, while some weeks have page after page filled. I rarely look back on what I’ve written there: the writing of it is the whole point.
I may stick to this two-journal formula, or I may change to something completely different in future. I may not even feel the need to write at all for a while. This is a recipe that works for me at this time. Yours will look different. But if you are finding it difficult to stick to a particular form or schedule of journaling, try to take a step back and think of what would work for you, experiment, and most of all forget about following too many rules.
If you’re in need of a new journal for your thoughts, I have a range of notebooks that can fit different ideas:
