Tim Ferriss does it, Judy Willis does it, even Anaïs Nin, Einstein, and Leonardo Davinci did it. And what do all of these people have in common? Right they are or were successful, and they journal(ed). Many successful people in history have journaled. Ever wondered why all those people kept a journal although they knew no one would ever read it?
If you’re serious about becoming a wealthy, powerful, sophisticated, healthy, influential, cultured, and unique individual, keep a journal.
– Jim Rohn
Journals have so many functions. You can use them to jot down your goals, take notes on your daily to dos or just write out your emotions and thoughts. Your journal can be creative and pretty or simple and practical. ( I personally am more on the messy , with tiny scratchy writing side lol). Let’s take a look at some benefits of Journaling:
Scientific Benefits of Journaling
Journaling Improves your Mood
Not only will your writing skills improve if you keep a journal a study conducted by UCLA found out that writing about your emotions and actually labeling them makes you feel better.
In the study 30 participants between the age of 18 to 36 had to view pictures with different emotional expressions. Below the pictures they read words such as “angry” or “fearful” and had to chose which emotion fits the expression. On other pictures they read “Harry” or “Sally” and had to choose the right gender. When participants attached an emotion to the facial expression there was a decreased response in the amygdala compared to when they saw the names attached. Attaching labels to the emotions decreased the emotional response.
“I don’t journal to ‘be productive.’ I don’t do it to find great ideas or to put down prose I can later publish. The pages aren’t intended for anyone but me. It’s the most cost-effective therapy I’ve ever found.” Tim Ferriss
It Reduces Stress
Scientists found out that when you write about stressful events for 15 to 20 minutes a day on 3 to 5 occasions your will feel both physically and psychologically better. Journaling is the cheapest stress reduction tool.
Achieve Goals
If you write down your goal on a constant basis it increases your chances of achieving them. Writing them down and reviewing your goals keeps them at the front of your mind.
Improves Performance
According to a study conducted by Harvard Business School journaling only 15 minutes per day can improve your performance significantly.
In a study at Wipro three groups were put through training. One group had to journal the last 15 minutes of their workday and reflect on the lessons learned for 10 executive days. The second group had to additionally spend 5 minutes on discussing their notes with each other and the last group did neither. The group who journaled did 22,8% better the group that additionally reflected 25%!
Improves your memory
Not only can you look back later in life and see what you did on a particular day it also keeps your memories sharp. Scientists found out that writing causes similar reactions in the brain as complex activities, such as making music.
And maybe in a hundred years someone will find your journal and make a movie of it.
“I hope that someday when I am gone, someone, somewhere, picks my soul up off of these pages and thinks, ‘I would have loved her.’” — Nicole Lyons
So how to get started?
1. It doesn’t have to be a pretty journal
I know on Instagram and Pinterest there are many pretty journal pictures. And you can make your journal look pretty, but actually there are no rules to journaling. You can adapt it to your personal
needs. If you feel like putting pictures and nice prints you can do that, but you can use plain paper or even journal online in word or a note program. In case you want it to look pretty, but don’t want to spend hours on drawing nice pictures check out this thepetiteplanner.com they have many free printables. I love the site and use a few of the printables myself.
2. Start simple
Many think that journaling means writing pages of your thoughts and takes a lot of effort. But you can also start simple. Writing a sentence, a day is enough. You can even just write down a word. I had a really successful classmate, who would only write down what she was grateful for on that day. Thinking back it is really amazing she already knew, when young how beneficial it is to write down what you are grateful for. And I am sure it is super interesting to look back and see: “Today I ate the most amazing Pizza with my best friend. ” And think about the good old times.
3. Make it a habit
Try writing in your journal on a daily basis to reap the benefits of journaling. If you just journal on and off at some point when life is busy, you will easily forget about journaling again. Or at least that’s how I feel. So, try to make it a daily habit and stick with it. And if you can’t make it sometimes don’t beat yourself up over it.
4. Take your journal everywhere
What if you have a good idea, while on a trip or you want to take notes. You can use chances, such as riding the train or waiting at the doctors to write into your journal. Throughout the day you will have little time gaps to write down into your notebook.
5. Have fun
However, you decide to do your journal. Whether you want to make a really pretty looking one a plain and practical one keeps in mind to have fun. Will it change your life? If you journal continuously journaling has the potential to drastically improve your life. Give it a go and see where it takes you.
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Love from Germany,
Julia and Carina
