Write in a journal

Video: How to Journal: Writing Tips, Journal Topics, and More!

Content

To step
Method 1 of 1: Keep your own diary
Tips
Warnings
Necessities

Keeping a journal as a window to your soul is one of the best ways to give your feelings an outlet; a place where your innermost thoughts can reside without fear of judgment, guilt, or the need to justify yourself. A journal gives you the opportunity to be who you are, and a place where you can travel through life's emotions with kindness, compassion, and deeper understanding. While journal writing is a personal journey, determined entirely by your own thoughts, ideas, and daydreams, it can be helpful to read some suggestions first to get the most out of your journal, as well as some ideas for getting started. If you have not previously kept a journal, or have had it watered down, or have never been able to get really good at it, then there is no better time than the present to start it and let your consciousness flow through your writing, and get in touch with your deeper thoughts and ideas.

To step

Method 1 of 1: Keep your own diary

Find a journal that's perfect for you. Decide how you want to keep your diary - on paper or in electronic form. Both methods have pros and cons, so you'll have to weigh up what works best for you. For example, a paper diary can be taken with you everywhere, never needs electricity and can be mastered with drawings, collages, theater tickets and souvenirs. It can also stimulate you more to express your feelings. However, typing can be faster and easier as it is in an electronic format and an electronic document can still be personalized in a variety of ways. Both types of diaries can be discovered by someone if you don't take steps to hide your diary, but it is probably easier to hide an electronic file than a paper book.
- While it is not necessary to purchase an expensive journal, for some people the material used is an important part of the sensory experience of keeping a journal. You don't have to buy expensive or fancy versions, but if these are something you really want and they are kind of like a gift to yourself, incorporate it into your budget.
- Decor options are endless for cheaper journals and it's nice to personalize a journal, rather than settle for someone else's idea of good design. However, keep in mind that it is not about using a fancy diary; it is about drawing on your flow of thoughts and writing them down.
- Decide on your writing tools if you use paper. Choose a pen that feels good in your hand and suits your own aesthetic needs.
Decide what kind of journal you would like to keep. There are several options open to you when developing or approaching a diary theme. You can simply use your journal to write down all the thoughts that randomly come to you at any given time, or you can focus your journal more on a specific theme to get something out of it that you would like to develop further in your life. And there is nothing against keeping a random and a specific diary at the same time! Some ideas for thematic diaries are:
- A Gratitude Journal - In this journal, you write down all the things you feel grateful for every day, week, etc., and identify the people, animals, events, and things that are really important to you.
- A holiday diary - in this diary you write more than just what you see during your holiday; you also record your feelings, impressions and emotions as they are challenged, changed and enlightened by your journey.
- An ideas journal - this journal is where you jot down all the ideas and inspirations that pop into your head anytime, and it offers you a place to come back to for ideas, if you have the time. The ideas can be for you writing, work, play, inventions, or whatever!
- A parenting diary - in this diary you write down all the things that you find special, beautiful, sweet and memorable about your children at different ages and stages. This is a great way to keep a list of your kids' funny words, phrases and comments as they grow up and see the world with a fresh perspective.
- A transition diary - in this diary you keep track of the transitions you go through, such as looking for a job or firing, becoming a mother or father for the first time or again, starting a business, going on a special trip, etc. In such a diary you document the changing patterns in your life, and it is useful to ask yourself such questions as' What do I enjoy and what do not I enjoy? ',' What do I expect from what I do now in the future? ',' Which people can help me in certain transition phases? ', Etc.
Find the perfect place (or places) to write in your journal. Journal writing is a time of reflection and requires time alone, rest and no interruptions. It's important to feel relaxed and comfortable, and not worry about someone else interfering with your reflection time. It's also important to feel comfortable. Select one or more favorite places to write in your journal, taking all of these essential needs into account - experiment by writing in different places to see what happens to your writing.
- Sit in your chair by the fireplace or under a blossoming apple tree.
- Find a quiet part of the house that you know you will not be disturbed.
- The suitability of a place can change with the time of day. Keep this in mind when selecting a place to write in your journal. For example, the kitchen may be the noisiest and busiest all day, but from 10 p.m. it may be the quietest and most enjoyable place in the house.
Find a time that is right for you. Some of the advice on keeping a journal is trying to get you to write daily, or at least regularly. However, this is not in line with the idea that a diary is an extension of yourself and how you feel. And if you don't feel like writing in your journal but force yourself to do it anyway, it could become something you start to hate. Instead of making a regular appointment with yourself to write regularly, you can decide when you would like to use your journal to be creative, to express feelings, to jot down ideas, etc. . And if this is daily, then that's nice; if you don't write for a month or two, or even the occasional year, so be it. Many people who keep a diary have journals with gaps from years in between and just pick up where they left off when they left the diary. need.
- You can put your journal next to your bed if you find yourself often forgetting to write in it. Often thoughts come before bed and writing in a journal can be a useful way to relax at the end of the day, provided your bed is a comfortable place for you to write.
- Remind yourself that when you are feeling down, restless, full of ideas, etc., your journal is the perfect outlet.
Relax. Every person differs in what helps to relax and feel content, and it is no different when you are in the mood to write in your journal. Some people get into the mood through music, others need total tranquility, while still others use the constant drone of city life as a stimulus for thinking. Choose which methods will help you escape from journaling for a while, so that it doesn't feel like too much of an effort.
- Don't worry about grammar, spelling, or anything you think should be perfect in your journal. This is your place and if things go wrong then so be it. Correcting mistakes while working on underlying problems or drawing on a source of ideas will hinder your flow of thought and also make you feel that you are trying too hard to control the situation you want to write about, rather than more learn about it and find new ways to experience it.
Find sources of inspiration. It's often easiest to start with your feelings right now. Put it on paper and see where it leads you. There are no set rules for journal writing, and you may find that your starting point varies every time you start a new topic. Sometimes it's easier to start talking about something that happened during the day, something that lingers in the back of your mind and you want an answer to, but you're unsure about.Writing down the everyday facts and events can open a whole stream of consciousness as you write, leading you to insights that you could not have come up with without lining up your thoughts in your journal. Some examples of sources of inspiration to write about:
- Movies, books, and TV shows can sometimes be a starting point: for example, you can ponder the philosophical implications of your favorite movie, or write an essay on why you may or may not like a particular character.
- Imagine you have an audience and you are the professor; give a lecture about what you want to tell them. Sometimes writing down events in your life that have taken place, or writing down questions and corresponding answers can awaken the creative juices in your mind.
- Discuss things you bought or made in the past few days. Is it something you will use for a new hobby, to help you finish an essay, to seduce someone, to decorate your home, etc.? State the reason you bought it or made it, and continue writing about the motivation behind it.
Use a journal to help you face problems in your life. There is nothing like a diary as a way of expressing yourself about the difficulties you encounter; many therapists label the diary as a key part of recovering from emotional problems that patients are trying to process. A journal is capable of soaking up your anger, rage, revenge, jealousy, and a whole host of other negative emotions, and won't judge you, yell back, berate you, or tell you not to indulge. It is there, on the one hand very passive, but at the same time very enlightening. Writing off negative feelings in a journal can free you from the urge to discuss them with others, and give you the necessary breathing space to recognize the facts behind emotions and put yourself in the shoes of others involved in your feelings, to see if they have a point or not.
- Feel free to swear, scold people and throw it all out. It's better to do this here than anywhere else, and it's a way to vent your frustrations, anger, and attitude that you need an outlet for somewhere.
- Keep writing until you run out. This gives you the best chance to free yourself from the feelings that haunt you and hold back positive feelings.
- Write about the boy who you feel will never ask you out, about the girl next door who keeps telling secrets about you, about your (in-law) parents or your family in general, write about your ambitions, your calling, your skills, your favorites; the list can go on and on.
Fill your diary with whatever you want. Scribbles, of course, are completely acceptable. Lyrics of songs, poems, book excerpts and newspaper clippings are also excellent. Sometimes it's nice to tape in little bits of your life, like the tickets to a movie or the play you saw on Friday night, or the photo you took of a breathtaking sunset. The diary is the lifelike manifestation of your thoughts, so make it yours!
From time to time, think about what you have written. It's not all about writing and reading; comparing where you are now with where you were weeks, months, and years ago is a beneficial growth exercise. Think about what things have become clearer to you from one writing moment to the next, and think about what hopes and dreams you once wrote in your journal have now become reality. Think about things that have yet to happen and if there are any clues or patterns you can discern that are somehow blocking your intended progress. Use your diary to analyze your life journey.
Keep your diary in a safe place. No one will see this diary, but you have to take care of it yourself. You will only feel free to express yourself in the journal if it can't jeopardize your relationships with others or how you are viewed, so make sure to find a safe place to keep the journal.
- Look for perfect places to hide your journal. Alternate them regularly if you are concerned about prying eyes. Also be smart about the cover; For example, make it look like a chemistry book or something about accounting, to trick nosing siblings, or partners.
- Learn how to secure access to electronic documents. If you keep your diary in electronic form, protect your PC and that document with a password. Be careful about saving to the cloud, in case you make a mistake.
- Write an introduction for prying eyes just in case. Write something along the lines of "Before you feel compelled to read my innermost thoughts; wonder how you would feel if someone were just as thoughtless and indifferent to your diary. May your karma remain calm. "
- Learn how to hide your journal from a few other ideas on wikiHow.

Tips

If you ever get stuck and don't know anything to write, just start with a topic or simple story. For example, "Once upon a time ...", a trip to the moon, a near death experience, time travel to the dinosaurs, a magic refrigerator, etc. Get creative and you can come up with many things to write about!
Consider purchasing a diary without lines, to make it possible to make doodles and not limit your style. However, if you mainly want to write, then lined pages may be better for you.
If you're having a hard time getting started, think about what to post as a status update on Facebook or other social media, and write it in your journal instead. Then you use this as a point springboard: what other memories, associations, or ideas did it remind you of? Follow tangents for as long as you want.
Try to do a page every day. After a while it will have become a habit and it will seem strange when you are not writing.
Record yourself to transcribe later. You can remember anything you want for future reference.
If you enjoy writing stories, why not in your journal?
Other types of diaries include little notebooks, personal blogs, a journal in the back of your bible, (like a timeline of your life) a scrapbook, even a journal of doodles in your math book!
A concerted effort could be a unique way to explore new ideas. The Notebook Girls is a good example. Meet up with some of your best friends or girlfriends to whom you meet already tell your secrets, and start writing! Beware: Keeping a joint diary can backfire if one person decides to drop out of school.
Handwriting can be more therapeutic than typing because it provides deeper access to emotions. Try both ways; you can print pages and put them in a box or binder, or you can add handwritten pages to a computer journal by scanning them. In any case, keep a hard copy, for future generations, if you want your descendants to get to know and appreciate you when you're gone.
If you have a lot of thoughts in your brain, try writing them off in letter form. Address it to a person or to yourself, and write down everything you would like to say to that person, but are afraid or have not been able to do so in reality.

Warnings

Don't write in your journal if you don't want to. It's there for an escape, not as an assignment. Some people ignore their diary for months before writing something new in it, and that's no problem at all.
Be careful about keeping your diary on a computer, as someone could break into your computer and get to your diary. If you can, protect the file with a password (this can be done in most word processing programs) to make it harder for others to open it.
Be careful where you put a physical journal. No encryption means anyone can read it. By storing it in a (money) locker, you know that the content will remain private. Keep in mind that cheap locks, such as those mounted on some books, can be easily broken or broken, and are virtually useless.