As a writer, I think it’s obvious I’m an advocate for journaling. Any kind of writing, but especially writing every day. A journal is a great way to do this. I think there is an assumption or idea out there that a journal is somewhere to record what you do every day. That is something you can do for sure, especially if something important happened, but it is so much more than that.
For me, when I journal, I write about:
- Books I’ve read
- Things I am watching
- Thoughts on politics, world news, etc.
- Insights on a Youtube video I watched and really liked
- Goals and plans
- Quotes
- Memes
- Questionaires
- One line thoughts
- Things I am grateful for and more.
So yea, write whatever you want!
Now, here are the 5 reasons why you should keep a journal:
Journaling is a form of therapy
Have you ever heard of the therapy technique in which you write yourself a letter expressing all of your feelings? This is pretty much that. Writing your thoughts and feelings out can be really helpful. I’m not saying that journaling can replace real therapy and counseling, but sometimes all we need is somewhere to vent. A journal is a great place to vent and let it all out. And the best part? It’s cheap if not free.
Legacy and Life Lessons
Having a bunch of journals and records of your life can be an interesting thing to share with your children or grandchilren. Neices or nephews. Friends. Your students if you teach. Anyone really. Your journals are a record of you that you have on hand to share. Life lessons are a great thing to share with people if you have any. If you want to, of course.
Journaling will help you develop your thoughts
Writing is an important skill. If you can write well, you can do a lot in this world! One thing writing does is develop our reasoning and makes us better thinkers. Really! We need to write things down to deeply think about it. Whether it’s notes for a class, an outline for a speech, or ideas for a blog post, writing things down helps us expand. Synthesizing information and writing teach us critical thinking skills. Your journal writing can do this for you if you choose.
We forget
I was reading a book (by Thomas Sowell) where he mentioned something about his 30’s and 40’s being his prime and a great time in his life. That, at that moment, he thought he would never forget it. Because it was so great! Now, Dr. Sowell is 97 and although he is extremely sharp for his age, he can barely remember any of that stuff.
I am 26 right now and I’d like to think I will remember all the fun I am having, but who knows. There’s still a lot of life left to go. We already record our lives through pictures and videos, but I think writing and words can really help capture one’s inner most thoughts and feelings at a moment.
Journaling is an opportunity to truly be yourself
There is no reason to have a filter as you write in a journal. It’s for you! You may choose to share your journal with others, like I mentioned earlier, or maybe not. Some people will feel comfortable sharing their inner most thoughts no matter what, but if not, a journal is the place to do it.
Social media is the opposite of this. You will always get a sense of judgement and hate on those platforms when you try to express yourself, but you can’t really do that with a journal. Even if you share your journal with others, at least it is with people you want to share your life with. Not strangers.
“A journal is your completely unaltered voice.”
Lucy Dacus
Whatever you decide to journal about, I hope you have fun. I also hope these 5 reasons to keep a journal taught you something! If you have any thoughts about journaling or want to share what you journal about, let me know! I am always looking to shake things up! Thanks for reading!
TESIOLA 
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