By Lisa Payne
You’ve bought a journal. Maybe you even bought a spiffy new pen.
Now what?
Even with the best of intent, sometimes writing down your innermost thoughts doesn’t exactly come out with J.K. Rowling-like ease. But journal writing is less about sounding like a cohesive, edited, inspirational saga and more about just letting the story unfold around what you write-without premeditated thought. It’s one of the best ways to filter through your desires, source your daydreams, unload the days stresses and events, and just to get to know yourself from the inside-out.
But if you need a push or prompt, here are 5 journals that practically do the writing for you:
· The 5 Second Journal: The Most Powerful Journal on the Planet
Staring at blank pages can illicit blank thoughts. The 5 second journal organizes your daily goals into segments with everything from how you’re feeling that day to what projects you’re working on. There’s even a brain dump where you can unload your rambling thoughts. The best thing? Each day you’re given a challenge to boost your self-confidence and motivation.
· All About Me: The Story of Your Life
Sometimes the hardest part of journaling is not just the blank page stare, but the overthinking of what to put in it. And try not to analyze how it would sound to someone else. You’re not using a journal for an audience. This journal is literally, All About You. It organizes your entries with lists, questions and other prompts. It gets you to think about who you are, what you value and how you’d like to direct your life.
· Journal Sparks: Fire Up Your Creativity with Spontaneous Art, Wild Writing and Inventive Thinking
Not all journals require writing. If you’re more of a visual, artistic person Journal Sparks might be your journal jam. Draw, create collages, list words and follow the creative art project-like prompts. It’s art therapy class for adults!
· Adult-ish: Record Your Highs and Lows on the Road to the Real World
Journals are like your brain’s external hard drive. Recording your day’s events, feelings and milestones and you’ll always have a first-hand account of all the steps in your life. Sometimes trying to figure out where to go in life means staying present with how you’re getting there day-to-day, minute-by-minute, adult-ish all the way!
· Scribbles That Matter
Scribbles has a journal for every brain. Some offer plenty of wide-open space to run your thoughts, others offer graphs, charting, lists and indexing. We all organize our thoughts in different productive ways. Simply writing down your thoughts isn’t the only way. Sometimes we need a workbook, a guide and some training to use journals the best way possible.
Write in a journal every day, every week or just when it feels right. The reflection time is like having your own self-made therapist. Looking back on your entries reminds you of the things you find important in life and all your steps along the way. Your words are your words for you. Journal freely.