Keeping a journal might seem like something that has been stereotyped as an activity for teenage girls, but the truth is that writing down your thoughts every day can be truly beneficial to you. In fact, it can help you in many more ways than you may think.
Whether you’ve been thinking about keeping a journal or have never considered it before now, here are a few great benefits of keeping a daily journal.
Establish Goals
Writing in a journal not only forces you to put feeling to paper, it also forces you to establish your goals. What do you want to do tomorrow? what do you wish you could have done today? Writing these thoughts down can help you establish long and short-term goals.
You Will Feel Happier
Studies have shown that taking the time to write down just five things you’re grateful for at least once every week can improve your overall happiness. Think of it like gratitude lessons or happiness training. If you can pinpoint the things that make you happy or thankful, you’ll be able to reflect on them more often. It’s not exactly clear why, but study after study has shown that practicing gratitude improves your wellbeing.
Recording Your Personal Progress
You can learn how to achieve success through a success podcast, but you won’t be able to attain it unless you keep track of your progress. Much like guided meditation, journals give you a space to reflect on your actions and goals, thereby finding solutions as to how to better attain them.
Enhance Your Memory
If you can write it down, you’ll will remember it. Even guided meditation and spiritual training are best done in conjunction with writing. If you can write your feelings and memories after an experience, you’ll more easily be able to reflect on it in the future. In the same way that note taking leads to better success in school, journal writing leads to better success in life.
Self-Discipline
Just as it takes discipline to work out or meditate every day, so too does it take discipline to journal. By writing every day or week, you’re holding yourself accountable for keeping track of your thoughts, actions, and emotions.
Keeping a journal isn’t for everyone, but it’s a great first step in learning how to become more mindful, grateful, and successful in the future.