I don’t want to know what you do. I want to know who you are.
You are many things to many people.
Child, parent, sibling, peer, friend, partner, neighbour, community member. Perhaps you also have a career or work that plays a big part in your life and identity. You can explore all these facets of yourself.
Eventually, I want you to go under all the roles that you play in your life and look at the person behind them.
Don’t overthink it.
Your writing is for your eyes only, and this is your chance to say it like it is.
If you’re dissatisfied with something or someone, your journal is the place to express that – better there than starting a fight or hurting someone else.
Open yourself up to the questions and allow the answers to come to you.
The thoughts, feelings and answers that come don’t need to make logical sense.
Often, you’ll start somewhere and end up in a place you’d never expected.
The magic of journaling is that it connects you to a deeper part of yourself and unlocks the things residing in your subconscious mind – those things that are there but maybe not visible.
Trust the process.
Sometimes nothing will come, and that’s perfectly fine too.
Don’t beat yourself up about it. Instead, you can write about the fact that you have a block occurring.
And when you feel you want to explore a specific topic, but maybe don’t know where to start, use prompts to help you get started and go deeper (like we’re doing right here).
One mistake I see people make most often is to only journal when they have something to say.
However, as I explained in lesson one, your mind is a thinking tool.
Dropping out of a regular journaling habit means you’re swamping your mind with things it has to hang on to and remember.
This will hamper that free-flowing clear thinking that you get access to when you journal regularly.
Instead of waiting for inspiration to strike, create the habit of showing up for yourself every day – just like you’re doing here.
And you’re doing well, keep going.
Starting a new habit is never easy. Once that initial excitement wears off, it’ll start feeling a bit like a chore.
But push through that and you’ll see the power that journaling can have in your life.
When you write, don’t worry about spell-checking or correcting yourself. Don’t stop to read it, just get in the habit of letting it flow out of you.
You’ll make sense of it later.
JOURNALING PROMPTS:
Who are you?
Think about the things that drive you, that you feel passionate about. And consider what your own values and biggest beliefs are.
What makes you feel like you?
