Journaling 101: Journaling tips for the reflective

And then God answered: “Write this.

    Write what you see.

Write it out in big block letters

    so that it can be read on the run.

-Habakuk 2:2

I love journaling, there’s just this satisfaction that comes from being able to capture moments and reflect on them in the future. I tagged this post "for the reflective"because I believe its only reflective people and people who try to be that can successfully and consistently keep a journal. 

I’m a reflective person. I’d rather observe than speak and observation most times leads to ideas; since I’m only human and not superman I can’t keep all the ideas in my head at once so I keep a notebook where I write down all these ideas  and thoughts and that has helped me to keep it together for a long time. As it is often said “the faintest ink beats the strongest memory”.  And for someone who has kept a Journal/diary almost her whole life [ I've successfully kept 6 journals  ], I believe I have some valid points that might help you. 

Your journal should contain deep things, things that you have to search through your soul to find, things that have been hiding away carefully. Basically a journal contains your thoughts! I find journaling to be very meaningful and it is an important aspect of my journey as most of the great people I know/I've met and I look up to keep journals. 

So here are the few tips I've put together:

No Routine needed- I found out that when I stopped allotting a specific time to write in my Journal, my thoughts flowed more freely. Be spontaneous, write when you feel the urge to, do not force it. 

Be original x Get Creative– be as real as you could possibly be. [You can't be forming for yourself Lol] Don't let your journal be a bore, you can decorate, you can draw add stickers, magazine cutouts, write letters write quotes that inspire you etc. I have my journal with me wherever I go, the bathroom, the movies, even while shopping. You never know where inspiration might hit. . Journaling helps to build your serenity, it keeps you from keeping feelings bottled up inside, putting your feeling down on a paper helps in more ways than you can imagine. It helps to process them and leads you to a place of uttermost peace of mind.

Slow down- When writing in your journal, slow down and reflect. Look at things from your own point of view and from the point of view of others as well. Slowing down to reflect would help you build your creativity in more ways than you can ever imagine.

 Plan – By all means use your Journal to plan and set goals. You don’t necessarily need a journal to set goals but it's a plus as it serves as a constant reminder and helps with accountability. In my journals, I have more than a thousand keywords that represent every step on my journey to becoming who God wants me to be, this keywords might seem like jargon to others but they make sense to me. Write keywords in your journal, write Ideas just as they come, they might not even make sense to you at that moment but in time you'd see them unfold. 

Reflect & Assess - Your journal is a place where you can reflect on your life and assess it. It helps to build clarity which leads to personal productivity.

Seperate - If possible and if you have the means, keep seperate journals for various purposes as this would help you stay organised and locate whatever you need when you decide to go back to it. I currently have a prayer journal, a planning journal, a blog journal and an idea journal so I don't muddle things up. 

Set yourself free and go beyond the surface - My Journal is the one place I can totally be myself, I've had people tell me countless times, “stop talking to your notebook” but I really can’t help it though. In your journal write the things that may sound stupid to the world, rephrase, cancel, write all over again, let it be your get away I’m not saying be lonely or shut the world out just be free, be genuine, write things that you might never even share with the world. 

I hope this has helped in some way.. There's nothing holding you back now, start documenting everything!

Journaling is very important to keep your mind clear and your thoughts Fresh

-Alex Elle 

>>>> For those of us that might be stuck in a rut and can't seem to make a headway with journalling even after trying, I'm currently compiling a Journaling challenge list of some of the simplest things to write about! Once I'm done I'd let you in on further details!

• But in the meantime Before I get my list together, you can start your journal by printing out these questions and these questions, fold them up and have fun answering them in your journal in your spare time that way you have no excuse for not carrying it around and you'd definitely have something to do if you're bored!

• Also watch out for my next post on how you can save money and create your very first Journal yourself! 

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