How keeping a journal can help with understanding yourself

Reading time: 2 – 4 minutes

A few days ago I wrote on the last page in my moleskine journal. It took me 10½ months to write on each of the 240 pages. The journal is a record of my internal thinking over that period and I’d like to share with you some of what I learnt about the writing process along the way.

• The more frequently you write, the better the conversations you have with yourself. In past years I’ve been called to write in a journal infrequently; usually only when I had a particularly nasty problem on my mind. Recently I’ve found myself needing to visit my journal every two or three days because I now benefit from a regular outpouring of ideas and my associated comfort level has shifted. I typically write at the start of the day. In the evening before bed I’m too tired to delve into it yet some nights I find myself writing in the wee small hours of the morning to get an idea out of my head so that I can sleep.
• Write what you think and feel as well as what you do. I do note important events in my journal as I consider it a historical record yet most of the benefit comes from writing what I feel and believe rather than transcribing my day’s actions (of course thinking and feeling are actions in themselves).
• Questions are a good source of things to write about. My output really kicked off when I was given a list of 50 self-inquiry questions to consider. I committed to answer all 50 in 50 days which in itself was a lot of fun to do and a fantastic goal to achieve. Many books on self-improvement contain questions to ask of yourself and these can be a great source of inquiry. I frequently found I was surprised by my answers.
• A journal is aplace you can be honest. When open to the process I would write a description of what was on the surface and listen for the deeper thought behind it. More often than not I would be in wonder at identifying what I was really thinking. These thoughts were the doorways to different ideas and actions.
• Get a good pen and paper. Moleskine notebooks are nice to write in. I use a 240 page, unlined version to let me draw pictures if I need to. I also prefer to write with a fountain pen. Why? Simply because I enjoy the feel of the ink across the paper and I’m doing something special for myself so why not have special tools as well.

This morning I started a new journal with a mood of wonder at where it will take me in the coming months.

Update: Arbhay Parvate tweeted me after he recognised journalling was a way of clearing out open loops at higher levels of GTD focus. I hadn’t realised this myself and it certainly provides an explanation for why it has become such an enjoyable and useful experience.