If you’ve been following us for a while, you’ll know that our premium leather journals are a customer favorite. We post a lot of pictures on our social media featuring our journals, and we love creating new closure types or sizes to accommodate a variety of needs. There’s a reason for that. I’m really passionate about preserving memories and moments in time that I can come back to later on. I write down the good, the ugly, the messy, the beautiful, and the funny parts of my life to help me remember it as it really was. If I’m having a hard day, I can go back and read silly things my kids have done or how ecstatic I felt when I hit a big business goal. It’s all there, just waiting for me to dive back into.
Especially now, while we’re living through unprecedented times, I feel a big need to record all the details about stores being out of toilet paper, wearing masks everywhere we go, schools closing, and social distancing. There’s been a lot going on, and it makes me feel like I need to journal ALL THE THINGS. Though I love recording my thoughts and feelings, I’ve been feeling a bit overwhelmed, anxious and unmotivated in my journal writing. I was looking for ways to mix it up and came upon several ideas I’ve loved. I thought I’d share a few with you in case anyone else is feeling similarly.
Bullet Journaling
This way of journaling is more succinct and creative than my usual word dump. Bullet journaling is often used to be more mindful, organized, and create a meaningful life. You can write your grocery list right next to a list of your goals for the next 5 years and then record the things you’re most grateful for right after that. You can mix and match to your heart’s delight and just record what’s in your mind in a stream-of-consciousness style. Here are a few bullet journal page ideas:
- A month-long calendar to track a new habit (say reading for 10 minutes a day or getting outside each afternoon)
- A list of activities you want to do with your family during this season of life
- Draw a cute picture that illustrates the way you visualize this month (see the pictures below for inspiration)
- A list of books you are going to tackle this year
- Gift ideas for people ahead of time (if you need gift ideas, check out this post)
The great thing about this style of journaling is the flexibility. This doesn’t have to always be deeply meaningful or super structured. Just write what’s in your head and what will clear up some mental space.
Gratitude Journal
It’s no secret this time of life has some challenges that aren’t part of “normal” life. Masks, social distancing, kids trying to do school at home, etc. It’s been a bit crazy. It didn’t seem like the easiest time to start a gratitude journal, but that’s exactly why I probably should. It’s taking a little more effort to count my blessings amidst the crazy, but I want to make sure I’m still appreciating the good things in my life even when I’m being pulled in so many different directions. If a gratitude journal sounds exactly like what you need right now, here are the basics:
- Use bullet points to make it easy to reflect back on later
- You can make each thing you’re grateful for as long or as short as you like, but try to vary them and write specifics
- Don’t overthink - just write what you’re really grateful for that day. If it’s the fact that you didn’t have any Zoom calls today, write that. If it’s the fact that your shower was the perfect temperature, that’s fantastic
- Try to write something every day. Consistency helps soooo much with learning to see the gratitude in daily life
- Use a beautiful journal to write in ;)
Answering Questions or Prompts
This idea sounds like exactly what I need right now - in this form of journaling, you find pre-written prompts or questions and then journal your answers. This is great because the things you’re writing about might have nothing to do with your feelings or situation right now, yet you can still get some thoughts on paper and enjoy the creativity of writing. You can find prompts and questions on Pinterest or Google, and go from there. Some that are calling out to me to write about are:
- Make a list of 30 things that make you smile
- Name what is enough for you
- Using 10 words, describe yourself
- I feel most energized when…
- What do you love about life?
These creative ways of journaling feel like exactly what I need right now in this weird time, and I hope it helps you too!