These 10 Reasons Will Convince You to Keep A Journal
One sensible thing you can do for yourself when everything happening around you seems chaotic is to write, keep a journal. But surprisingly, when we hear the word “journal”, what comes to mind is an image of a teenage girl on her bed, writing about all the boys in her class. But the definition of a journal is way more than just a teenagers’ diary.
A journal is a record of your daily life, events, experiences, thoughts, feelings, ideas, achievements and happenings around you, more like your “amebo or gist partner” doesn’t matter your age, so why shouldn’t you have one? Before we look into reasons why you should keep a journal, let’s take a look at few types of journals, and trust me I would chip in some reasons to convince you before the end of this article.
Food Journal
Whether you are a foodie or not, you should definitely keep a food journal. This would help you keep track of what you eat during the day, eliminate the ones that are not healthy, in case you are struggling to lose weight. A food journal would also help you to determine what foods to eat to increase your metabolism or what foods are bad for you.
Travel Journal
A travel journal helps you keep track of the places you have been to, the experiences, challenges you embarked on and also fun moments.
Fitness Journal
Keeping a fitness journal is really important as it helps you monitor every single workout, how your body reacts to the exercises and also how your body feels on the rest days.
A fitness journal also helps you know what workout works best for your body type.
To-Do List
This is the most important type of journal, as it helps you stay organized. Instead of bombarding your brain with a lot of things to do, write them down and at the end of the day cross out the ones you were able to complete and try to figure out why you couldn’t complete the rest.
The list doesn’t just end with the above types listed, you can keep whatever type of journal you want, be it an appreciation journal, goal tracker journal or a dream journal. Now, let’s dive into those reasons I promised you and I am sure that at this stage, you are already thinking about what type of journal to keep.
Why You Should Keep A Journal
1. Keeping a Journal Improve Writing Skill
Journaling helps to improve your writing skill, this is because the more you write, the more perfect you get at writing. You probably might want to ask “do I just write anything?”, heck yes, as long as you write, it doesn’t matter what.
2. It Helps Keep Track of Your Progress
Keeping a journal such as a fitness or a to-do list journal, helps you keep track of your progress and what to do in order to get better.
3. A Journal Improves Your Memory
When you write something down, it lets your brain know that you want to remember it again. It is proven that students who take notes during a lecture retain information better because the act of writing lets your brain know that it should pay attention.
4. Keeping a Journal Helps Achieve Goals
When you write down your goals, it serves as a reminder of what and what you need to achieve at what specific time, it also helps you stay accountable to your set down goals.
5. Journals Improve Communication Skill
You learn to express yourself effectively when you keep a journal, which in turn helps you communicate better. Writing leads to a clear mind, which leads to clear communication.
6. They can Serve as Record For the Future
A good journal is like wine; it gets better as it gets older.
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7. Keeping a journal is a gift you give the future you, reading what you wrote can give you an insight into how far you have come. It also makes you appreciate the moments you have had, either good or bad and how they have helped you become who you are.
7. Inspiring Creativity Is One of the Reasons You Should Keep a Journal
You should keep a journal because it helps you harness your inner creativity. The more you write, the more you discover different thoughts, expressions and ideas you never knew you had in you.
8. A Journal Reduce Stress
When you write your thoughts and feelings, you decongest your mind and make it easier for your brain to process those thoughts and feelings that formed up throughout the day.
This act will help you sleep better at night.
9. Journals Help You Heal
Writing serves as a tool for emotional, physical and psychological healing. When you put your traumatic experiences into writing, it helps you free yourself from the experiences, which might lead to depression.
10. It Helps to Boost Self-Esteem
The more you write about positive experiences and results, the more your brain relives those moments and builds a mental shield when doubts try to prevent you from achieving your goals.
Conclusion
Always remember that journaling is not hard, what is hard is starting the habit. But, when you do start, no matter what type of journal you decide to keep, what’s most important is the fact that you made that choice to connect with your mind, body and soul.
