25: How To Start A Journaling Practice

Welcome to the Women's Success Coach Podcast, a podcast created to inspire growth and to help you learn, achieve, and evolve in your life ongoing, regardless of your age. I'm your host, Certified Coach and Licensed Therapist, Karen Vincent, and I'm here to guide you, challenge you, and cheer you on so that you can create the life of your dreams and beyond. In this episode of the women's success coach podcast, I'm talking about a topic that's close to my heart, and that topic is journaling. I get excited to talk about journaling because I've been using it in my own life for many years, and I know the impact it's had for me as well as for the many clients I have who journal. In today's episode, I'm going to talk about the benefits of journaling, how to get started with journaling, what to write about when journaling, how to overcome journaling blocks, and how to make it part of your regular routine on an ongoing basis. I also created a handout for you with 25 journal prompts to help you get started. You can download it by going to www.karenvincentsolutions.com/journaling. That's www.karenvincentsolutions.com/journaling. If you've ever considered starting a journaling practice, or you're a seasoned journaler looking for some fresh inspiration, you're in the right place. So let's get started. Well, hello, my friend. I'm so glad you're here tuning into this episode of the women's success coach podcast. As I mentioned in the intro, I love journaling and I want you to fall in love with it as well. Maybe you've tried journaling in the past, but you haven't stuck with it enough to see the positive impact, or perhaps you've been thinking about starting a journaling practice, but you weren't sure where to begin. Maybe you have the best intentions, but as is the case when starting any new habit, it's just hard to get started. Or maybe you've been journaling ongoing and you're looking for some fresh inspiration Regardless of where you are in your journaling journey, let's walk through this together so that you can figure out what will work best for you to get you started and to keep you going with your journaling practice. First, let's get started with the basics. Maybe you're wondering, why journaling? Well, let me tell you, there are many amazing benefits to this practice. First, it's a great way to boost your self awareness, because it can be like having a heart to heart conversation with yourself, on paper. And, before I go any further, you may be thinking,"Did she just say paper?"."Does she know what year it is?". Yes, I said paper and let me digress for a minute to explain why I said paper. There's been lots of research done that demonstrates that there can be a bigger impact when you write something down versus typing it. And there are a few reasons for this. The first one is that writing is more of a tactile and sensory experience than typing is. The physical act of writing engages your fine motor skills, which can create a more immediate and personal connection between your thoughts and the page. This tactile feedback can enhance the sense of involvement and creativity in the writing process. And a second reason for writing is that writing often happens at a slower pace than typing, which can encourage a more deliberate and thoughtful approach to journaling. This slower pace can give you more time to process your thoughts and formulate ideas, potentially leading to deeper insights and or better ideas. Another reason writing can be better than typing is, when writing, you're not exposed to the digital distractions that come with typing on a computer or device. When you're looking at a piece of paper, you're better able to maintain focus and stay in the flow of your thoughts, without the temptation of checking emails, social media, or other online distractions. WrIting can also lead to less editing because nothing's notifying you when an error has occurred. This can be beneficial because it encourages you to keep going and to not get bogged down in self-criticism or in going back to correct things, which can take away from your thoughts. I share all of this to encourage you to try writing when you journal, if this is not something you've tried before. However, what matters most is that I want you to try journaling and figure out what works best for you. So If typing is what you're most comfortable with, and is what you'll be more likely to stick with, then typing it is. There's immense value regardless. So go with what feels right for you. Okay. I told you I was going to digress, but now let's get back to the benefits of journaling. As I mentioned, it's a great way to boost your self awareness so that you can really understand your thoughts, feelings, and desires better. Since your thoughts create your feelings, learning to get in touch with your thoughts, including those quiet, sneaky ones that like to hum in the background, will help you better understand what makes you tick, what your likes and dislikes are, and what triggers you, and why. It also helps you to better recognize what things you've been believing about yourself, and others, that are not actually true. I could go on and on, but the point is, you can't change something that you're not aware of, or that you don't understand. And journaling is a great way for you to understand yourself better. Also, journaling is a safe space for you to vent and to process your emotions. As you know, life can throw you some curve balls and journaling allows you to get your thoughts out of your head and onto paper, which can feel like a release. In addition, looking at them on paper instead of having them on the replay reel in your head, can make things feel more manageable. Journaling is also a great process for mapping out a plan, creating a roadmap for a goal, for holding yourself accountable, and for dreaming your biggest dreams. So hopefully you've heard enough to pique your interest as to how you can get started. The good news is that it is super easy. To start, you'll need a journal. This could be a fancy leather bound journal, a cute, colorful journal, or a plain old notebook. Heck, it could be a piece of old scrap paper. It doesn't really matter. The other option, as I mentioned, is that you could set up something digitally, like a note on your phone or a Google Doc. Anything works, and it's really about what makes sense for you, so that you can keep going back to it, to write more. Depending on what you like, you can consider having a specific pen you use when you journal. Some of my clients use different colored pens. There's no right or wrong way, so keep it simple or get all kinds of fancy. The choice is yours. Next, decide what you want to get out of your journaling practice. This can change from day to day, or this can be a longer term goal of what you want to get out of your journaling practice. The options are endless and there is no better or worse option. I'll share some journaling options for you, but again, do what feels best for you. You could use journaling to clear your head and/or express your feelings. You could use journaling to identify things that you are grateful for to improve your overall mindset. You could use journaling to write about a goal, to remind yourself why it's important and/or to track your progress. You could use journaling to help you gain clarity about your values. Or, you could use journaling to write about what you want to feel and then get clear about what will be required for you to feel that way. The options are endless, and as I said, there's no right or wrong option. If it would be helpful, you can grab my handout with 25 journal prompts to help give you more ideas. You can grab it at www.KarenVincentSolutions.com/journaling. Now once you've decided what you want to get out of your journaling practice, decide what time you can commit to it. Figure out something that you believe with 95 percent certainty, or above, that you can commit to each week. Maybe it's daily for 5 to 10 minutes. Maybe it's twice a week. Maybe it becomes your new Sunday morning practice. As you'll keep hearing me say, there is no right and no wrong in journaling. So commit to a time that seems reasonable for your life right now, and you can always revisit it later. What I think is most important is that you identify a time and stick with it. Journaling is a form of self care, so by being intentional about it and keeping your promises to yourself, you're sending yourself the message that you are a priority, which is meaningful in and of itself. Once you decide what you want to get out of your journaling practice as well as the time you want to commit to it, identify a place where you'll do your journaling. If possible, it's good to have a comfortable, quiet place where you're able to get lost in your thoughts, uninterrupted. For me, I use my home office. I put on relaxing music and I light a candle, but it doesn't need to be this involved. I do this because it helps me set my mood for the day, since I do my journaling in the morning. I have clients who journal at their kitchen tables while drinking their coffee. I have clients who journal sitting in their favorite chair at the end of the day. I currently have a client who journals in her car after work to help her clear her head before getting home. It all works. And again, there's no right or wrong place for journaling as long as you're able to focus and get in touch with your thoughts. What I want you to do is to try to be consistent with what you decide. When you create rituals around journaling, it helps it feel like a sacred time that's just for you and all about you. So now hopefully you're thinking about what you want to get out of journaling, how much time you can commit, and you're maybe even visualizing yourself writing in your journal. So now I want to share some things that could happen as you start to journal and offer you some tips for managing them. But before I do that, I want to call out all my perfectionists listening to this podcast. I'll talk later about not censoring your thoughts, but also don't judge what your journaling looks like. Mine is messy and inconsistent in format. Sometimes I write a bunch of bullet points, and sometimes I write epic, long, run on sentences with poor grammar and spelling. By not judging myself and focusing on the technical aspects of writing, I'm able to focus on what I'm thinking and feeling, and I'm able to get all the amazing benefits of the journaling process. So my perfectionists out there, I see you and I'm calling you out. Enjoy the process. And if it looks messy, that's okay. So the first thing that could happen when you're journaling, depending on what you're hoping to get out of your journaling practice, is that it can bring up some strong emotions. I have clients who are sometimes using journaling to process grief or to reflect on something challenging in their life that they want to move forward from. And before I go any further, bringing up and releasing challenging emotions can be very healing. So this is not something to try to avoid or resist. I just want to offer you a way in which you can contain it because I know the fear for so many people is that if you open up and allow your emotions, you'll not be able to reel them back in. And in reality, resisting challenging emotions usually just makes them stronger. So if you're concerned that journaling will bring up challenging emotions for you, be sure to set up some boundaries around it. What I recommend is that you have a specific place where you journal and where you keep your journal when you're done. I also recommend that you set a timer on your phone, maybe for just a short period of time to begin with, and when the timer goes off, it's a cue for you to wrap up your last sentence and end your journaling session for the day. One other strategy that can be helpful is that when the timer goes off and you finish writing, add one more sentence about something that you're grateful for, or if you're journaling about grief, maybe one positive memory about that person you lost. This will help shift your mindset before you return to your day. Also, if you're dealing with significant grief, trauma, or other mental health concerns, journaling can be a great tool that supports you. however, you should also seek professional help so that you get all the individualized support you may need and which you also deserve. Rumination is something else that can occur when you journal if you're only journaling about challenging things and not putting up boundaries to contain your journaling. Rumination happens when you continue to dwell on problems or challenging things, without finding resolution or moving forward from them. If you notice this happening when you journal, you might consider shifting your focus to something that feels a little more productive. As I mentioned, I have a free guide with 25 journal prompts that you can grab at www.karenvincentsolutions.com/journaling. Also, speaking with a professional can help you manage intrusive thoughts or rumination, if this is something that's happening for you, that feels problematic. Something else that can happen when you're journaling is that you start to censor your thoughts. as you're putting them on paper. Please do not do this or you'll water down the journaling experience. Part of the power of journaling is being able to be honest and vulnerable with yourself so that you increase your self awareness and gain clarity about things that you may want to achieve in your life. Judging yourself for your thoughts is not helpful. So let's make a commitment right now that we won't do that. Deal? Also, sometimes people worry that someone else will read their journal, and this is a valid concern. As I mentioned, journaling is a personal, honest and vulnerable process. So it's important that you have a place where you can keep your journal and trust that others won't read it. Maybe you need to hide it in between a pile of clothing, in the locked glove compartment of your car, in the back of a closet, or in a locked drawer. Taking time to figure this out will help you get the most out of your process because you won't have that fear of someone else reading your most personal thoughts. Another thing that can come up when you're journaling is that you sit down to journal and you can't think of anything to write. This is always so interesting because the reality is we have more than 60, 000 thoughts per day. However, it can feel like our minds go blank sometimes. If this happens to you, you can ask yourself one of these five questions to see if you can get those journaling juices flowing. First question, what am I thinking about right now and why? Second question, how am I feeling right now and what is contributing to these feelings? Third question. What do I want to accomplish today, this week, or this month? Fourth question. What am I grateful for today and why? And finally, the fifth question. What's something I would like to see different in my life and what will help get me there? Now, if you try one or more of these and you're still not feeling it, it's okay. This does happen sometimes and when it does, you can just tell yourself that it's okay and don't feel like there's something wrong, or that you have to force it. Never feel like you have to put pressure on yourself to journal. Another thing that can happen when you start to journal is that you may have some breakthroughs or new insights. You may notice behavior or thinking patterns that you no longer want to engage in. You may discover someone or something in your life that you want to put boundaries around or eliminate completely. And while these insights and aha moments can be exciting, they can also cause some discomfort. A reason that discomfort can occur is because anytime you try to do something new, your brain will want to pull you back to what's familiar, even if you consciously want to make a change or changes. Another reason that discomfort can occur is because you may experience guilt for making positive changes, while others around you are not. You may even have others verbalizing their disapproval about you taking time for yourself, or for you wanting to make changes. If any of this happens, remind yourself that discomfort often, if not always, comes with growth and that there's nothing wrong with this. Also, remind yourself that just because you're experiencing discomfort doesn't mean that you should hold yourself back if there's a change that you really want to make. You can even use your journaling to help you process your discomfort and also to dial up your inner coach to cheer you on as you make those changes to improve your life. Now you may be thinking,"Hey, that sounds like a lot of things that could come up if I start journaling". And just know that I shared them to normalize them and to prepare you, if you do experience any of them, They're actually not problems at all, and they don't mean you're doing anything wrong with your journaling. So if you experience any of them, just keep going. And before I wrap up, as I do in all my episodes, I want you to take some action in the next 24 to 48 hours if you're interested in starting, strengthening, or recommitting to a journaling practice. So let's do a little quick recap. First, decide what you want to get out of your journaling practice. This can evolve and change over time, but it's helpful to start with a vision for how you want to use your journaling. As a reminder, if you want to use prompts to help you with your journaling, grab my 25 journal prompts guide to help get you started. You can grab it at www.KarenVincentSolutions.com/journaling. You can also find the link in the show notes. Next decide how much time you can commit to journaling each day or each week. Pick a time that feels absolutely doable for you right now and know that you can always make adjustments as you need to in the future. Finally, decide on where you want to do your journaling. If possible, have a particular space that you use when you're journaling to make it more of a habit or ritual and to be sure that it's somewhere private where you can focus on yourself uninterrupted. There you have it. Feel free to share about your journaling practice on my Instagram posts and stories@KarenVincentSolutions or shoot me a DM or email and let me know how your journaling practice is going. Also feel free to send me any questions you have and let's keep this dialogue going as we get to journaling. That's a wrap. You should be proud of yourself for investing time in you, which is so critical for success and for overall life fulfillment. I look forward to having you join me for my next episode. And in the meantime, go click that subscribe button so you know when it's released. And you can also follow me on Instagram@KarenVincentSolutions. That's@KarenVincentSolutions on Instagram. Also, remember that whatever it is that you're working on, you've got this. And I'm here cheering you on.