Many of the people I admire most write in journals. They journal with regularity, if not routinely.

I’ve occasionally written my emotions, thoughts, dreams, and desires. I miss a ton of days though. I often wonder what happened on those day. It’s as if I was missing from them. However, what I did write down came to life. When I looked back at past notebooks it became clear that journaling is a key brick in the building of my best life, and here’s why.

You’ve Gotta See It to Believe It

Seeing is believing. Journaling makes thoughts and Ideas, emotions, and desires visual. Whether a task for a project to execute, a concept or idea to dive into deeply, the desire to acquire a skill, or an item to check off on the bucket list, one can look back and see that they write out what they prioritize. One can clearly see the steps needed to complete past projects because it was written down. Jotting down ideas and plans for execution served as confirmation of a commitment. We become accountable for completing the tasks that comprised the project or made that dream come true.

Damn it feels good to see people up on it! (Biz Markie voice…Google him, youngsters.) Especially when it’s Me! When I look back and see that I’ve accomplished things I wrote down, it doesn’t feel like I had more luck at those times. It reminds me that I can create the outcomes I envision if I plan for managing the highs and lows of the project.

If you’re not making the progress you’d like to make in life, or if you simply looked up one day to realize you want to feel more accomplished, that’s not entirely bad. That feeling means you’ve either let your abilities wither or you’ve gone as far as talent alone can take you.  So, what are your challenges? What does that improvement look like to you? What will improvement take?

The Missing…ink

The missing link could be the missing ink. Your journal is where you can be honest with yourself. If you can’t do that, who can you be honest with?

Often we don’t write because we’re not living with intention. We probably wouldn’t be happy with what we’d have to say about ourselves. When we write, we sorted thoughts, document outcomes and feelings about those outcomes. We reveal how we feel about the state of our lives at any given time. We profess our desires for the future. Our written word guides us through steps necessary to achieve our desired results.

We can reread it and build a foundation upon which to create more fulfilling changes in our lives. But we’ve got to stick with it. Build the habit of writing and journaling because it’s a healthy release and makes us more thoughtful and powerful. Be consistent because our habits are something we can master. The most important habits we build are the ones that affect our health…physical, mental, and emotional.

Journals can become the place we find confidence to open up in spite of our concerns about judgment. It’s a place to release emotions, a place to plan for improvements.

Journal for Gratitude

I journal because I am thankful. I’m especially thankful for my son. I’m not content hoping for the day he looks at my accomplishments in awe. Instead I’m planning for that day. I’ll use my journal and my life to show him sacrifice, hard work, and changes I made because of him. I want him to understand how thankful I am for him by leaving him footprints that might serve as a compass for him being his best. 

Documenting, writing, journaling, call it whatever you’d like. It has helped me, so I’m relying on it to help me again. Day by day, entry by entry, article by article, what I write will be the bricks that aid me in building a beautiful future. Writing can be the foundation for your future as well.