The Importance of Journaling Frequently

I have been journaling since elementary school.  I went through periods of journaling and not journaling, although for the past two years, I have been doing it fairly consistently.  I used to get a new journal even though I wasn’t even close to being finished with my last one, wanting a “fresh start” so to speak.  For these past two years though, I have kept the same journal.  I am grateful that I did because 1) it makes me feel more accomplished and 2) it’s crazy to look back and see what I was like and what I was thinking two years ago.

In this article I will be talking about the importance of journaling frequently.  Now I realize that it can be difficult to journal every single day (which I try to do), but I encourage you to journal at least a couple times a week every week.  Below I will list the benefits to journaling frequently, and I hope this inspires you to do so too.

Journaling lets you get it all out.

Whenever I am having a tough day I always look forward to journaling by the end of it.  Penting up your thoughts, feelings, and emotions is a recipe for disaster (take it from me, I’ve been there).  Once you put everything down on paper, you feel a sense of relief, like a weight being lifted off your shoulders.  You can do this in any way you want to too!  You can write paragraphs, bullet points, individual sentences, whatever works.  Doing this has helped me tremendously so that I don’t bottle up all of my emotions and have a mental break.  Writing everything that you are feeling down on paper is very therapeutic that way.

You can look back in time and reminisce.

This has to be one of my favorite aspects of journaling.  Every once in a while I like to flip through my journal to see what I was thinking and feeling back in the day or during certain times in my life.  It’s also interesting to see your handwriting change throughout the years.  I noticed in my own journal, two years ago I wrote with very large letters, and now my letters are smaller and more compact.  All in all, looking back at the good old days is always an entertaining pastime, and it can help in bringing back memories!

You can see how much you have grown.

I feel as if this is the most enlightening aspect of having a journal, especially if you have kept the same one for a long time.  Looking back and seeing how I viewed and reacted to certain situations shocks me now.  I can read these old entries and see how much I have matured.  This reflection can make you feel more proud and appreciative of yourself as well.  Sometimes it is hard to see how much we have progressed when we live our lives day-to-day.  Journaling helps us in seeing gradual progression and growth.

Journaling improves your writing skills.

Writing a lot in general will improve your writing abilities.  I personally like to go back and reread my entries from time to time.  Doing so aids me in being able to recognize when certain words or sentences sound off.  Journaling helps you find your writing style as well!  The act of journaling itself allows you to write however you would like to, no constraints, no deadlines.  This allows you to become more comfortable and confident in your writing.

Journaling helps you see the bigger picture.

Whenever I am stressed or unsure what to do about a certain situation, writing, nine out of ten times, helps me see the bigger picture.  Journaling helps me in seeing how I truly feel about something.  I frequently list out potential solutions for my problems and end up choosing one or two.  There’s just something about writing everything down on paper that helps you realize what you need to do and why.

I genuinely hope you find inspiration to journal after reading this article.  Even if you start out slow, you will soon find that you cannot live without it.  Don’t feel like you have to journal everyday.  We all have those days where by the end of the day all we want to do is sleep.  Especially if you have had a shitty day, I know this is probably the last thing you want to do.  Although I highly recommend journaling on your shittiest days.  Those are the entries you will look back on the most.

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