By keeping a journal, you create an outlet for self-expression that can spark your creativity. You can also explore your ideas and emotions by writing them down — and reflecting on them later.
Journaling comes in many forms. There's no right or wrong way to do it. If you're busy and think you won't have time, there's the "one line a day" habit: You only need to write a brief daily entry.
"As I'm growing older, I like the simplicity of whittling things down to, 'What was one really good moment of the day?'" said country singer Margo Price, 42, in a recent New York Times interview.
Regardless of the length or depth of your entries, you can engage in self-therapy by jotting your musings.
"Once it's written down, you're externalizing your stress," said Sabrina Romanoff, a New York City-based clinical psychologist. "It calms your nervous system, and you make more rational decisions."
To maximize the benefits of journaling, start by silencing your inner critic. Just write; don't judge the result.
How can you harness the power of a journal?
Keep It Real
Write the way you speak. This isn't an assignment that you'll turn in to a teacher, so you need not worry about grammar, spelling or syntax. "Don't write for perfection," Romanoff said. "Write as if you're talking to someone you trust."
Try posing a question to yourself in your journal. New to journaling? You may not know how to start.
"Have a prompt," Romanoff said. "Ask, 'What's this story I'm telling myself?' or 'What am I feeling right now?'"
Stick To It
Consistency is the key to effective journaling. To get the greatest benefit, make it a regular habit.
"I don't know of anyone who journals on a daily basis like I have for 21 years," said Steven Ferrara, a retired chief executive of a financial services firm. "It's part of my routine."
Ferrara's son died in 2004. The next day, he made a commitment to jot an entry each day — and he's kept it up.
"I'd been journaling most of my life but I'd never made a consistent commitment," he said. "Doing it every day, I've found it to be therapeutic. It's a place to express my innermost feelings and discover other ways to view life challenges."
Tackle Problems
Some people equate journals with frivolity or tallying the trivialities of daily life. But by adopting a problem-solver mindset, you can seek creative solutions to thorny issues.
When Ferrara ran his firm, one of his employees — a financial advisor — faced a regulatory probe. Ferrara met with compliance attorneys who grilled him about his employee.
"That night, I expressed my feelings in my journal," said Ferrara, author of "Grief to Gratitude." "I came up with an idea on how to follow up with the attorneys to clarify a point and resolve the situation," which helped him wrap up the probe successfully.
Treat It Like Therapy
Workaday pressures can feed on themselves. Journaling enables you to detach from those pressures.
"It calms me down," Ferrara said. "It untangles the loop of (negative) thinking. In business, you can be overstimulated with all that's going on. Journaling lets you step away and get quiet time for yourself."
If writing doesn't come easily to you, ditch the prose and expand your palette. Cut and paste photos. Draw cartoons or make colorful sketches.
"See journaling as a form of play," said Mari L. McCarthy, founder of CreateWriteNow.com. "You don't have to write an essay or business report. You can just doodle. Be as honest as you can about what's really going on inside you."
