Two Years of Journaling:
How I Started, Why I Will Keep on Doing It, and What I Get Out of It
January 30th marked the second anniversary of my first journal entry, which was exactly as follows:
“January 30, 2018
Things To Do For Tomorrow:
Apply to jobs on campus
Talk to an advisor about taking one more class
Start reading for classes
Look for a new job
Daily Reflection:
Interesting past week. Start of something new. Starting to keep track of everything and keeping a daily to do list. Have $800 in the bank, with $310 coming. Plus, $180 on Coinbase, $185 on Binance, and $505 on Robinhood. How long will I keep this up? We shall see.”
How I Started:
The week before I started, I made a new pal. Throughout our conversations, she shared stories so vivid, they made me feel as if it all just happened to her while I stood somewhere in the vicinity, watching everything unfold.
No detail was too small, no story was too long, and no words were to be considered fillers. It was lengthy but concise and very detailed while having just the right amount of blanks to trigger the imagination. It turned mundane events into exciting stories. I told her how eloquent yet so simple it was, marking, I think, the first time I was impressed that year.
After the amazement period, I became inspired. How can I do something like this? Of course, in order to find out, my first question to her had to be “HOW”? She shared how she’s kept a journal for a period of time that I’ve now forgotten (maybe because I didn’t have a journal yet!).
Before I began my own journal, I thought what if maybe she’s just a great writer. Maybe she’s just that much more talented than me. Then, as I mentioned before in my life blog, I realized that there is always a way that I can get better. If I constantly write, maybe my work will eventually become a flowery garden with just the necessary shrubbery. Through practice, I may just get to her level.
The first couple of nights were slow. At the time, not much was happening in my everyday life, thus there wasn’t enough information to comprise lengthy entries. As it went on, I began seeing the impact it can make.
As a sentimental person, journaling gave me everything that I could ask for to keep at it.
Why I Kept On Doing It:
On quick glance, the almost 700 pages of entries that I have written look nothing out of the ordinary. They all kind of just blend together — words, phrases, sentences — resembling how life can be like sometimes. Nothing can be legendary if all are legendary. However, as The Little Prince once said, “what makes the desert so beautiful is that somewhere it hides a well…”
Journaling gives me the opportunity to self-regulate, self-monitor, and self-assess. It gives me the ability to reflect and pinpoint exactly how things unfolded, why they’re unfolding the way they are, and witness everything from start to finish. I can also relive things exactly how I lived it the first time, without my brain romanticizing or dramatizing them, as it tends to do. Since our brains can only hold so much information at any given point in time, I decided to make it easier for me to retain not just past information, but to be able to absorb new information as well.
In a data driven world, I’ve turned my whole world into a collection of data that I know every single entry of and am consistently using them to my advantage.
As an avid thinker, journaling allows me indulge myself with everything that I can think about.
What I Continue to Get Out Of It:
Nowadays, there’s a lot more going on in my life, both day to day and in the grand scheme of things. It takes me longer to write everything that I’m thinking and feeling but I feel even more excited to do it now than ever before. I can’t see myself ever stopping now. I’ve fallen in too deep and I think I’m only going to fall in even deeper. My journal is one of the rarest as it offers all benefits with no potential drawbacks.
I don’t get nostalgic much. I don’t look back and think “oh, if only I did this…” or “what if I did this” or “what if this happened”. There’s no point in dwelling about the past when I have the future to look forward to and plan for. I use my past decisions, strategies, and techniques to make better decisions, to implement more effective strategies, and utilize more proficient techniques in the future. When I read my journal, it’s mostly to witness how far I’ve come, how much I’ve grown, and most importantly, how much more I have to do and how much better I can become. Every now and then, I’d reread something to feel how I felt before, for a little re-affirmation or confirmation, just to remind myself who I am when things are not going according to plan. More often than not, I’m proud to see how I handle things as well as my overall progress.
My journal grows as I grow.
As someone who’s obsessed with constant personal development and growth, journaling encourages me to keep working to get everything that I am willing to work for.
Final Thoughts:
A curious friend once asked me what the difference is between a diary and a journal… At the time, I couldn’t really differentiate the two. I’ve never had a diary but I said “mine is a journal because it’s not a diary”. Now, I have a clear and definite answer.
Diaries, to me, keep records of events that transpired. It’s subjectively factual. It’s all about the writer, their thoughts, feelings, and perception. It’s self-centered. No more, no less. Journals, on the other hand, are basically diaries while being much more.
If diaries contain events that happened, my journal contains:
events that happened
why they happened
what led to it happening
who contributed to it happening
who was involved
how I feel about what happened
what I think about what happened
what I think about those that are involved
what I think those involved are thinking
what I think those involved are feeling
what I think is going to happen next
how I feel about what’s going to happen next
what I think about what’s going to happen next
what I think those involved are thinking about what’s going to happen next
what I think those involved are feeling about what’s going to happen next
When provided with the information, I write what the people involved actually think, which gives me the great chance to compare how well my hypothesis fares with their actual insight.
If diaries contain goals, then my journal contains an intricate step by step process, contingency plans to counter potential, both foreseen and unforeseen, obstacles, how to get back on track in case a distraction rises, people whose guidance I’ll need, and anything else to help achieve said goals.
If diaries contain how the writer feels about a name, then my journal contains all the little events that led to that name being included in the journal, what makes the name so special, if the name is going to keep making appearances, and everything about the name that makes it worthy of its inclusion.
My journal is both egocentric and altruistic. It’s made me more aware, more considerate, more insightful, and more understanding.
Some people that have made an appearance in my journal may not be in my life anymore but they’re immortalized in my thoughts by way of being in my journal.
Simply, my journal allows me to get lost in my thoughts, find a way to conceptualize and connect them all, and find myself coming out immersed with it.
Journaling enables me to see my life from a different perspective and separate the trivial from the essential. It’s almost as if writing is a vice I’m addicted to since I seek it in order to become more relaxed and focused.
Anybody can do it but not everybody will. I’d love to be an inspiration for someone to start theirs. I’d love to hear about your experience if you already do it. I’d love to hear any questions, comments, or thoughts.
As someone who loves helping and connecting with people, I think journaling can be the medium that will and/or can connect me to similar like-minded people.
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