five things I love about journaling

Hey lovelies!!

Journaling has been one of my favorite things to do since early middle school (a stack of old notebooks in my desk drawer is testimony to that). If you haven’t taken the time to ever keep a journal, hopefully this post will interest you in starting one 💕

1. Journaling creates mindfulness

Mindfulness, according to Physchology Today, is defined as a “state of active, open attention to the present.” There are few things that help me focus on my life in the here and now better than journaling. Taking a pen to my journal page helps me to reflect on myself, my life and others in an attentive and mindful way.

2. Journaling sets aside time for thoughtful expression

Tying into reason #1, journaling creates something I like to call thoughtful expression: identifying your emotions from the day and examining why you felt them, as well as the thoughts and exchanges that stood out to you through out day.

3. You’ll have a day-to-day record of your life to look back on in time

When I look back on my oldest journals from before I was a teenager, I’m amazed at what I spent my time writing and thinking about. I can see from reading those old entries how much I have changed, and how, weirdly enough, I’m still very much the same person, too.

4. Journaling can motivate you to pursue your passions

I journal by dating my entries, and writing about my day or whatever comes to mind. But one of the coolest things about journaling is it can be a tool to motivate, inspire and document your pursuing your passions.

For example, you could start a themed journal, gratitude journal (I’m in the process of trying this out), spiritual journal, etc. Whatever it is you’re passionate about, you can probably use as material to base journal entries on. You’re free to go anywhere and do anything with your journaling, and that’s one of the best things about it (:

5. You’ll become a better writer

For anyone who loves writing as much as I do, journaling is the perfect way to learn to write informally in creative ways. My first journaling attempts were littered with the most basic writing methods possible (I try to tell myself I was only twelve and therefore excused 😜).

But after years of journaling, I do know I’ve become a better writer for my many journal entries. Somehow, being forced to write in the first person AND from your own viewpoint (instead of a fictional character’s one) can be challenging for many a writer but ultimately helps you become much more aware of your own hopes, dreams, and day-to-day life. : )

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I hope you guys enjoyed this post! I can’t say enough about how calming and mindful journaling can help you become.

Btw, I know its been terribly long since I updated blogilisciousxoxo, and I want to apologize for that. Wrapping up my high school studies and preparing for college this fall has made this summer a mentally distracting one. But I’m going to be making more time to blog from now on. Whenever I’m not writing and sharing my ideas on my blog, my creativity suffers, and I always dearly miss interacting with those who read my blog. 💗

I can’t wait to start writing college-themed posts as the school year approaches, as well! ☺💕

Lots of love,

Veronica