How Powerful is Journaling?

Journaling – the act of writing things down – is a powerful thing. While you might not think that just maintaining a daily record of your thoughts, ideas, goals, and habits is a game-changer, I am here to tell you that it is. We already talked about the health benefits of journaling, and Heather has been talking about her personal journaling journey also. Today I wanted to explore how journaling is powerful. It’s possibly a more powerful tool than you realize, that can help you make the most out of your brain.

“Paper is to write things down that we need to remember. Our brains are used to think.”

Albert Einstein

Our brains are amazing. They can keep track of a multitude of thoughts, ideas, and reactions. They are capable of imagining incredible things, bringing them to life like magic. Our brains also believe what we tell them. The beliefs held by our brains can influence how we act, react, and what we bring into being in our lives.

For that reason, journaling helps our brain focus its incredible power on what we want it to focus it on. It frees our brains to do what they do best – think. Solve problems. Brainstorm. Visualize.

Clear Your Mind

When you write something down, it frees your mind to think about other things. Especially as we get older, it helps to have your brain-space un-cluttered with, for example, the stuff you need to do tomorrow. Or what you need to get at the grocery store tonight.

Have you ever lain awake in bed unable to sleep because all of the thoughts running through your head? Or because you’re stressing about what tomorrow will bring? What if you were able to train your brain such that, once you write it down, your brain can let it go?

Having a journal where you can pour out all your anxiety, stress, to-do lists, and other stuff can help you feel comforted that you won’t forget it. It can help you train your brain to “relax” once it’s written down in a safe place. Getting it out on paper relieves the pressure to remember it, which frees your mind to focus on other things. When you write down what has your attention, your brain can move on.

Bring Goals to Life

Just the act of writing something down can help you remember it better. Writing things down helps stick those things into your long-term memory storage. If you’re a computer geek like me, this is like taking stuff from your RAM and saving it to your hard drive. It frees up your RAM to go on to the next task.

When you apply this to your goals, writing them down can help make them more real. Once it’s written down, not only will you remember it better, but you’ll see it every time you review your journal. It will start to take shape in your mind. You’ll be able to actually visualize what your life will be like when that goal is achieved. This is where your brain really shines – when it can use your imagination to visualize outcomes and make them a reality.

Prioritization

Having everything written down allows you to look at the bigger picture. When you have a million and one things you’re trying to remember, you can get stuck “in the weeds” – at the task level. Just trying to get through your daily tasks can be exhausting. When you have all those things written down though, not only is your brain not having to be busy remembering each thing, but it can look at all those things and start prioritizing what’s most important. You can plan better, and decide to let things slide if it’s not as important. And because it’s written down, it won’t be sliding forever.

Self-Examination and Awareness

With all the stuff your brain is keeping track of, it may need a little help to draw connections between things. Having things written down where you can review it will help you make different connections. Especially if you’re a visual person – seeing things in different ways can help you learn more about yourself, your reactions, and how you can make changes that will benefit you in the long term.

Since writing things down helps record those things to your long term memory, you can look back over time and learn more about “when this happens, I feel x way”, for example. You learn about yourself. This helps you be more self-aware and presents opportunities for change.

Emotional Release

Writing down your emotions and thoughts also lets you let them go. By writing them down, you’re acknowledging them. You’re expressing your feelings in a safe place, to your journal – something that can’t argue, or talk back, or try to convince you that you’re not feeling what you’re feeling.

And just like talking to a therapist or a good friend, writing down your feelings allows you to release them. You can acknowledge them, then let them go. By writing them down, you can also have a look at what your emotions are, what is causing you to feel that way, and figure out ways to help you get “unstuck” from those emotions.

The one thing that you have that nobody else has is you. Your voice, your mind, your story, your vision. So write and draw and build and play and dance and live as only you can.

Neil Gaiman

You Be You

Use your voice. Write in a journal to tell your story and describe your vision of what you want. Use it to record your dreams and bring them to life. It’s a powerful tool, and all it takes is a little time, effort, and willingness. Be curious about yourself. You are the only you that will ever be!

Here are some more resources if you’re interested in other perspectives:

• 8 Powerful Benefits of Writing Things Down | Productive and Free
• How Writing Things Down Can Change Your Life | LifeHack
• Neuroscience Explains Why You Need to Write Down Your Goals If You Actually Want To Achieve Them | Forbes