Inspire and Motivate Yourself to Journal

Doing it your way

My dad’s words ring in my head whenever I think about how to help people get motivated to journal. He was a joker in his own way. He got away with statements to others that would normally be taken seriously and insultingly. A common reply from him to the very common comment customer service workers say, “Have a nice day!” would be, “Don’t you tell me what to do!” with a slight and mischievous grin. He said he did this, along with a few lines of light and comic conversation during the service, because he knew waiters, waitresses and cashiers put up with so much from others, he just wanted to give them a chuckle; brighten their days a little. And when I look back at his life and our relationship I see that, although that was a running joke he would have with customer service, it seemed to be his way of life. He lived his life on his own terms. He didn’t let anyone tell him would to do.

I’ve come to believe that this is a healthy, albeit sometimes rebellious, way to live life. And thus, this is how I’ve come to teach and counsel. In the 20 plus years I’ve been counselling in the various settings, an overall attitude I’ve taken on has been the resistance to give advice. I don’t believe that I, or anyone else, not even the highest-paid psychiatrists, have the right to tell another what to do with their lives; what is “best for them”. I believe we all have that ability to decide for ourselves. I also believe that telling another what to do will diminish their motivation. I believe this because I believe, deep inside every living human being, there is the need to make all one’s own decisions. It creates a wonderful sense of personal power and integrity which leads to abundance and success.

So when we are talking about motivating another to journal, we are talking about helping them to create their own plan of inspiration.

When to write

First of all, I believe to be successful in a continuous routine of writing, it’s helpful to take a bit of a look at yourself. Not in judgment, but assessment. I know, that is what the journaling is for, but before that, just look at one thing. Are you a loon or an owl? No, I’m not calling you names or being insulting. These are just terms to easily describe you as a day person or a night person. This is the first step towards looking at your circadian rhythm, the natural, personal 24-hour schedule your mind and body are on. When do you feel more creative? When is the best time of day for you to solve problems? When is your body more cooperative in doing housework, yardwork, playing sports or other physical activities? When are you most likely to be in the mood for intimacy? Once you look at when different activities are the easiest for you, you can start to go with your natural clock, where possible.

Here’s an example

And I do mean, where possible. For instance, I found an example of a common circadian cycle schedule when doing the research for my “Organizing Your Life – From the Inside, Out” workshop several years ago. Included in the list of times and activities, is 5:00pm – 9:00: when both male and female hormones peak, resulting in maximum pleasure and performance. Ok, that’s wonderful to know. However, this is also the usual time period we eat supper. So, Mom and Dad may feel amorous at the supper table but know that little 7-year-old Tommy may not appreciate his parents leaving the table, running down the hall and slamming their bedroom door shut for some time, leaving Tommy with all kinds of questions, and missing his dessert.

But I digress.

We can work with what we’ve got, in combination with our clock.

For myself, I find that very early in the morning is my best time to journal, work on a novel in on-going progress and write my articles. I’m writing this now at 7:15am. Prior to this, I wrote a page and a half of free association journaling. We’ll get to the techniques (ie. free association) in the next article.

It’s also effective to discover a piece of your personality and go with it when finding inspiration to journal. Are you a person who likes structure? Or do you like to go with the flow?

If you like structure, you are more likely to adhere to, and appreciate working with your circadian rhythm and choose a regular time of day. However, if you’re a go with the flow type of person, my suggestion to you is to carry with you a smaller journal wherever you go. You may find it more successful to decide to journal when the urge hits you. Deciding a set time of day, may find you staring at the paper with pen in hand and a little voice in your head that sounds something like “don’t you tell me what to do”. This one can be a little tricky and you may need to play with it for a bit to see what works. Why do I say this? Because I’m a go with the flow type of person who writes every morning as soon as I get up. This is just what works for me. It’s the only thing in my life that is structured. This is because I not only journal and am a freelance writer, but I’m also a counsellor, intuitive consultant and reader, and a workshop / group facilitator. If I don’t write first thing in the morning when my circadian rhythm laps it up, it will most likely not get accomplished that day.

Journaling Paraphernalia

So, what do you prefer? Paper and pen or digital device? Either one will work, but possibly only one will work best for you. In my experience, this is what most people say. However, there is always an exception to the rule. I suggest trying both out. One thing to consider is the privacy factor. Which way will provide you with the best privacy? This will play heavily into your inspiration as the mind will work to protect you. If you share your computer and don’t have a system that allows you for privacy then your mind will register this and not allow you to pull out the deep thoughts and feelings that will provide you with healing and helpful journaling experience. Some people have said that just the act of writing or printing on some form of paper ignites the creative flow.

If you choose to use a computer, a trick of inspiration is to create a system of folders to store your journaling files in. You can create folders based on the techniques you choose to use, or the topics and issues you choose to write about.

If you choose to write in a journal, the type of journal is very important towards the motivation factor. What type of journal will you prefer? Do you value visual image? You might be inspired to obtain a decorative book with blank or lined pages inside. Do you plan on journaling on the road? It would be good to consider the size of your journal for maybe keeping it in your purse, bag or briefcase. Is writing comfort important to your inspiration? Consider a spiral-bound journal or notebook so you can open it flat on the table or your lap, or even fold it over. Do you need to disguise your journal so other people around you are not tempted to peek? A plain notebook is good for this. I’ve even suggested to women to write on the cover a subject that would act as a deterrent to others in the household. If privacy is an issue, you can always purchase a diary with a lock.

Also, if you choose to journal with paper and pen, the pen is an essential factor to regard. I myself, am quite picky about the pen I use. It is one of the biggest motivational aspects that determine the success of my journaling. It even greatly affects my penmanship. If I’m using a pen that doesn’t feel awesome in my hand and has ink that doesn’t flow perfectly in my opinion, the journaling or writing session is just not going to go well.

What is calling you?

As I’ve mentioned, in the following article, I’ll be addressing the different kinds of techniques and exercises to use. Each one has its own purpose. These purposes have to match your personal purposes for journaling. Also, the techniques you choose simply have to intrigue you; make you curious and entice you. Pay attention to your inner reaction to everything I write in these articles about journaling. If something I suggest causes an internal reaction of resistance, it’s not for you. If something causes you to want to check it out, go for it.

What areas of your life are you drawn to explore at this time? The issues and topics that would be beneficial for you now will invoke emotional reaction within you. Yes, excitement and curiosity are two easy responses to go by, however it is important to understand that the areas in your life that you would greatly benefit from if explored are areas that cause you to feel anxiety, stress and fear when considering.

I once read, “The fear you feel towards dealing with something is directly proportional to the affect it has on your everyday life.” I think that statement is brilliantly spot-on.

Your space

Where you decide to journal can inspire and motivate you. To get things moving, while training your body and mind into your journaling routine, sometimes it’s helpful to create an environment that will trigger you to write. The first thing to consider is comfort. Journaling comes easier when we are comfortable. Discomfort is a distraction. The second thing – privacy. Interruption from others is also a distraction. I’ve heard some say they sit in their living room early in the morning before everyone else in the home gets up. I’ve heard others say they retreat to their bed, their safe place. During the warmer months, sitting somewhere outside, at a picnic table or under a tree, may be inspiring for many. I’ve even heard of the necessity to write in the car because it’s the only place to achieve privacy. What feels right for you? This choice will be a combination, or compromise, between what works for you and the practical aspects of your life. Work with what you’ve got.

What will you include in this space? Think of your five senses. What lighting best works for you? Will you burn incense? Will you surround yourself with items that give you positive, safe and secure feelings just by looking at them? Will you require complete silence? Or will you include music?

Several years ago, when my kids were little, often I would have to retreat to the bedroom when my husband was home to watch the kids so I could write poetry. To drown out any noise coming from the living room or kitchen where my loving brood was, I would put on a CD (ok, it was a cassette tape; we’re talking 25 years ago, to be honest) of the same music every time. It was a collection of songs by Zamfire. It just worked for me. The interesting thing is, now 25 years later, if I put Zamfire on, all I want to do is write poetry! Music can be a trigger for anything. Why not use it to trigger journaling? However, if silence is what you require, of course, choose silence instead.

Inspired by others

Before I write in the morning, with my first cup of coffee I often read. What do I read? Anything. Right now, I’m working on an Anne Rice novel because her writing style inspires and even influences me. When I write poetry (I have a small, side business called Poetry Lady. I write personalized poems for others to give as gifts), I read other people’s poetry to get my mind working in rhythm and rhyme. Often I’ll read my own poetry to remind myself of my specific style. If I’m planning on working on an article in progress, I will read other people’s articles. What would work for you? Whose written work inspires you?

Setting boundaries

None of the above tricks of the journaling trade will work for you unless you set boundaries with yourself and with others. Before doing this, you need to look inside and check out your beliefs. Do you believe that you deserve to take time to journal? Do you believe that journaling is helpful, rewarding and fun? Do you believe you have the right to tell others you need time, space and privacy to yourself – to write, or do anything else? If no, journaling for you will probably be associated with a level of guilt and stress and therefore eventually be put aside for other things you deem as more important and/or productive. You may not be able to deal with a sense of selfishness, which is merely an illusion coming from a conditioning in you from your past. It’s not real. Read this repeatedly…you have the right to your own time, space and privacy to journal. Everyone does.

Setting boundaries for journaling can sound like setting rules.

To self:

• I will journal each morning for 30 minutes

To others:

• Please, leave me alone for 30 minutes, until I’m done writing in my journal.
• Please, do not touch my journal. It is private.

I know you’ll find the right words for you to say, that work for you. Stay the hell outta my room works, too.

What else motivates you?

Of course, I’ve never stated I know everything. There are other tricks of motivation that will work for you. Ask yourself, what inspires my creativity? The real trick is to give yourself permission to roll with it.

What’s stopping you?

After reading this post, and you still are not inspired to write, consider the idea that you also have barriers to writing. Check out a previous post of mine, https://clwhelanwriting.wordpress.com/2016/09/01/the-power-of-the-written-word-barriers-to-journaling/ to examine any possible barriers you might have.

————————————–

We all can journal. We all can be good at it. We all can meet many needs by journaling. Recognizing what inspires us is very key to this success. We just need to figure out our personal inspirations non-judgmentally. Again, this statement fits – knowledge is power.

What is Journaling?

https://clwhelanwriting.wordpress.com/2016/08/30/the-power-of-the-written-word-introduction-to-the-journey/

Barriers to Journaling

https://clwhelanwriting.wordpress.com/2016/09/01/the-power-of-the-written-word-barriers-to-journaling/

AUTHOR BIO

HOME

The Power of the Written Word: Barriers To Journaling

“I have no time.”

This is what I’ve heard over the years; not just stated as a reason people don’t journal, but for several aspects of self-care. “I just don’t have the time to sit down and write, just write. It doesn’t accomplish anything. It’s not productive. And it’s selfish. I could be doing so many other more important things.” And so journaling, and often general self-care, once again is set on the back burner.

First you must believe!

I’ve come to realize that “I don’t have time,” is another way of saying “I don’t make time for it,” because it’s not deemed as priority. Think about all the things we do make time for: eating, sleeping, bathroom. Those are priority because we need them to survive. But now, make a list of all the daily activities in your life you make time for. What constitutes them as priority to you? Is self-care a priority for you? Do you take time to meet your own needs? Do you believe you deserve to take time for yourself to journal? Do you believe you have the right to heal? Do you believe you have the right to be happy? If so, you are more likely to either not have this barrier to journaling or are more likely to overcome it. However, if you believe your needs are not as important as everyone else’s and you spend more time doing for others, then yes this may be difficult for you. Do you take responsibility of other people’s reactions to your healing journey requiring time just for you? Then the illusion of guilt may be your biggest barrier to journaling.

After the Beliefs, Come the Boundaries

Once you believe you have the right to this type of “me time”, you’ll need to create your own space and time. This often requires the implementing of certain boundaries with yourself and with others.

Boundaries with yourself create the self-discipline to begin and follow through. Like a contract you create with yourself, it’s good to decide when you will journal, whether it be a specific time of day or a reaction to particular triggers like feeling specific feelings such as anger and stress or overwhelming thoughts come to mind that distract you from your goals. You could even set a deal with yourself that you will open your little notebook in your purse or glove box whenever an idea comes to mind.

You could decide to approach your journaling path in a go-with-the-flow manner as explained in the above paragraph, or you can figure out your circadian rhythm – your 24-hour clock – to discover when you are more likely to be motivated to write. For instance, you could decide that you feel more creative when you get up with your first coffee in the morning, before the day actually gets started. When you decide, is your boundary to yourself.

Boundaries with others create that free, uninterrupted time and space to journal. “Go play outside for a while. Mommy is going to write for about half an hour.” Or you might just say, “Hun, when I’m in my office and the door is closed, please let me have some time. I’ll be journaling.” Twenty years ago when I was doing some freelance writing, I always wrote lying on the floor, on my stomach, across the living room carpet. I know, strange. But sometimes we can’t really choose what motivates us. My family got into the habit of ignoring me when I had my notebook on the floor with me. Boundaries are more likely to be followed when we are consistent with them. So telling your family to leave you alone when your bedroom door is closed won’t work if, even once, you give in and give them attention (for something that is not an emergency that is) during your journaling time.

Writer’s Block

I heard once on a sitcom about Chicago journalists in the 80’s, one journalist saying to another, “You know what it means when you get writer’s block?” “What?” “It means you’re a writer.” That has always stuck with me. It’s like a mantra that envelopes a multitude of thought, and yet it comes down to one thing. Writers get writer’s block, period. End of story. So if it’s so much a part of the journey, consequently all who intend to write need to have their own bag ‘o tools for just such an occasion.

Traveling a journaling journey, you might also trip into such a trap. Let’s look at some of the reasons you might develop such a frustrating block.

1.   Believing journaling is a reflection on one’s writing abilities. There is a misunderstanding out there that you have to actually be a writer or at least have writing ability to do well in journaling. Actually, it’s to the contrary. It reminds me of the year I tried to learn how to play the piano by ear after years of learning by the rules of the Royal Conservatory. My brain was trained to keep me focused on the structured way of playing, the left-brained way, while playing by ear is more right-brained. It wasn’t until I watched an interview on Much Music with Larry Gowan and heard him say how different, and therefore difficult to learn music one way, and then the other, and that he himself had a lot of trouble with it. Journaling is very much the same. If you are a trained writer, you may find yourself focusing on the rules – the capitals, the periods, the commas, and the grammatical rules, etc. This hinders the flow of thought and emotion. No one is going to see this writing of yours. No one but you. So you will have to get out of your own way and tell yourself it doesn’t matter, when it comes to journaling, over and over until the critical, left-brained voice relaxes and takes a break. Just think about how people now text or tweet.

2.  Trust issues. If mom, or anyone else in your past has taken it upon themselves and snooped into your diary or other personal writing pieces, then this may stick with you and cause you to become very defensive and guarded about putting your private thoughts and feelings out, on paper or on a computer, for anyone to see if they so choose to try and find it and break that sacred boundary. I totally get this. And it can be quite an obstacle to the flow of thought and emotion. A couple of suggestions are: keep your journal with you, or in your car if that works, or maybe disguise your journal as a notebook with the title on the cover being something that will repel the potential snooper, or once you write you can destroy the evidence. It’s more important to write it down than to keep it, although keeping it to review and work with at a later date is very benefit. It’s just not mandatory. We learn to work with what we’ve got.

3.  A lack of belief in the value of journaling (waste of time? indicating loss of control?). We have been taught by the people around us and society in general that not being productive is a waste of time and lazy. But then there’s this skewed definition of what unproductive is. Mostly, you must be working towards making money or doing something for someone else. There must be a tangible outcome or solution to your task or activity. So, writing on a paper or in a Word document just for the sake of writing? Pointless. Meaningless. And yes – a waste of time. If we’ve heard this just once from someone in our outer world, there’s a good chance that this message becomes a recording in our heads, creating a core belief. And the result is no inspiration to write. The responsible inner adult voice says no.

Also, as we get older, we can get a little sensitive about the changes that can occur. One change we hear a lot about is our ability to keep a sharp mind. We may witness the gradual, cognitive downfall of our grandparents and parents and create a fear of this happening to us. So, when we consider journaling and see that one of the benefits of recording our agendas and making lists is helping our memory, we may want to avoid journaling, believing that we are giving in to the aging process. This is not necessarily the case. I’ve been journaling all my life and I feel that it has helped me at any age. Now that I am 52 years old, I don’t associate writing everything down to having memory issues. I am grateful for the assistance as I am like most people and have so much to do on a daily basis. Writing it down allows me to not have to keep it all straight in my head. It would keep me up at night. I have been keeping track in writing for this reason since I was in my 20’s, memory not included.

4.  Fear of outcomes. There might be a knowing that there is something stirring, just below the conscious level that is dying to surface and be released. There also might be a knowing that journaling would do the trick. Then there’s another side of us all that like to keep us in the dark and safe, the ego. I like to say to people that the amount of fear they have towards addressing what’s inside is directly proportional to how it affects their everyday lives. I also say whatever causes you fear, run straight for it.

Here are some exercises you can use to help you overcome the nasty writer’s block. If you don’t have a block, these exercises are kinda fun to use for warm ups to a writing or journaling session.

10 Tips to Overcoming Writer’s Block

1. Write about what you would write about if only you didn’t feel blocked.

2. Write about what you will – at some future point – actually write about. (You can start with a list and expand it with descriptions at a later date.)

3. Write about your ideal game plan for completing a writing project. (Maybe, “I’ll feel over the hump when I have….. “ follow with a list.)

4. Write the smallest possible segment of a larger piece. Instead of a whole story or even a paragraph, concentrate on an opening sentence or a 100-word description of someone’s hat. Working in miniature can often warm your creative juices to more writing.

5. Write a list of subjects you want to write about one of these days.

6. Write down what you think you can accomplish as your writing goal or project for today only. Don’t think beyond today, and force yourself to put down less than you think you can do.

7. Write down what you overhear other people say. Steal lines while you’re in a café or on a bus. You’ll be amazed at how lyrical some of it is. You can arrange all the lines into a poem or write some dialogue. At any rate, this tip will at least get you out of the house.

8. Write for 7 (only 7) minutes. Set a timer or an alarm and, when it rings, force yourself to stop. If you’re miserable in your writing, then you’re saved. If you’re ecstatic in your writing, so much the better. By having to quit you’ll be panting to get back soon.

9. Write in detail about every single thing you did yesterday. (Did you do any writing of any kind? Give yourself credit if you did.)

10.Write a log of every minute you spend each day on any writing. Start now. This is especially important if you are working towards a specific goal. Keeping a log might hurt at first, but think of it as giving yourself credit for every moment you spend writing when you could easily be doing something else.

Any barrier to writing begins with you. It’s all in your head. To put extra pressure on yourself or to tell yourself that there is something wrong can only increase it. Barriers to writing and journaling are normal, natural and happen all the time to even the most experienced writer and those who journal. The trick is to find the barrier breaker that works for you personally. No one else can tell you how to overcome your block. You, and only you, have the power.

The Power of the Written Word: Introduction to the Journey

 

AUTHOR BIO

HOME

The Benefits of Journaling

The Power of the Written Word – Part 2: The Benefits of Journaling

I am going to go right out on the limb right off and say, I think journaling is magical. I guess it depends on what your definition of “magic” is whether or not you would agree with me. Let’s begin this exploration into the magic that is personal writing by focusing on the benefits of organizing, clarifying, expressing and releasing thoughts and feelings to your inner and outer lives. The benefits come in different levels.

Many people are visual learners and I’ve come to use a couple illustrative tools to help people in my workshops and groups about journaling quite a bit to drive my points home. When talking about “organizing and clarifying” our thoughts and emotions, I take a blank piece of paper and print the alphabet from A to F, each letter on top of each other, on the paper so the participants can see it.

I ask them, “Ok, what is this?” Of course they answer in loose unison, “The alphabet to F.”

I then ask, “If you didn’t see me do that, would you be able to tell what this mess is?” pointing to the paper.

They all took a couple seconds to look it over again and one by one admitted that they probably wouldn’t have been able to tell what the pile of letters where.

“This is what your thoughts and feelings can look like in your head and heart. And if so, they are unrecognizable. And when we can’t recognize our thoughts and feelings within us, we can’t deal with them. We often won’t even know that we are feeling certain feelings, let only know why we are feeling them. Our mind and heart likes to protect us from certain internal turmoil so it creates a system of defenses to help us avoid and deny what upsets us in some way. Once we identify our thoughts and feelings, we can work with them and set them free by following up with what is needed.

I then pass out balloons. At this point, the group is giggling with both curiosity and nervousness.

I hold my own up. “Now, imagine this balloon is in your belly. And the air that goes in will be the energy that goes down into your being every time you, for a variety of personal reasons (adding with attempts to alleviate personal judgment), decide to suppress an emotion or thought that develops within you as a result of the events that cross your path.”

I then ask them to imagine their day, beginning with first thing in the morning. I come up with examples of occurrences that can happen along the day. I ask them to imagine themselves stuffing down their own reactions to “keep the peace”, to avoid “rocking the boat” and avoid having to deal with other people’s reactions. I ask them to blow up the balloon with one breath for each time they would choose to keep their own thoughts and feelings to themselves. Everyone’s balloon eventually grew to a large size.

While each participant holds their fully blown balloon in their pinched index finger and thumb, I demonstrate with me own blown up balloon, “Now, what happens when we have a full load of pressured, emotional energy within us and some innocent by-stander like one of our kids or the pet dog irritates us or even slightly inconveniences us with this tension within us building?” I take my two index fingers and thumbs and pull the pinched mouth of the balloon apart, stretching the opening. It lets out a high-pitched squeal. “We snap at them.”

The rest of the participants let out a couple squeals each with their balloons.

“This is not fair to others and can even get ourselves into a little trouble, but it’s our mind and body’s way of releasing some of the pressure. This is something we can avoid with journaling”

“And then – what we really want to avoid is – what happens when we can’t take the build-up of emotionally energetic pressure anymore and we let our stuff fly?” I instruct the group to let go of their balloons and I, too, let go. All the balloons take off into the air, looping around and shooting off in their own chosen directions. I led this exercise last Monday and I’m still finding balloons behind furniture in my group room!

The exercise is kinda fun and we laugh at the silliness, but it also drives home just a couple of things that can happen if we don’t find ways to express and release what we tend to let build up inside us. Journaling is one of the best ways, I believe.

Our interpersonal experience can greatly benefit from using the power of the written word to clarify and release our thoughts and emotions.

When confronting someone has highly negative consequences:

Do you have anyone in your life who has a short fuse and gets angry easily? Seems overly-sensitive? Do you know anyone who seems to be able to easily “make you feel” guilty for standing up for yourself? You might decide that the consequences for confronting that person are more harmful than the benefits of the confrontation. That’s up to you. However, it is still important for your own emotional well-being to get that energy out of you. Writing a letter to this person without any intension of giving it to them allows you to say, in writing, everything you’ve needed to say to that person, without the consequences. Reading it over doubles the helpful impact. And then it might be a good thing to destroy the evidence, depending on your living situation and privacy issues.

This exercise can help in both clarifying and releasing areas. The releasing part is apparent, I would think, but also writing down what’s going on inside you regarding a certain person without filtering and sensoring can bring out exactly how you think and feel about them, further than what you’re a consciously thinking about. These little tidbits can be essential to making associations to events from your past to your present situations that can heal the necessary wounds.

Magic.

To release emotions too intense before confronting:

Remember that mass balloon propulsion in my group room I mentioned earlier? This is what we want to avoid right? When we’ve swallowed and swallowed. When we’ve held in in, day after day, piling more and more on, finally confronting can look and sound like a vicious assault that will get you nowhere but the other person going into defense mode and even have their own blown up balloon inside that is dying to be let out and you get to be THEIR innocent by-stander.

Writing down all the nastiness inside you that is created by the negative thoughts and emotions that have been festering first will help to present your case, so to speak, more clearly and in control. Scribbling largely all the potent swear words that are just dying to escape and slap upside the head, will help prevent you from accusing and saying things you may regret and can’t take back. As a friend of mind said once, “Those words are like toothpaste, once they come out, you can put them back in the tube.”

To release thoughts and emotions unable to verbalize due to unavailability to recipient:

Sometimes it’s not that we don’t want to confront someone. Sometimes it’s because we can’t confront them. For example, it is common for someone to have their “stuff” come to the surface after a parent passes away. Suddenly childhood memories come up and connect with their partnering emotions and that balloon is instantly to its biggest capacity and will burst if not addressed in some way. And what needs to come out, needs to come out to the recently deceased. Now what?

I’ve held a few fire ceremonies over the years where the participants can write down anything on small pieces of paper, put them in a paper bag, say a few words, and then toss it all into the fire. It’s a surprisingly emotional exercise.

I’ve heard several stories of people slipping a letter to a loved one while they were resting comfortably in their coffin during the funeral.

Even years later, whenever needed, a letter to someone who is no longer around us for whatever reason, is highly therapeutic.

Mindfulness – “in the now”

More and more, as our years go on, we seem to need more help in keeping ourselves organized. We challenge ourselves continually with a daily juggle that would have both amazed us some 60 years ago and caused us to shake our heads.

I myself, find my day planner, which is a full size, spiral-bound, notebook I print the date and template of work areas and tasks on each page on the right side, while leaving the left side for online work tracking. The system I’ve set up has become like my administrative assistant. I don’t have to remember everything that has to be done each day because my assistant has that information ready for me at any moment of the day.

Releasing and organizing everything I have to do allows me to let all those things go and stay in the moment. This is where they say we are our most powerful – in the now.

Problem-solving steps:

I big part of feeling like we are in charge of our lives is having the ability to solve our own problems. Writing out our situation using the 5 problem-solving steps helps us to figure things out.

1. Identify the problem. Write it down and read it out loud.
2. Brainstorm all the possible solutions to the problem. At this point, don’t focus on whether or not each solution is good or not, just brainstorm all possibilities.
3. Now, consider the outcome to each of the solutions. Obviously, toss out any and all options that would land you in jail. Then drop those with severely, negative consequences and whittle down to the best solution.
4. Choose the best solution.
5. Create a plan to implement the chosen solution.

Imagine going through the whole process without writing it all down. Good luck with that!

Create your own reality!

If you believe in the Law of Attraction, then you might believe that written your goals and intentions down on paper creates focused thought in your mind that then gets sent out, in the Universe, and causes a request. The Universe then begins to coordinate to respond to your request. But I must warn, be careful what you wish for because you don’t get to have any control how to get your wishes granted. Given that, imagine how much power this gives you! This is the real magic! You get to create your own reality!!

Releasing anger:

Passive-aggression is caused by the inability to directly feel and express anger. For some reason, usually provided in our childhood, we get the message that it’s not ok to be or express anger. But since anger is a natural and human response to anything that can be considered injustice, we actually do get angry quite a bit. Whether we allow ourselves the experience or not is another story. Take a moment to look up the definition and dynamics of passive- aggressive behaviours. We all have them to some degree simply because very few of us have been raised in a way that allows us to be comfortable with our own anger and to give ourselves permission to directly and appropriately express and communicate it. So we let it leak out of us quietly like a slow, secretive air leak from the balloon. Journaling our anger releases that emotional pressure of anger and reduces the need to release it through the back door.

Do you remember?

One of the clearest and most common reasons, and therefore benefits, to write things down is assisting with our memory. Enough said. The barrier to this benefit is that people perceive the need to write things down as a sign of getting old or associating it with losing personal control. While I can see how one might it this way, I do want to include that I’ve been journaling all my life and writing everything down since I was in my early 30’s and I feel so much more in control of my life when things are all written down. I am a master list-maker. Hell, I make lists about lists!

Another benefit of writing things down is the sharing of information. You have a lot to offer others, whether you know it or not. There are people out just waiting to receive the magical points of info from you that could change their lives forever.

One of the most powerful and magical benefits to journaling is the multitude of opportunities to learn something about yourself and your world. Realizations can hit you like a lightning bolt and can change your life from that point on. Sometimes specific and purposeful journaling can be better than a therapist. Most inner child work can be accomplished through guided journaling exercises, along with a source of validation, anchoring and grounding from a real person from time to time.

All journaling taps into the right side of the brain and triggers creative muscles that often become dormant simply from living “the adult experience” based on traditional and let’s face it, boring and spirit-numbing expectations society provides us. Journaling enhances creative thinking beautifully, bringing that wonderful part of you alive, that part of you that might have been left behind by growing up!

While researching the benefits of journaling years ago while preparing for my classes at Wellspring Niagara, I came across a fabulous statement that just about says it all. “Journaling is effective when dealing with loss and grief, coping with life-threatening or chronic illness, recovery from addictions, eating disorders, trauma, repairing troubled marriages and family relationships, increasing communication skills, developing healthier self-image, getting better perspective on life, and clarifying life goals.

The Power of the Written Word – Part 1: Introduction to the Journey

AUTHOR BIO

HOME

What is journaling? How can it help me?

The Power of the Written Word: Introduction to the Journey

History has repeatedly proven the power of the written word over the great span of time, don’t ya think? From the Bible, to the Constitution, to the Charter of Rights, to all those life event certificates – birth, wedding, divorce, death – to the beloved ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas children’s book. If it’s deemed impressive in any way, it gets passed down from generation to generation. It is coveted in a safe deposit box. It is encased in glass covered shelving. In some cases of written literature, the human race has chosen to apply its core belief, ‘if it looks authentic on paper, it must be true’.

Over my lifetime, as I look back, I can see where there have been indicators, or signs, that at some point I became aware that the act of writing is powerful and is meant to be a significant part of my path. As a young child, sitting alone and still in my room, I vividly remember how I felt when I read; how I felt when I wrote a short story, spontaneously. Pure contentment.

As an 8-year-old girl living in the country in the ‘70’s, it felt like a treasure was being handed to me as my grandmother told me I could have my dad’s old school notebooks, the ones that had very little written in them with the rest of the pages blank, lined paper.

My first of many journals.

At Christmas time when I was 10, I got a diary “from Santa”; you know, one of the ones that are pretty and small with an even smaller key to lock it up from, say, younger brothers. I loved the locked privacy concept but those little pages left me having to write really tiny and what was exciting or devastating to unload into these pages had to be summarized. Not the easiest thing for me to do. I like to vent on paper. Sarcastically rant. Feel sorry for myself in ink. This comes from growing up in a family with one parent who is abundantly creative and another who emotionally punishes healthy communication.

We do what we have to, don’t why?

When my kids were little and I had an in-home daycare doing, I spent three years doing some freelance writing for literary mags across Canada and enjoying incredible gigs like writing theatre performance reviews for a local newspaper. Recently, I found an old literary magazine I was interviewed in from back then. And I quote, “She feels frustrated if she’s not writing. ‘I think that I have to do it all the time now, because it’s like an addiction.’” Hmm. Well, apparently, I detoxed got over that addiction when I went to college for Social Services shortly afterwards and, due to the requirement of learning on a full time basis, my left brain took over and I stopped writing. Counselling, group facilitation, and program coordination, translated to casenotes, reports, handouts and stats were my written word outlet.

And then it happened. The power swung back around to me.

I spent many years working the crisis line for the Niagara Region Sexual Assault Centre in my late ‘20’s to mid-‘30’s. During this time, I learned to teach people how to take their screaming and scrambled thoughts and feelings inside them and write them down, “isolating them all on paper”, as Cheri, my supervisor would say. The purpose was to release the emotional pressure from the body allowing for easier processing or for buried thoughts / memories to surface. The results were proving to be remarkable.

And then I remembered how it felt, way back when, to write.

And I vowed to myself that someday I would return to the world of the written word.

Again years later, when working with cancer patients at Wellspring Niagara, facilitating journaling classes, the feedback the participants gave me on the effectiveness of journaling in their fight to recover was absolutely amazing. I had heard more positive stories than sad ones. Family members were included in the classes. I heard how helpful specific techniques had become in keeping themselves stabilized so that they could continue to help their struggling loved ones.

While developing my classes for Wellspring, I did my research. Through the research, I discovered the wide and various range of benefits attached to journaling. I began to discover just how magical personal writing had the potential to be

Putting thoughts and feelings into words

I found, over the years, that the catchiest, simplest definition for journaling is, “Organizing and clarifying thoughts and feelings (managing); expressing and releasing thoughts and feelings (de-stressing).

When looking at journaling in such a way, we can include all forms of the written word as a manner of journaling:

• Dear Diary
• To do lists
• Day planner / organizer
• Dream journal
• Emails
• Texts
• Memos
• Travel journal
• Recording an experience
• Guided journaling
• Notes
• Letter-writing
• Poetry-writing
• Scrapbooking (illustrated journaling)
• Social media

Then I began studying the law of attraction and facilitated many vision board workshops. The law of attraction simply is the belief that what we think about, we bring about. We create our own reality, they say, by thinking what we think and feeling what we feel. And there are techniques we can use to strengthen and focus this powerful means of achieving. One way is by writing down our thoughts and feelings in a positive and inspirational way, allowing ourselves the focus on what is really going on inside of us and what we really want. We can manifest so much just by purposefully writing down our needs and desires, believing we deserve to have them and imagining how it would feel to have them. It’s a wonderful thing! Writing out what we want is like putting in a request, an order, in to the universe. But I warn through experience, be careful what you wish for, for you have no control on how the order is filled.

It is not simply putting pen to paper, oh by far! But, it is not a matter of needing to be a great writer either. Nope, not at all. You can be the worst writer ever and this will still be powerful for you. Like our recent abandonment of grammatical rules applied in texting, emailing and Facebook messaging, periods, capitals, commas, and spelling rarely matters in journaling. We will be asking the left brain to all but take a hike. No rules. Rules hinder the process, as in many creative areas and adventures in life.

Also by Christine Whelan:

The Benefits of Journaling

The Barriers of Journaling

Ways to Motivate

BIO

HOME