Why Should You Journal?

Why Should You Journal? 

2014-08-06 08:56:34

Why should you journal? This is when I wish I can download my thoughts into a pdf file and send it to you. Words cannot do journaling justice. Only experiencing journaling, and doing it, can help bring it to light and to life. Only then can you start to grasp the fullness of the wonder of journaling. 

I've said my personal main and simple definition of journaling is to capture your life on the page. I still stand by this definition and always will. 

But, now, there is the question of journal--why? Why should I (you) want to journal or even journal in the first place? What is the purpose? Is it worth my time and resources, never mind effort? (Also, isn't it boring?) These are the questions you may wonder. 

I love Google's search engine. I searched that question, just for you, and here is the link: https://www.google.com/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&espv=2&es_th=1&ie=UTF-8#q=why%20should%20you%20journal%3F. Why should you journal? The search came up with 290,000,000 results. (Feel free to look at that link.) 

I think this is one of the better links: http://kaizenjournaling.com/77-reasons-why-you-should-keep-a-journal/. Also, this blog and website is a really good one on journaling, so check it out. 

I will share my own explanation(s) as to why we should journal here as well in this journal entry and blog post. However, I will be honest with you. I could spend every day for the rest of my life describing why a person should journal--and would give a different reason each day. Journaling is fluid and takes on new meaning each moment, each word, each sentence, each journal entry, each day, each week, each month, each year. Also, why you journal is fluid as well.

Let me be honest here. I will take several blog posts to answer this question, but let me deal with what I think is the important reason in this blog post. 

EVERYONE SHOULD JOURNAL

Let me start by saying this: I believe wholeheartedly and without reservation that everyone, without fail, should journal. 

WHY SHOULD EVERYONE JOURNAL?: JOURNALING FORCES US TO DEAL WITH OUR STUFF

One of the main reasons why everyone should journal is this:

Journaling forces us to deal with our stuff. 

Re-read that last sentence several times. (I'm not kidding. Let that sentence really sink in--and do so fully.) 

Journaling makes us look within, at our lives, at our thoughts, at our behaviors, at our feelings, at our choices, at our circumstances, at our challenges, at our dreams and goals, and... well, everything and at everyone. We analyze and evaluate all of it and see if things could improve. And, if they could improve, how should we go about it. 

That is, if we're journaling right (correctly). 

How do we journal right and correctly? We get it all down on the page. We write it all down. As we work on writing it all down, more will pop up we didn't even realize. Through realizing it, through writing it down, through thinking about it, through analyzing it and evaluating it, we deal with it. 

If everyone was to do this daily, and even throughout their day, there would be no more need for therapists, counselors, or psychiatrists. Why? We'd be dealing with our stuff. 

A simple rule of thumb is: It's easier to deal with our stuff the moment it pops up than days, weeks, months, or even years later. It's best to deal with it while its an anthill and isn't a mountain. After all, that's what happens when we don't deal with our stuff. Our stuff grows. What was ugly and questionable once is now worse than any garbage dump or sewer. It makes any outhouse look pristine. 

Why journal? So we can identify our stuff the moment it pops up and deal with it then and there so we don't have to years later. Also, if it's years later, how many people have been impacted by our stuff? (Just saying. How fair is that?) If we deal with our stuff the moment it pops up, none to just a couple are impacted by it. If we wait years, dozens are impacted by it. We can't move on until we deal with our stuff--and how can we expect to ever experience real joy until we do? 

Why journal? So you can deal with your stuff today, not tomorrow--and so you can deal with it and your stuff doesn't deal with you.

That's reason number one as to why you/we should journal.