A Journaling Exercise or Prompt Link or Resource

Quotes help inspire us to journal.

Take a look at this site for a lifetime of journaling inspiration:

http://www.brainyquote.com/

JOURNALING TEMPLATE, SUMMARIES, AND REVIEW FOR YOUR JOURNALING

JOURNALING TEMPLATE, SUMMARIES, AND REVIEW FOR YOUR JOURNALING

Written December 19, 2014, Friday, 851 a.m.

------------

JOURNALING QUOTE

Your journal is a looking glass. It helps you search for the things you cannot easily see and it helps you to find treasures. Your journal helps you see beyond the surface.

---

THE BIGGEST MISTAKES OF JOURNALING

The biggest mistakes we make with our journaling are:

1 Not journaling every day.

2 Not making summaries of our journaling.

3 Not reviewing our journaling.

4 Failing to get out journals digitized and saved permanently on the Cloud or over the Internet.

Let's look at numbers two and three now. 

--- 

JOURNALING TEMPLATE

Make sure to do a journaling template for the time-frame you are looking at, whether it is daily, weekly, quarterly, 6 months, 1 year, 2 years, 5 years, 10 years, 25 years, or lifetime.

---

SUMMARIES

Journaling is the most rewarding thing we can do with and for our lives. Therefore, I do not know about you, but with knowing this, I want to see what I can do to get the most out of my journaling. Summaries is one way to accomplish this endeavor.  

First, do a journaling template for the time period you are looking at and are doing. 

DAILY SUMMARIES: At the end of your day, every day, write a summary of your day, or do it for the previous day the next morning. Your summary can be as long as you want or as short as you want. I usually try for one sentence and then one word. Look at ALL of your journaling for the time-frame and remember what all you wrote before you write your summary in your journal. 

WEEKLY SUMMARIES: At the end of your week, every week, write a summary of your week in one sentence and/or one word. Look at ALL of your journaling for the time-frame and remember what all you wrote before you write your summary i your journal. 

OTHER SUMMARIES: Do the same with monthly, quarterly, every 6 months, yearly, every 2 years, every five years, every decade, every 25 years, and for your life (do the life summary at least once a year). Look at ALL of your journaling for the time-frame and remember what all you wrote before you write your summary in your journal. 

THE BARE MINIMUM: Now, let's be honest here. There will be times we just can't do our summaries, for whatever reason, or just don't want to do so. Consequently, what should we do at a bare minimum? Weekly and Monthly Summaries is the answer.

Note I did not say daily or any other for that matter.

If we get no other summaries done, it's okay, since we will have gotten the most important summaries done. However, as you have the opportunity, try to then do the quarterly then yearly summaries. Then, do the daily, decades, etc. 

---

REVIEW

Another useful way to get the most out of journaling is through review. More to the point, a streamlined review is the most helpful. 

A review is different than a summary. However, doing a summary is what we do first. 

A review is pondering/thinking, analyzing, pouring through, trying to remember every detail. It's trying to figure out what worked, what didn't, what was learned, seeing our changed perspective, and how our lives were touched by what we journaled about or what we journaled. As we review, we ask ourselves questions and we journal those questions and our answers.

What does a review look like? And, how often should we do them? I will answer those questions in a moment. For now, let's look at a few more steps we need to do before we do the review.

FIRST: Do a journaling template for the time period.

SECOND: Do a summary of the time period.

THIRD:: Answer these questions with every review:

What jumped out at you the most about your journaling and why?

What were your biggest blessings (list at least three)?

What memories do you want to remember? Why? (List at least three and be thorough.)

What did you learn?

FORTH: Pick at least three to answer--and you can pick a different three with each review:

What was a challenge?

What was your favorite moment and why?

How did your journaling transform you?

What do you now realize?

List more blessings from that time. 

What was a moment of sunshine or bright spot?

What will you cherish and treasure?

List more memories from that time. 

How have you grown from this time, experience, and journaling?

What repeating patterns do you see?

What do you want to share with others?

What was the most surprising to you?

What didn't surprise you? 

What do you want to do more of from this time?

What do you want to do less of from this time?

How was your faith during this time?

How were your relationships as this time?

What happened at home during this time?

What did God say to you?

What did you say to God? 

What did you pray?

---

THE MINIMUMS

Make sure to do a journaling template at least for each week and each month.

Make sure to do a journaling summary at least for each week and each month.

Make sure to do a journaling review at least for each week and each month.

---

END OF YEAR JOURNALING

Do this every single year without fail. Start looking at this around Thanksgiving and complete by December 31.

Do:

1 Journaling template for the year. 

2 Journaling summary for the year. 

3 Journaling review for the year. 

--- 

If you do those things, you will get a great deal more out of your journaling and it will enrich your life. 

Now, go ahead. It's your turn. Tag! You're it.

--------------

DAILY JOURNALING TEMPLATE AND PROMPT

DAILY JOURNALING TEMPLATE AND PROMPT

Written December 19, 2014, Friday, 751 a.m.

I think this is my favorite of the daily journaling templates I have created and used. I hope you will find it helpful and inspirational as well. 

I use it for my day, week, month, quarter, half year, year, two year, five year, decade, twenty-five year, and life review journaling. 

Every day, I count my blessings. It is the most important, beneficial, life-transforming parts of this template. I suggest you do the same. Just a journaling tip.

Feel free to copy and paste this into your journal. Share it as well. Just please attach my credit information below.
---

HOW TO USE THIS TEMPLATE

First, use only one word (or one sentence) and list three for each item. Do at least seven items per day. So, you will have at least a total of twenty-one. 

Do that at the very least each day, week, month, etc. Then, as time allows, do the following:

Then, find three of what you journaled that jumped out at you the most.

Then, do at least one ten minute SOC (Stream of Consciousness) Journaling for each of those three. 

Then, from those, find what jumped out at you most and so another ten minute SOC. Repeat several more times from material from your latest SOC.
---

DAILY JOURNALING TEMPLATE AND PROMPT

Instructions: Do at least seven of these per day, preferably more though, weekly, do all.

Today I... 

Praying 

Bible-ing

Blessings/ Thanking

Learning

Remembering

Planning

Reading

Listening

Eating

Drinking

Wearing

Feeling

Weather-ing

Doing

Dreaming/Wishing/Hoping

Wanting

Needing

Thinking

Enjoying

Seeing/Watching/Observing

Hearing/Listening

Smelling

Tasting

Touching

Saying 

Photographing

Texting

Emailing

Exercising

Forgetting

Fixing

Eliminating

Focusing

Cherishing

Loving

(Template credit: Stacy Duplease and Remembering Your Present, LLC 2014.)

---------------

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. 

Vacation: A Break From Journaling: Personal 40 and Journaling Stuff

Vacation: A Break From Journaling: Personal 40 and Journaling Stuff

August 14, 2014, Thursday, 913 a.m. 

There is a blessing of taking a vacation from everything, including journaling. I talked about this in my last blog post. There are many blessings actually. God made a Sabbath day for a reason. If we were to really take one day off a week, we would not need to take several vacations per year. So, if we don't take one day off a week as a vacation or Sabbath, then we really need to take at least one long vacation each year to recharge and relax so we can gain a new perspective.

I took a vacation, and still am, but am adding journaling back in so I can have a journaling retreat at this point as well, where I focus on journaling when I am not doing something or seeing something else. And, as I type this paragraph, I realize how many hours of personal journaling I need to do as well as journaling for my two blog post series, which will become books. I will call them JOURNALING STUFF and 40 for short for now on. 

On this vacation, I've seen the beauty and wonder of this word, of the USA, of history, of critters/animals, of vegetation and flowers, of spending time with a loved one as you make new memories together. God has made a beautiful world. 

Images flash through my mind like a fast slideshow in my mind. 

Memories.

The beauty all around.

Blessings in abundance.

Taking a vacation from my journaling started to take its toll, but I knew in taking a break, I would appreciate it all the more--and I sure do. (Blessing!) 

Vacationing from even my journal was precisely what I thoroughly needed. I didn't realize how much until I made the time.

VACATION PHOTOS

I think I took enough pictures for this journaling blog to last for two to three years (no kidding). Everywhere B and I went, I had journaling pictures in mind. After all, photos are a journal in and of themselves. Then, also assign additional meaning by journaling about them is a wonderful journaling prompt. Then, add the photos to a blog about journaling and let the photo add depth to the words adds another journaling prompt. Each photo has multiple blessings, use and purpose, and memories. My vacation photos are my travel journal, but they also offer so much more for my world of journaling. (Oh, how I hope it his makes sense.)

Hence, I took over three thousand photos. I guess that's closer to a decade of journaling photos. Some of which you will never see, and some you will. Some photos are private and are mine. 

I take photos of my everyday life and go even crazier while on vacation. (All I can say is thank God for the Cloud.) The purpose of each photo is to capture a memory. 

THE IMPORTANCE OF JOURNALING IN MY LIFE

Vacation has helped me to see how much my journaling is part of my life and who I am. I have always known this, and have known it deeply, but this vacation has let me know even more so. After all, this is the first vacation I've taken in the last thirteen years I haven't journaled throughout. I am now, but now is different.

I took seven days off from journaling. It was intentional and purposeful (redundant to say both words, yes, but were used to make a point). Seven full days.

I wanted to take some time just to be. 

This time has expanded my perspective of journaling and I can now write several new blog posts about journaling I would not have if not for this vacation. 

I've always known the importance of journaling, and how it was a way of life, but I did not realize how true this was. Let me say it again: Journaling is a way of life. It is how to live life to its fullest. Journaling helps us to enjoy life as we see and experience the sun and the clouds. 

Journaling is a way of life.

Journaling is a legacy, sure. But, far more importantly, it's a way of life. 

Journaling is how to live life. It's a way to help us enjoy the life we have, even the clouds and storm, not just the sunshine. 

Journaling helps us see there is far more to life than this one moment. This one moment does not define the totality of our lives. 

Journaling is living every moment as if it was sacred and as if it was a blessing.

Journaling is a way of life.

BLESSING OF TURNING FORTY

My birthday is a month from yesterday. I am turning forty. 

Tears well up in my eyes as I fight the waterfall effect and I cannot help but think how I want to capture the blessings of my life in the past, in the present, and in the future. I want to capture it on the page, and thoroughly explore, how every moment has, is, and will make me who I am, which is how God has chosen to show Himself to the world through me (which is His purpose for me and is His glory).

I want to capture every moment and all of the blessings which have come from each. And, this takes my journaling. I want to be intentional about counting every blessing in my life.

JOURNALING STUFF: A JOURNALING PROMPT

What's grabbed you from this blog post? 

How important is journaling?

How important do you want journaling to be in your life?

#Journal #Journaling #JournalingStuff #BlessingOfTurningForty#Turning Forty #Diary #PersonalJournal

(Image credit: Stacy Duplease and Remembering Your Present, LLC August 2014.  Norfolk Botanical Garden.)

What is Journaling Exactly? How Would You Define it?

What is Journaling Exactly? How Would You Define it? 

(A Journal How-To: 2014-08-06 08:19:40)

JOURNALING IS...

I've said before how the simplest definition of journaling is this:

Capturing your life on the page.

Great. Sounds good. Right? Right. But, what does this really mean? What does journaling really mean and how do you put it into practice?

Overall, the definition of capturing your life on the page is the best definition for journaling. Iv'e seen several out there, but this is best. However, there are nuances and clarifies to help us understand what journaling really means. 

Let's be honest, though. Journaling will mean something different to everyone you ask. It also depends on when you ask them. If I were to write a definition for journaling every single day for the rest of my life, I think I would get a new definition every single day.

Why is this? Is it because journaling is complicated? Actually, the answer is journaling is the opposite of complicated. It's easy. Journaling is fluid. It's what you need it to be when you approach the page. But, as you approach the page of your journal, and write a journal entry, your whole goal is to capture your life on the page--whether it is a slice, a chunk, or a crumb. 

Today, journaling means to me: Capturing my life on the page. It always means this. But, there might be a little more to that definition at times more than others. Today is one of those days. Journaling to me today is venting. It's throwing up on the page. It's getting it out on the page and purging myself of yuckiness. It's taking it out on my journal so I don't have to take it out on someone ele. It's venting so I deal with what's bugging me, rather than allowing it to deal with me. Journaling to me right now is working through a problem so I can move on and forget about it. Hence, journaling is healing. It's helping me to find perspective. It's helping me let go and get re-focused. It's putting my heart out on paper and then finding the logic of the situation. It's biting and snapping at my journal so I don't do that with someone else. It's crying there so I don't have to cry out loud and in real life. It's helping me cope with a dog with dementia--who, by the way, as I'm tying this is dealing with another episode. (Poor guy.)

Sigh. My heart is breaking once again. This is what I opened my day with--journaling about Zack and his dementia. I feel so gosh darn helpless. I'm trying to sit at my PC to journal on Penzu and then turn this into a blog post. Will I have to move to the sofa so he can calm again? Or, will we be able to get him through it from here? 

Today, journaling also means this to me: Remembering. It's remembering my present, so I can live the most intentional and purposeful life today. It's remembering where I've come, so I can repeat the same stuff or learn from what I didn't do so well. Journaling is also remembering where I am headed, so I can get there well. 

Journaling to me today is also meeting with God.

Journaling is counting my blessings--in spite of the monster of dementia or the other storms which may blow in my life. 

Journaling is finding proper perspective. 

(Oh, thank God! Zack just calmed down. To You be the glory, Lord.)

Journaling is finding relief from the tough stuff of life.

Journaling is getting to know myself, and God, in a deeper and better way. It's also getting myself down on the page so I can turn to others. Journaling is also sharing joy on the page and is learning life's lessons on the page and applying them. Journaling is putting me thoughts, emotions, dreams/goals to the page. It's living my life of faith, preserving family memories, and is collecting a legacy to leave with others. In my journal, I am real and authentic. In journaling, I reflect and analyze my life--and my past journaling entries. 

Here's a definition of a journal from a dictionary: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/journal. The truth of the matter is a journal, and journaling, is so much more than this definition. 

The truth is you need to find your own definition of journaling--today--knowing it can change throughout the day even today. The definition of journaling is whatever works at that moment for you to capture your life on the page and live a better, deeper, more joyful life. Again, the definition of journaling is fluid. Do what works for you at the time you journal. that's journaling. 

The beauty about journaling is there is no wrong way or wrong definition. It's what works at the time. And, that's that. 

Journaling Stuff: A How-To (2014-08-05 13:34:32 Aug. 05, Tues.)

THE FIRST OF THE NEVERS OF JOURNALING

NEVER: Never delete, tear up, or throw away any journaling you do. Never, ever, ever. This is strictly forbidden. (I'm not kidding.)

If you want to feel the powerful rush or freeing nature of tearing it up and throwing it away, either print out a copy or use blank pages to represent you wrote and then rip those to shreds, but not your original content.

Why not? Why is this forbidden? 

There are a few of reasons:

1.The whole idea of journaling is to capture your ENTIRE life on the page--not just bits and pieces. It's to deal with your life as a whole and not in pieces and parts. 

2. You want to track where you are, were/have been, and where you are going. If you delete portions of your life because it feels good at the moment, you miss important segments of your life. The fact is, if you want to tear up, delete, or avoid something in your life, it's far more imperative that you deal with it and address it head-on, full-out, and not partially. Running from or tearing something up is not dealing with something in a healthy way. It's avoiding dealing with it and getting true healing and closure from it. 

3. You want to look at the entirety of your life so you can track your progress, anything that repeats itself, how you grow, how you falter, your cycles of life, etc. You want to be able to look back at it later and reflect on it and analyse how it's brought you to where you are today. 

4. If you want to delete something because it isn't very good, that in itself is good. Don't delete it. Keep it. Try again. Keep all of your not-so good journal entries. It, again, will help you see your progression later on in life as you look back.

5. Your journal doesn't have to be perfect. You don't even have to use capital letters or punctuation or complete sentences. It's okay for your journal to not be pretty, but be messy. Again, you want to see where you've been. Don't get rid of anything. 

So, keep it all. Never, ever get rid of any of your journaling. 

A NOTE ABOUT "JOURNALING STUFF": IT'S ALL-INCLUSIVE

The full title of this blog post series, book, and resource is:

JOURNALING STUFF:

AN ENORMOUS RESOURCE ON HOW TO JOURNAL 2015 EDITION

From 2010 to July 01, 2014, I wrote what I call a journaling encyclopedia. I will include that at the back of "JOURNALING STUFF" so that you have everything I've written on the subject of journaling, memoir, and life story. 

As to why I'm calling it "STUFF" is because 'stuff' has several meanings and definitions. I'm using most, if not all of the definitions, in regard to journaling and how to journal. Check out the definitions here: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stuff

I want to take the pressure off and make it an easy connotation in regards to journaling. Journaling stuff sounds a lot less formal or complicated than journaling encyclopedia or dictionary. (That's simply too stuffy.) Hence, it's stuff. I know. Everyone says not to use the word stuff. It ins't formal. It's not a good word to use. Right? I'm sure you have heard that said about the word, 'stuff.'

I would have to agree--unless you know the definition of stuff and apply it accordingly. When you know the true definition of a word, and use it with the meaning in mind, you use it correctly and use the best word intended for what you're trying to convey. JOURNALING STUFF is about the stuff of journaling, it's about the miscellany of journaling, it's about my expertise in journaling, it's giving you the materials and resoruces you need to journal, etc. 

ANOTHER NOTE: Also, when I assemble the "JOURNALING STUFF" material, and put in into book form, I will put it in date order. The journaling encyclopedia at the back of the book is in alphabetical order. 

THE BOOK VERSION OF "JOURNALING STUFF"

Everything in the first part of the book, "JOURNALING STUFF," you will be able to read on this blog for free. In fact, you'll get the progression of this resource as you read this blog. However, when I put it into book form and publish it as a paper book and as an e-book, I will edit it and add even more material. After all, why pay for something if you can get it all ehre on this blog? There are over 335 pages of additional material from the encyclopedia as well. So, I'm making sure it's worth every penny you have to pay in the published version of this book. 

That being said, if you don't want to pay the money, you can still get a great deal out of how to journal information from this blog. In fact, it'll be more than adequate. So, you'll receive no pressure from me to buy the resource of JOURNALING STUFF.