If you do want to write in your journal on a regular basis and truly create the journaling habit, here are a few ideas to help you keep writing consistently: Make your journal writing more upbeat Begin with several minutes of a meditation or a prayer. You can write just for the occasion or create something spontaneously each time. People use journal writing in different ways for a variety of reasons. One person might journal to heal a broken heart writing an unsent letter sharing what they wish they’d said to that person. Someone else might journal to celebrate their accomplishments and make a list of their recent successes in their journal.

Select some music that creates a sense of serenity. Play it for five minutes, focusing on simply listening to the music. Consider closing your eyes. Do not read your mail or straighten out your desk! You may want to have just one piece of music you use each time as your centering pre-writing ritual. Or choose three or four pieces you love for some variety. We also have our Journal Writing Facebook group. Connect with fellow journal writers, receive journal writing tips and prompts to support you on your unique journal writing journey. Everyone is welcome! Treat Yourself to a Journal Writing Retreat As a Registered Social Worker and Certified Co-Active Life Coach, I have been immersed in human transformation, growth, change and wellness for the past 30 years. I’ve learned many different tools and techniques for self-care, healing and growth through my studies and first-hand experience. Journaling is my go to practice that helps me live an intentional, healthy and happy life. And it has helped many people to do the same! Including you, perhaps?This doesn’t have to be at the same hour each day, but it’s helpful if it’s at the same time in your daily routine. For example half an hour before bed, which will work whether you go to bed at 10pm or at midnight. I arrived at the youth centre that morning feeling full of trepidation. There was a gang of 12 helpers including me and each pair had been allocated a particular age group. Mine was the 10 to 11 year olds. Even with the planning meeting I had attended the week before, I worried about whether I was up to the task. Why hadn't I read through the copious lesson plans we were given beforehand? And wasn't the average 10-year-old more interested in the latest Play Station game than making things with paper and glue?

I often facilitate timed journal writing exercises in workshops and retreats that I offer. It’s a core part of my Transformational Writing for Wellness Salon, a 6 week group coaching program that takes people into the heart and art of transformational journaling. The particular highlight for me was the final rendition of ''He's got the whole world in his hands'' in the closing part of the day. The children knew the words and actions off by heart and sang so loudly it was almost enough to bring the roof down. It's difficult to explain those moments; only that the body tingles with the pleasure of having witnessed something so magical. You can use journal writing to get to know yourself better, solve problems, make life decisions, improve your health and increase feelings of gratitude and joy. Journaling can also help you heal from stressful life circumstances, deal with grief and loss, or other life transitions. Or just journal for the pure love it! There are many evidence-based benefits of journal writing from over 30 years of research in the expressive writing field. Yes, journal writing is a field of work! Improve your writing. Generally, the more you write, the better a writer you become. Writing regularly makes writing easier, and it helps you develop your own writing voice. Even if your journal is just for yourself and it doesn't matter how "good" it is, journaling builds muscles that you can use for other kinds of writing. And the fact that it is, generally, for your eyes only makes your journal an ideal laboratory for experimenting with new styles, techniques, and subject matter, increasing your range as a writer.Your journal is also a place to collect ideas and material for creative writing. All of the sights, sounds, tastes, and feelings you record, the overheard pieces of conversation, the people you were watching in the street -- all of these can be recycled in stories and poems. These observed details will give your creative writing the texture of reality.

How to Journal – Creating Writing Rituals

Six months ago I made a rash promise. The leader of the youth club in our village rang me in March saying, ''We're thinking of running a children's playscheme for a day in October half-term. Would you be prepared to help?'' My response was ''Sure, why not?'' In truth I was a little flattered to be asked, even though working as a care assistant with old people hardly qualified me for the role. Still, I duly put the date in my diary and of course I forgot all about it. I don't know if you've noticed this but time has a habit of speeding along faster than a police car chasing a robber and, before I knew it, the day was dawning. You can write about anything you want to write about. For example write about your day including your thoughts, feelings, problems, challenges, upsets, joys, successes and dreams. Here are some journaling prompts to help you get started: Sharpen your senses. Writing about your experience can make you a better observer. When we know we're going to write about something, we pay a different kind of attention to it. Keeping a journal gets you in the habit of noticing the details of your daily life. The result is like a heightening of the senses, as you observe the world with greater richness and complexity. Review the good things that have happened in your day—your attitude, your progress toward a goal, a minor victory, even a two-minute interaction with someone that went well.