9 ways to journal for joy (and money!)
Monday, March 12, 2007 - posted by hellomynameisscott at 6:30 AM
“Writing is the basis of all wealth.”Those words were first taught to me by my friend/mentor, Jeffrey Gitomer.
And while you can take that statement into many directions, today our focus will be on journaling.
Journaling is your friend.
Journaling is your resource.
Journaling is your ticket to success.
According to a 2007 report from QuintCareers, journaling possesses near-unlimited power. It can lead to:
o Increased awareness, sharper focus, creative problem-solving, broader perspective, active thinking, brainstorming, deeper levels of analysis, stronger sense of self, generation of new ideas, clearing of the mind…
o Enhanced self-confidence, development of action plans, clarity of thought, greater honesty, self-paced learning, self-expression, integration of ideas, and perspectives, unknown needs/wants…
o Release of fears/tensions, awakening of inner-self, self-growth, improved communications skills and better physical and mental health.
Still think journaling is hokey?
Still think only writers and teenage girls do it?
Wrong. Even Dr. Robert Collins, Psychologist at the Free Thought Association, agrees. “People who journal have fewer physiological illnesses. Recording their experiences causes the patient to become exposed to what's going on and to examine it in a more rational way at a time when the hot thoughts are not overwhelming.”
Sweet.
But it’s not just about illness. It’s about wellness, too.
Journaling has the potential to impact many areas of your personal and professional life. The following list offers nine types of journals you can use to write your way to success.
1. Morning Writings. As soon as you wake up, dump out everything you possibly can possibly for three pages. Clear you mind. Liberate yourself from those (mostly negative) thoughts. Once you’ve cleared your mind of all the crap, let the floodgates open and make way for the good stuff. (I just started doing this every morning, thanks to Julia Cameron.)
2. WOM Journal. Every time you or your company has a Word of Mouth Moment – either in person or online – document it. Look for trends among your actions that caused those moments. Repeat often for best results. (Thank you, Andy Sernovitz.)
3. Thanks Log. Every morning write a list (even if it’s just a few items) of things you’re thankful for. You will smile. You will feel great. You will set the stage for your positive attitude. What’s more, by giving thanks for the great stuff that happens to you, you immediately begin to attract more of that same stuff. Because The Law of Attraction works. Period.
4. HVA Journal. That stands for “Highly Valuable Activities.” This might be one of the best journals you’ll ever keep. What you declare as a HVA is up to you. It could be reading for an hour, working out, going to church, making 20 calls, whatever.
If you practice three HVA’s per day, that’s about 1100 per year. How can you NOT be successful? (Thanks, Marc LeBlanc)
5. Victory Log. Small victories build momentum. Small victories validate self-assurance. They pave the way for later success, enable you to take bolder action and stretch your boundaries one mile at a time.
You MUST write them down. From something as small as saying no to taking on a new project, to winning a charity 5K; write your victories down. Because when keep track, you keep succeeding.
6. Learning Log. That which goes unrecorded goes unmemorable. So, since you’re always learning new stuff every day, I suggest you keep a Learn Journal. You don’t have to fill it out every day. But refer to it a few times a week to document all the cool stuff you learned: lessons, ideas, mistakes made, numbers, answers, epiphanies, books and the like. Anything you didn’t know before. Write it down. After a month you’ll be amazed how much you’ve learned.
7. NO Journal. For many people, saying no is difficult. From small items like whether or not to meet someone for dinner; to big issues like whether or not to make a golf trip to Florida; more no’s can’t hurt.
Every few days, think back to all the instances in which you said no. Then jot them down. Trust me, it feels great. Liberating. Like you’re in control. Like you call the shots. (NOTE: don’t try to be funny by saying no to keeping a No Journal. That doesn’t count. Nice try, though.)
8. Dream Log. Dreams are powerful windows into the subconscious mind. If you choose to explore the meanings behind them, keeping a Dream Log is essential.
According to the book The Einstein Factor, the three keys to dream logging are: (1) Place the dream log and pen next to your bed before you go to sleep, (2) Start writing the moment you wake up, and (3) Evaluate it regularly.
And if you are afraid to keep a dream log for fear of what you might discover about yourself, then that’s exactly what you need to do it.
9. Luck Journal. Luck isn’t a function of chance, coincidence, serendipity, fate, destiny or divine intervention. It’s science. And it works. You can actually become the luckiest person you know. All it takes is three steps:
First, affirmation. Every morning spend at least 15 minutes preparing yourself mentally for the day. Try saying to yourself, “Today, great things are going to happen to me. I’m going to meet cool, new interesting people. I’m going to have fun and have awesome experiences that will enrich my life.”
Second, documentation. Every time something “lucky” happens to you, write it down in your Luck Journal.
Finally, evaluation. Go back and look for patterns. Figure out what rock caused which ripple. Repeat daily and you will no doubt see an increase in your luck. And if you don’t believe me, ask anyone who considers himself to be “lucky.” You can bet he’s been doing stuff like this for years.
LET ME ASK YA THIS...
What journals do you keep?
LET ME SUGGEST THIS...
Tell us about them here!
* * * *
Scott Ginsberg
Author/Speaker/That Guy with the Nametag
www.hellomynameisscott.com
add to del.icio.us * digg it! * email this post
Labels: melon motivating, writing is the basis of all wealth
What a great idea! I'm debating if I should keep my diaries in a text format on my computer or if I should keep them in my paper notepad that I carry around everywhere with me.
Hmmm, maybe i'll try both and see which one ends up sticking the best.
Actually in evangelical churches, there's another type of journal that many Christians keep. It's a prayer journal where it's where you pray to God, but instead you write it all down. That way it keeps your prayers really focused. When praying out loud, sometimes it's easy to get distracted by other things. But the writing keeps you focused. Plus, you get a real honest journal that cuts to the truth right away.
I'm slotting this journaling idea as a post for my blog sometime next week. I'll link to your post here, Scott. You did an excellent job of compiling all these different types of journals. People should really know about this.
it is great to journal. you can look back on your progress or even laugh at some of the things that you blew out of proportion.
keeping a journal helps you get out things that are in your head and it keeps you real and humble.
Yey, a Morning Pages friend! As I was first reading this I was wondering if you'd read The Artist's Way....In addition to your v. inspired suggestions, I keep quotes, comics, pictures in my journal. Also, borrowing from Dave Dobson, starting a sentence with "I wonder what would happen if...." opens up many possibilities.... THANKS, Nametag Guy. :-) H.
Scott,
Thanks for the 9 journaling types.
I have begun doing weekly status reports (a form of journaling, I think) for my boss about a special project I am involved with. It sure puts the week in perspective when you write it down.
Awsome! Scott you can really turn a day around. I woke up with a bitter attitude this morning and after reading this (and writing down why I was bitter), it all seemed silly to let such a small thing ruin my day. After laughing at myself, I wrote down the things I was thankful for. After Faith, Family, Football and Fishing, you got honorable mention. Thanks Scott - Keep on changing the world. It needs a lot more SCOTTS! A lot of people are listening - (I hope)
I have been contemplating keeping a journal for quite sometime. Have never started, but realize I must. It's nice when to know that someone else sees/feels the same importance. I guess I did not realize that there were so many different journals. I'm going to put that fact in my learning journal. Thanks Scott!! So glad I met you.
I have found journaling to be an extremely in-depth focus on our true motives and inner character. It helps to illuminate areas where we need to improve our lives. Then, it helps us track our progress. Some of what I've discovered about myself is mind-blowing and this practice has helped me become a better, more caring person--not to mention a better salesman!
I have kept a journal since I was 13 years old. But it wasn't until I read the book 'The Artists Way' that I started USING my journal to help with my daily brain dump. I also do most of my daily planning and goal writing in my journal. There is NO better tool as far as I'm concerned!!!
These are amazing suggestions! I'm totally inspired. I've just started blogging every morning this gave me some great new ideas about what I could include for my own benefit and for the benefit of others. What is your policy for reprinting articles? I'd like to give these suggestions out to my clients. Do you have a standard credit/advertising blurb that I use use if you let people reprint?
Thanks for being there!
All the best,
Carolyn
Great post Scott. My journal eventually became the launch pad for my first book. I realized that going back and rereading some of my observations, especially during my most stressful times, was incredibly insightful and actually inspirational.
Thanks for reminding us all to pick up the pen and start putting down our thoughts!
Ripple On!!!
Steve Harper
I would actually add another type of journaling: A rant!
Sometimes things are rough and you feel bad. I feel it's good to just put the problem on paper and complain about it.
Normally after writing, you feel a little better. The next day or so you go back and read it and generally see how it wasn't that big of a deal.
It has helped me identify the things that trigger emotions like anger. As similar situations occur, I think back to my "rants" and can avoid being angry about them.
Hi
I am a collector of Aristotle Onassis memorabilia. One quote that he made to his son which in turn had been passed on to Ari from his own father was:
"Always carry a notebook. Write everything down. When you have an idea, write it down. When you meet someone new, write down everything you know about them. That way you will know how much time they are worth. When you hear something interesting, write it down. Writing it down will make you act upon it. If you dont write it down you will forget it. THAT is a million doallar lesson they dont teach you in business school!"
Best regards
David Moore
I started keeping a morning pages journal a few years a go. I'm not always consistent with it but when I do it for a few days I find my mind is clearer and I'm able to get better perspective on day to day issues. I also "write to know what I think."
I keep just about all the journals you mention, and I used to keep each one in a different notebook. Now I have just 3 journals - one that I carry with me all the time anad write everything in: dreams, special moments, conversations. The second is a "writer's journal" and in that I keep lists of cool names, descriptions of places, ideas for story plots, and pictures from magazines that are inspiring. The 3rd journal is soooo important to me: It's the inspirational journal - the one I turn to if I need help, fast. In it are quotes from great people, articles from magazines that have been helpful, reviews of books that I don't want to forget, and things people have said to me that have special meaning.
Thanks for the wonderful article1
I really like the idea of a "Win" journal. Nothing succeeds like success. Great post!
I just learned of a different technique for journaling that I've found very useful, esp. on days I don't feel like writing or am pressed for time. I'm sure there is an official name for it, but don't know it, so I call it "bubble journaling".
1. Take a thought/concept that is on your mind and write it in the center of the paper with a circle around it. 2. Draw a line or spoke out of the circle in any direction and as quickly as possible jot down the next word that comes to mind. 3. Continue to write down what comes to mind as quickly as possible- the key here is not to over think things- grouping similar thoughts together with lines/spokes.
An example of one I did for for "busy" surfaced thoughts of obligations, not enough time, not accomplishing enough, guilt, self improvement, health, personal goal setting, need more sleep, need to journal, etc... It's interesting to see where it takes you and some of the things that bubble up to the surface.
Oh, I like the bubble journaling idea. I'm going to try it out right now!
Home of: Sunshine | Quarterly Magazine By and For Enlightened Women
www.sunshinemagazine.ca
I've been journaling for years, but after my husband passed away 5 years ago, it was clear that as a writer, this journaling was the safety valve I needed. I wrote in my journal every day for the first year, and going back and rereading about that time was eye opening (and more than a little painful too). That's when I decided to start a blog to help reach the other widows out there going through the same thing. Find me here:
www.widowhoodisnotfunny.blogspot.com. The journaling and blogging helped me to write a book on the subject too.
Scott, thanks for all the great articles, newletters and help you've provided.
Alanna
Many institutions limit access to their online information. Making this information available will be an asset to all.