The Beginner’s Guide to Journaling

Many people take up journaling as part of their daily routine. It helps them with their mental health to get their thoughts onto paper. One may also feel more productive and organized after journaling. Needless to say, there are many benefits in taking up this particular hobby.

If you’ve never started journaling before, you may not know where to begin. It can feel overwhelming to figure out how to start journaling or what to do exactly. Fortunately, I’m here to help! Here is a beginner’s guide to journaling that you can use to help you out if you wish to start taking up this hobby.

1. Figure out why you want to journal

Before you even think about starting journaling, it’s important to ask yourself why you want to journal. Granted, you don’t necessarily need a solid reason to justify your desire to journal. But by figuring out why you want to journal, you can help see if it’ll fit you just right. What do you hope to achieve with journaling? Do you have the time to do it every day? What do you want to journal about? These are just some of the questions that you need to honestly answer before you start journaling if you want to get the most out of it.

2. Figure out which journal fits your needs

No two journals are necessarily alike. These days, there are many different journals out there to pick and choose from. You don’t have to just stick with a plain notebook full of lined paper (unless that’s what you want). There are bullet journals, dream journals, gratitude journals, project journals- and that’s honestly just the beginning. This article from Intelligent Change lists different types of journals that are out there, as well as explain the purposes that they each serve. Give it a read to help determine which journal will fit your needs best. That way, you will enjoy the experience more and find it more fulfilling.

3. Get started!

I know this is a short list, but that’s really all there is to journaling. Once you’ve figured out your why and picked a journal that works best for you, you’re good to go. Journaling isn’t always easy- you may find yourself stuck and even struggle with doing it. Whether it comes to you naturally or not, the most important thing is to start it- and then stick to it. Your future self will graciously thank you for it!

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That is the beginner’s guide to journaling to help you get into it. What do you think? Do you think it’ll encourage you to start journaling? Are you already journaling? Let me know in the comments, or hit me up on social media!

xo,

Elizabeth