Most people can benefit from journaling, myself included, getting thoughts out of my head and transforming it into writing has been very eye opening and mind transforming. A lot of things can be said about journaling, here are some of my favorites.
Journaling creates a pathway for ideas to come into fruition. When you think about it, most high functioning intellectuals before modern times have always documented their craft or daily lives. Charles Darwin documented most of his discoveries and thoughts in his own journal and then later transferred his studies and research into his book. I am no Darwin or Abraham Lincoln, but I have started journaling long ago when I was about 14-15 years old, usually I would write things that pop in my head like a character in a fantasy story I want to create, or a word that I learned that day. Reading my old journal entries is a bit like reading an idea pool, it can be a great source of information, manufactured throughout life, in here many schemes and plots have been created and I can use it as an inspiration, Fast forward 15 years later, I have now been working on a fantasy novel inspired by characters I have built when I was 15 years old.
Journaling provides a reference for old experiences learned. Reading your journal is a lot like reading a good book, but in this case, you are the author, and you are reading it for the second time, it provides you a new insight of what lessons you have learned from the past, since now you think differently, a mistake or a heartbreak at 18 years old will be looked upon differently by your current self. A certain somebody that you looked up to or despised is now perceived on a different pedestal by your current self.
Journaling keeps your mind sharp. Time changes a lot of things, your hair turns grey as time passes by, your face changes and wrinkles start to come in without you noticing it, your mindset changes through time by the day or even by the hour, opinions change because facts changed through time, and so reading through your old notes will remind you of what thoughts you had and in some ways you picture your old self. What’s more important here is that you will see and remember the things that made you change, time froze for a moment after you read some of your journals, it will remind you that once in your life you thought and did things differently from how you are now, and on hindsight you would have never changed had those things did not occur to you.
Journaling keeps you in check. There will be days when you will not feel very productive, there will be moments when you do not have the motivation at all, these times are perfectly normal, these moments as much as the best times in your life should be in your journal, therefore you can use it as a reference and look back and decide what could you have done differently back then. Journaling keeps you in check because your essence as a human being will want to make you write something worthwhile to read as the day passes, there will be this hovering feeling that will make you want to write at least one good decision that you have made before you end the day.
Journaling tracks your progress. It is easy to forget and disregard ones journey throughout life, sometimes one would down play successes they have achieved because it came so seamlessly, and it took such a long time for it to come into fruition that it did not even feel like a victory anymore; whilst and on a bad day it is much easier for a person to think about the hardships that are in front of him or yet to present themselves and begin to blame the universe or himself or other people. When you look back at your old journals it will give you a great perspective, if ever you forgot, that your life has evolved tremendously, one look at your entries will provide you with an undoubtedly positive proof that you have come a long way.
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