As this New York Times article correctly states, journaling might be the cheapest form of self-care. It is a very good habit that helps organize our thoughts and allows us to think more complexly and systematically, contributes to self-understanding, self-awareness, and mindfulness, boosts communication skills and memory, and might even improve our sleep, immunity, and even our I.Q.
The incontestable benefits of journaling have paved the way for its systematic application in psychology. It is a very good exercise for improving mental health and is frequently employed by psychologists to promote introspection and self-observation of one’s thoughts or actions. It allows patients to rationalize and distance themselves, which helps in overcoming emotional trauma from various forms of abuse, loss, difficult life situations, etc. Even in a regular setting, it can be a valuable instrument and a healthy habit useful in dealing with life’s adversities.
By writing down persistent thoughts that bother us, we help to remove them from our working memory, freeing the brain for other thoughts, including more positive ones. Under closer scrutiny, we might discover that some of our thoughts that gain lots of daily attention don’t hold very much substance and are mere illusions or proxies of other hidden feelings or attitudes. Chances are that sorting all the issues listed above are the main thing that can help unblock and promote our personal evolution. But journaling can be also employed with great success to specifically boost positive feelings, such as self-confidence and self-esteem.
When hunting for inspiration, all methods are acceptable (within the limits of the law and morals, of course). One great way is to access the inspiration and enthusiasm stored by other unique minds in writings. Thus, one could find a list of inspiring essays at https://subjecto.com/ on a great variety of topics, starting with evidence-based explorations of certain subjects and ending with creative pieces of self-expression.
Below, we also want to provide a list of journal prompts that might hopefully be of use:
Although writing to boost self-esteem might require a bit of discipline until you manage to form a habit, it is very important to not force the process – it must not by any means become something you do with a heavy heart. This is a pleasurable activity that should make you feel more content each time. You could also benefit enormously from the habit of combining writing exercises with actions, even small ones.
For instance, if you reflect on or write about gratitude, show some gratitude to people around you (even for minor things) and notice how this changes their mood or attitude and how this changes yourself. Your next prompt could very well be about this realization and the start of a sequel series.
Marques specializes in content writing focused particularly on the field of education. Apart from this, he often publishes student-focused articles on how to improve writing efficiency, boost creativity, avoid writer’s block, learn to self-express, etc. He enthusiastically follows the evolutions in EdTech industry, which is another preferred subject of his posts.