5 Ways to Use Journaling for Personal-development
While we naturally tend to believe that challenging questions need complex answers, a simple solution is in your hands.
Does Antidote to Chaos Exists?
Journaling is a cognitive process which requires your full attention and the ability to introspect. Unfortunately, this catharsis of the mind may make you feel uncomfortable, emotional, or anxious.
But when you learn how to detach from the words in your journal, you gain maturity. You know one more rule of your cognition, conducting decision-making experiments.
When you have a choice and 100 options, you get lost.
Our brain doesn’t want to lose kcal in excessive thinking about less important stuff, such as choosing oranges in the shop. A few years ago, I went hiking and checked out one shop. I wanted to buy an orange. To my surprise, 20 different types of oranges looked (almost) the same.
Which one do I choose?
The exact process happens in your mind. Your brain is a store full of oranges-thoughts, divided into subcategories, fighting for independence.
You may be able to track two or three voices, but others are forming dissonance, grouping them into one pot. But, what if the idea you were looking for is lost between other thoughts?
19 types of oranges? Then you lose track and decide to go with another person's advice. Or you click the first appearing “opportunity” in your mind without event the processing other thoughts.
That’s exactly you may have the urge to start procrastinating because your mind is exhausted by viewing the same oranges for one hour. Calculating value takes time and energy.
When you go to your brain store, divide it into small chunks of thoughts. Bullet points, phrases, topics, or use colourful labels to crystalise them for the future.
#1 Answer these questions
I use these labels that help me specify the topic so I protect myself in this specific niche. In addition, this frame helps my mind from escaping into chaos outside.
Also, I use a system in my journal so I know what areas I want to reflect on.
How do I reward myself? How do I spend time with others?
What I’m grateful for? How do I invest in myself today? What new I’ve learned?
What should happen today that will help me get where I want in the future?
These boxes allow me to be specific and stop me from writing long essays on each question.
Be a systematic programmer, who wants to create the most efficient code with the least errors.
#2 Notice your handwriting
Have you ever noticed that your handwriting changes when you are in a hurry or feel angry? You become choleric, who is ready to tear the page apart like a lion. Yet, at the same time, you know that yesterday you had an elegant pen and an elegant dress when you were writing about holidays with your loved ones. Your sympathetic nervous system activation can be seen, and graphology adds new species to it.
When I compare my handwriting from my graduate school with the current morning pages, I find that 4 years ago, I enjoyed journaling much more. Why? Because I made it a priority and a part of a Victory Hour.
Each morning I dedicated 30 min to writing. No distractors, total focus.
Also, by looking at my handwriting, I can say how I felt, was I anxious, panicking or following the opportunities brought by the day. I even spot how living in London vs living in the countryside affected me.
Thus, by looking at your pages and taking a camera perspective, you may notice what is your trigger or the root of the problem.
#3 Release emotions
Asking yourself what emotion you feel is fundamental. Unfortunately, in countries where I used to live, emotional intelligence, self-awareness and empathy for others / or for yourself are alien concepts.
We learn more and push ourselves to open inner doors for emotions in recent days.
The problem may be your vulnerability and the fear of judgment, criticised or called “too sensitive”. By writing the process of what triggered specific emotion, wherein the body you felt it, you learn. You build a new competence of “remote control” of your psyche.
You can start writing without thinking or if you want a specific pattern (or algorithm, if you are a programmer).
#4 Doodle
Start doodling if you are an artist or can’t put the first words on a paper. Science shows that doodling may improve your short-term memory, stimulate your creativity and divergent thinking, and help you concentrate.
#5 Descriptive statistics in journal analysis
Numbers in science help us to quantify measures. For example, we can measure reaction time, cortisol level, and probability of dementia development. By doing this, we bring conclusions to the board, enabled to direct the company's next step.
Do you do the same in your daily life? For example, do you analyse your data? And do you gather your data?
That’s why some people are obsessed with journaling. Others do that when they expand their border for data collection, and the mind can’t cope.
When I started my internship in the vision lab, my supervisor repeated the same word every day.
Consistency. It would help if you had consistency.
You start small if you want your journaling to transform into your bulletproof cognition sharpener. Describe these: feelings, situations, ideas, dreams, quotes, and reflections. Your data can be analysed only after collecting it with a pen in your notebook.
Summary
To empower your mind you have to become your own coach journaling the script.
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To learn more about neuroscience and personal-development tools, check this out neurobirdies.com.
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