Journaling & The Expression of Thought

 

"Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom".     -Aristotle

Journaling is the habit of keeping a diary or a written record about one's ideas, thoughts, experiences, aspirations, insights and anything else that touches us in our daily lives. In a way, it can be said to be a reflection of one's heart & soul written on paper. One of the most famous and timeless transformative diaries that humanity has ever come to know is one written by Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius.

Although his collection of private thoughts (known as Meditations) are well known by readers and philosophers around the world now, Marcus Aurelius never intended for his journal to be published. Most likely, as being an emperor, one of the most powerful men in the ancient world, he could not find anyone who was of equal status or intellect to relate his thoughts & life experience to. So therefore, he resorted to pen and paper as an outlet. But it could also be the fact that he knew of the positive psychological effects that journaling brings.

However it is, the profound wisdom that he had, made a significant impact on the generations that came after him. This brings us to the first point of journaling, which is:

1)Preserving Personal Life Lessons

It's great to have excess to the mediums & teachings of other people's life experiences, be it in the form of books, lectures, podcasts or You Tube videos. However, there is no wisdom wiser than the wisdom within ourselves. We tend to compare our daily happenings of life with the happenings of others, to measure our level of success or joy with theirs but every situation is unique & as far as personal growth goes, we should only compare ourselves to our past selves.

By keeping a journal, we are able to keep track of our life's journey & evolution. We are able to measure our progress & see whether if we are keeping on the right track that we intended for ourselves or are we straying from the path that we have chosen.

Why is this important? It is because for the most of us, our memories are fleeting. We tend to forget what was present in our minds the moment another thought or distraction comes to mind. Therefore, rather than finding the solution to resolve our problems, we subconsciously put it in the back seat & make our same mistakes over and over again. 

By having our thoughts and solutions written down, it becomes much easier for us to recall wiser decisions that would help us in the present or in the future. 

2)Expression Without Judgement

When we first begin to take up the act of journaling, many of us who've never journaled before, tend to be overwhelmed by thoughts as we ask ourselves countless questions such as: "Where do we begin?", "How do we even start?" or "I feel like I am wasting this good, clean page." etc. 

In this reasoning, our mind is looking for a structure to follow. A writing routine that would help us to get into the flow of journaling. But given that we have never done so before, it can be seen as an enormous undertaking to begin with. 

Therefore, doodling & scribbling can be a great option to kickstart the habit of journaling. But first and foremost, we need to rethink our perspective of our journal as less of an "accurate bible of our lives" and more of "a warehouse with endless room" to free think & express our souls. We must give ourselves the liberty to expand our mind & creativity. To give ourselves the permission to express our desires, wants & needs in this big, empty room, without judgement. 

And the physical act of expressing ourselves to fill that void can be done so through doodling. Allow yourself to doodle, to free think, to free write. To freestyle with honesty & joy is so important. Remember, you don't need to be the best sketcher or painter in the world to doodle, just allow yourself & allow your mind to flow through your hand.  

Author of The Doodle Revolution, Sunni Brown wrote in her book how some of the most famous & influential people such as Steve Jobs and Albert Einstein doodled and allowed themselves to discover new ideas. So before possessing the ability to write mountains of words, you might want to try drawing or doodling actual mountains on your page instead!  

3)Illuminating What's In The Dark

Journaling also allows us to shed a light (inwards) towards ourselves. Like a candle in a cave, writing our thoughts down gives us the opportunity to observe & reflect on the subconscious parts of us that are often hidden away from the prying eyes of the outside world. In fact, parts of us can be hidden away from ourselves too, as we may feel ashamed of some of the desires, behaviours & fantasies that we possess and as a result, we may suppress them entirely out of fear of being rejected by society for having such "irregularities".

However, instead of accepting & addressing our subconscious, bottling up and storing away our desires in the hopes that they would one day disappear & fade away is a recipe for disaster. For our countless unexplored thoughts & emotions could resurface and manifest itself in destructive & damaging ways. 

In Jungian Psychology, Swiss psychiatrist & psychoanalyst Carl Jung coined the term "Shadow" that describes the unconscious, repressed & denied part of ourselves. 

Therefore, journaling is a way to make sense of our own shadow behaviours, to keep track of when they emerge & what they look like. And it is by doing this, that we allow ourselves to shine a light on our inner, unconscious world as we basically journal ourselves into our souls.

4)Journaling, A Double-Edged Sword

Journaling, for the most part, is a relatively cheap & liberating form of self-therapy. However, many people do not actually know the few pitfalls that accompany it & even fewer (especially on social media) would discuss about it. 

As to all things in life, there are pros & cons, so there are a few health hazards that you should be aware of. According to an article written by Dr. Steven Stosny from Psychology Today, one of the negative effects that you may have on your behaviour & well being from journaling, is that it may make you a passive observer of life. 

You may find yourself constantly thinking about what to pen down or how to record life instead of honestly experiencing the richness of the present moment. You may also develop the tendency to live too much in your head & wallow in negative thoughts about events that happened to you in the past, but are replaying themselves over & over again, in front of your very eyes.

Therefore, to avoid such dangers, the definition of good journaling is that: Journaling should be done in a constructive way, where one is focused on looking for solutions. I recommend that you should keep two separate journals, one for everyday recording, & one solely for love, healing & positive energy. (Gratitude Journal, Art Journal, Poem book, etc.) 

Possessing a journal solely for love & kindness such as a gratitude journal or an art journal or a combination of both is an extremely powerful way to heal yourself. It can act as a metaphorical pillow for you to lie your head on & to refresh your soul from all the noise & hectic-ness that life throws at you. In essence, it becomes a safe space for your headspace. 

So to sum it all off, journaling and the expression of thought is a habit that anyone can cultivate and that everyone has the right & reason to. To review and relearn from our life lessons, to express ourselves honestly & freely, to shine a light on the true nature of who we are & to learn how to be constructive in making use of our energy is what truly makes journaling such a powerful tool for self-development. One that everyone can do, yet unique to every individual.

Thanks for reading!  

Yours Sincerely,

Satori Café