On Journaling

I’m going through massive early-spring cleaning/discarding in an attempt to simplify my life and I stumbled upon this journal:



I found it at half-price books early last year. Check out the bottom right hand corner. (That’s the only reason I bought it.)

I debated about keeping it. My mind was saying if you haven’t used it in a year, give it away. You don’t need it. You won’t miss it. But after about approximately 26 seconds of internal debate, I decided that maybe I could put it to use. I think it could be a good aide in my mission: organization plan.

Now I haven’t kept a “journal” since the 10th grade- a simple flowery hardback filled with teen angst and ramblings about cute boys. I remember writing in it and thinking, wow this is going to be so cool to read when I’m like 30. I think a lot of people are like me- They keep journals to reflect on the past. They document their present with intentions of reading it in the future.


Now maybe some people use journals resourcefully: to learn from their past mistakes, or to find patterns in destructive behavior etc. But that hasn’t been my experience. Each time I open up one of those old books I find myself cringing and thinking things like wow my writing was horrible and dramatic and wow I can’t believe how many people I made out with and wow this is really embarrassing. It’s generally not a good/fulfilling/positive experience.


I’m taking a different approach with this bad boy. A strictly here and now/present acting toward future approach. It’s going to be full of lists and goals and reminders. My objective is for it to help me stay organized. Kind of like a more grown-up and self-reflective trapper keeper.

cue trapper keeper commercial