The content in this journaling series is from what I shared with my recent in-person journaling class. My original idea was to try and create an online class, but ultimately decided to create a blog series in which to freely share this information.
Last week we talked about What is Journaling? The week before we talked about Why Journaling is Important? Now let’s finish up with ways to keep inspired and to keep journaling.
Ways to Stay Inspired
We all know how hard it can be to stick with something, but it helps if we can get some inspiration here and there. Here are some great places to help inspire your writing!
- Journal with Purpose, inspiring creative journaling http://www.journalwithpurpose.co.uk/
- Lavendaire is a blog about personal growth + lifestyle design.https://www.lavendaire.com/about/
- Kaizen Journaling, a home for people who want to have their personalized arsenal for success, which is fueled by their dreams, guided by their courage, and stamped with their unique personality. http://kaizenjournaling.com/
- Creative Writing Now, where you’ll find creative writing courses, ideas, prompts, free online classes, and step-by-step guides to writing fiction, poetry, and drama. https://www.creative-writing-now.com/ (also has a creative journaling section)
- A Writer’s Wings, my writing blog that has posts mostly on writing techniques and writing in general, but also things that inspire me, or books that I read and have really strong feelings about. I’m also using it as an author page to promote my published works. https://cynthiadgriffin.com/
Ways to Keep Journaling
It takes 21 days to make something a habit. If you want to make journaling a habit, pick a specific time of day and journal for 21 days consecutively. If you miss a day, you have to start from scratch! Here are some ways to keep regular.
- Set an alarm to remind you to journal
- Keep your journal somewhere you can see it everyday as a reminder to write in it
- Pick a journaling buddy so you can remind each other
- Find someone to be a coach (someone who doesn’t journal, but doesn’t mind holding you accountable)
- Use a journaling app for writing prompts and regular reminders to journal!
Note: Regular journaling isn’t for everyone. If you feel like you really do want to make journaling apart of your life, then sticking with it for 21 days straight is the best way to build that habit But if you are becoming frustrated with your inability to stick with journaling for 21 days, then perhaps this way of self-expression is not something you need at this point in your life. Journaling should not be something you feel forced to do.
Ways to Keep Your Journal Private
You must feel 100 percent comfortable writing in your journal; otherwise it’s not coming directly from the heart. Some of your thoughts or feelings aren’t something you might want to share with others, so it might become necessary to hide or set boundaries to keep your journal private. Here are some suggestions to do that.
- Don’t write in a journal, write in a regular notebook
- Write on your computer and put this under a boring or inconspicuous file name.
- Don’t place your journal out where people can pick it up (find a special place to put it that no one else would get to it)
- Set boundaries with your family and let them know it’s not okay for them to touch it.
Always Remember
Have self-compassion for yourself in this journey and realize it’s okay to not be perfect in your journaling journey, or in life. It’s okay to make mistakes. It’s okay to miss a day, a week, a month or two in journaling. We are, after all, human. Our flaws, our mistakes, our desires, and dreams make us who we are. They make us beautiful and one of a kind. They make us perfectly perfect, because we are.
I hope you enjoyed this series and got something out of it. As always, please feel free to comment below with questions or if you would like to share your journaling experiences.
Cynthia D. Griffin 
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