When you first start committing to writing in a journal, there are a few different phases
you will likely go through. While not everyone’s experience is exactly the same, this
trend of phases is fairly common. Understanding them will help you to prepare and
hopefully be able to work through them and find your motivation to keep going.
Beginning Stage Getting Ready and Excited
The first stage of journaling is typically the planning stage and when you are getting
really excited about the prospect. You can start shopping around for journals, think
about what you will write about, dream and imagine how your life will change.
This is a really fun and exciting stage of journaling. Have fun with it, enjoy the experience of
finding the perfect journal, and start looking for some topics you want to write about.
Your First Few Journal Entries
Next, you will start writing in your journal, which often encompasses some of your
biggest ideas. Many people start slow with what their goals are or what they’re thinking
about, while others like to start journaling by talking about their day and just whatever is
on their mind.
These first few entries tend to be easy to do since you’re just getting started. You often begin writing with the thoughts in the front of your mind, what has been weighing on you the most or what you spend the most time thinking about.
Slowly Running Out of Topics and Motivation
You may get to a phase in your journaling when you are a little burnt out, are running
out of ideas, and might even skip a day or two. This can happen gradually, where you
slowly start using your journal less, or maybe it takes a little longer to figure out what
you want to write about.
Skipping More Days and Reaching Burnout
Inevitably, you reach burnout. You skip more days, and you start losing interest in
journaling. Not everyone goes through this, but often when you don’t know why you are
journaling, aren’t sure it is benefiting you, or your mind keeps changing with how you
want to journal, burnout happens. But don’t worry there are many ways to get back on
track.
Finding New Inspiration
Hopefully, you can find new inspiration, and get back to journaling. This may come in
many forms. Maybe you decide to go in a different direction and take a different
approach, or you think about why you started journaling in the first place and that sparks
some ideas. Inspiration can be found in so many ways, just through the act of not giving
up and continuing to write.
