Do You Journal a Lot?

I’ve started journaling with Day One app few months ago. I am starting to use it more and more with every week and I am really enjoying it.

Interesting side effect was that for a long time I wanted to have a comfortable note system that would allow to store ideas related to books I am reading, side project, work projects etc. And I could never keep a system because I always over complicated requirements for that notes system in my mind. Now I just started to use my journal for that, it’s fairly unstructured and would be hard to use as a reference once I have a lot of content, but that’s absolutely fine. Just the act of taking the note in journal is super helpful. And with a few distinct journals in the app I have enough structure to keep it useful

I had a really good habit last year where I went to Starbucks most mornings and wrote, and ended up writing 130,000 words last year. It dropped precipitously this year as my routine and motivation got shattered thanks to Covid-19, but I still managed about 60,000 words so far this year, most of it was me being really good about it from July through September (dropped the ball again the last couple of months).

I didn't make a concerted effort to start doing this regularly until 2017, where I was writing it by hand, not just typing (I tried writing by hand a bit this year too, but it just takes so much time and gets so hard to keep up with). Before 2017, my total word count from all journals from 1998-2014 was just over 100,000 words, so it's a bit crazy how much more well-documented my recent past couple of years have been.

They used to be very private, but when I started it back up again in 2017, it was with the idea that I wouldn't be totally embarrassed if someone came across them, so there's some self-censorship in there, and also an attempt to add context that others beside myself might need to understand things. In 2017 it was 95% to record game design ideas and things I was doing in regards to games, but by 2019 I started including more what was going on that I might want to remember that was not just game design, so it's probably about 65-70% game design now, and the rest what's going on in my life. And this year has pandemic stuff mixed in.

Just the past two months I haven't recorded I've come up with like six more game ideas, developed each of them a bit, and made significant changes to some other game ideas, as well as some programming on two of my video games, so there's a lot of catching up to do, probably at least 6,000 words worth (probably would have been >15,000 words if I wrote them as it happened).

I've been doing "Morning Pages" for the past few months. I don't think I've ever had more clear thoughts. It's based out of a book called "The Artist's Way". You can read more about it here https://juliacameronlive.com/basic-tools/morning-pages/

Highly recommend!

Every day for the last 1.5 years!

I write it in a running text document with the latest entry at the top. Keeping it simple has made it easy to keep up with.

I've settled into the following format.

* date

* how yesterday went and any notable events

* what I'm hoping to get done today

* as of lately, local covid #s

* 3 things I'm grateful for

* the top headline of the day

* a quick rating of my current "thinking power", energy, mood, and how I'm feeling physically

I have kept a journal with pen and paper for years. I usually write something down every day. I'm particular about what I write with so I use PILOT Vanishing Point fountain pen and large hardcover Moleskine grid ruled notebooks.

My journaling consists of:

- 70% thoughts and ideas.

- 20% todos related to thoughts and ideas.

- 10% events in life.

Usually if I'm working on a project or considering a project I write down my thoughts, things I've learned, and so on. Sometimes I refer back to old entries. Sometimes I don't. Every now and then I might turn some of the entries into a blog article.

I’ve kept a journal since 2011. Some years I wrote a lot, one year I only wrote once. I have no plans to publish or share it with anyone while I’m alive but I may pass it on to a granddaughter or grandniece if I have one.

I started a masters this year and my word count went from 3K last year to 38K in 2020. There's also my pencil & paper journal for mindfulness and "life" entries which is maybe a couple of pages per week.

Every day for the past 12 years and frequently even before then. I've found it astonishing how much I learn about myself by reading past entries. It's also surprising how much I would have forgotten without it.

I've tried to but it never sticks for long. I have found that when I do get into periods of journaling consecutively, it tends to be when I go analog with physical book and a mechanical pencil

I don't at the moment, but I find I feel much better (more positive and a clearer head) when I write. I wrote daily for a while and it definitely helped.

I’ve journaled using Day One almost every day since 2013.

Usually I just type a play-by-play of the day. Helps my memory and work through emotions.

Nope. On and off for the last 30 years, in all sorts of media. It just never sticks.