“The happiness of your life depends upon the quality of your thoughts: therefore, guard accordingly, and take care that you entertain no notions unsuitable to virtue and reasonable nature.” ~ Marcus Aurelius
AKA: You become what you think.
Do you even KNOW your own thoughts?
That’s the #1 reason to journal, btw. To capture your thoughts, to see what is delighting or troubling you. To notice patterns, cycles, and ruminating loops.
By way of example, years ago when I started journaling, I became aware of a Super-Cunt who lived rent-free in my mind.
Only by isolating her, could I start to deal with her crap. But I could only isolate her by becoming aware of her.
This is one of the gifts of journaling.
Other advantages I’ve discovered to daily journaling:
* You think faster on your feet! Why? Because you know what you think!
* You become a better writer. Practice makes perfect, and by adopting a daily habit of writing, you will improve this skill.
* Sticking to one daily habit builds trust with yourself which can then be leveraged with other habits you want to adopt.
* You create a record of your life.
Yes, because the modern term is “journaling,” but really, it’s a diary and that’s OK! 