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Journaling Through Mindful Writing
Some people think of journaling as being the same thing as keeping a diary. But they’re not the same. Journaling is something that helps you let go of stress, to release the future and to remain in the present.
When you journal, it can help you to connect with your inner self. Mindful writing is a key that can allow those to practice it to delve into their emotions and the thoughts that they have.
When you pay attention to what you’re thinking and feeling as you write, this helps you reach a deeper level of understanding who you are and what it is that you truly want out of your days.
When you journal with mindfulness, it allows you to cut through the mental noise and get to the root of whatever you might be facing.
For example, if you have a situation that’s troubling you, using mindful writing can help you to be able to see it clearly.
You’ll be able to find answers that may have eluded you – not only with the situation but with how you feel through the situation. Mindful writing can help you set free emotions that you have such as anger, disappointment, anxiety, and sadness.
When you use mindfulness, you allow yourself to feel the emotions that you’re feeling in the moment, and by doing this, your brain can process these emotions. This enables you to let go of something you may have been holding onto.
It can help you to realize things you may have been unaware of. When you journal with mindfulness, you’ll be to gain a perspective that can clear your mind. Sometimes, we’re so busy that we can’t see what’s really going on with ourselves and what mindfulness allows to happen is a consciousness with the emotions and thoughts we have.
Mindfulness gets you to really grasp what’s going on in your life rather than passively observing it and not really taking it in.
You can practice mindful journal by using a journal that’s just for mindful writing.
Put the journal beside your bed at night when you go to bed and take it with you as go about your day. As you go about your day, tune in to the events in your life. Write down the things that make you feel good about yourself or others.
List what makes you happy and gives you a feeling of purpose. It only takes a few seconds to write down what you’re thinking or feeling. You can also observe your other senses, too – such as what you’re seeing or hearing during your day and how that impacts you.
You can write as much as you want about the experience or as little. Many people have learned that mindful writing led them on a path of self-discovery that let them find their passion in life.
Others have been able to learn to develop a more profound sense of satisfaction with where they are in life now. When you practice mindful writing, acknowledge how you feel with whatever it is that you’re doing such as working or waiting on someone.
Tips for Mindful Writing and Reflective Journaling
Stay rooted in the present.
It’s not difficult to get distracted by irrelevant things. Either it’s your phone, an email, the internet, or maybe your dog. If you start to get distracted, use mindfulness skills to accept your passing thoughts and label them as “thinking.”
After this happens, return to the present moment and refocus on your writing. It is natural for your mind to wander every now and then while you are working—it is just important to learn how to acknowledge it and move on.
Find the heart of your writing.
When you find yourself in the middle of a writer’s block, writing anything is almost impossible. Writer’s block is often caused by a chaotic mind. If you have too much going on in your head, your mind needs a restart.
Take a break, walk in nature and come back to writing from a subjective point of view instead of an objective one.
Don’t be a perfectionist.
Nobody’s perfect, that’s maybe the reason why everyone’s pursuing perfection. Everyone wants to be perfect, to stand out in some way and be better than others.
This pursuit of perfection acts as a barrier to really great work because you are trying to achieve something that is impossible.
Having something done is better than having it perfect. Also, perfection is in an individual’s perspective. What one person may consider being “perfect” another may consider it to be normal or even quite defective. “Perfect” is such a subjective term, especially when it comes to writing content.
Before starting a writing project, think about your expectations or your goals.
Breathe.
Meditate before you start to write. Breathe. Allow your mind to focus and your body to relax.
If you are well into your writing and all of a sudden feel stuck, take some more time to breathe. You should do this every so often throughout your writing sessions to refresh your brain and take a short mental break.
Create a routine and schedule time for writing.
Getting into a routine helps because, once you force yourself to actually write something, your internal critic relaxes and lets you get down to business.
The ability to create and follow a routine requires self-discipline and willpower and will provide you with enthusiasm each day to write during your scheduled time. You will learn that your established habit of writing will produce your desired outcome of great work.
Habits are not assimilated just because we think they are good and valuable and we want to have them. Routines and habits require time, tenacity, and purposefulness to become consistent.
Visualize yourself writing.
Remember the last time you had a good writing day. Take some time to literally think about the process you went through to write that day. Where were you, and what was allowing you to stay focused on your writing?
Visualize yourself getting started writing today, and how far you might be able to get. Think about actually holding your pen or typing on your laptop, and how that feels to you. Visualizing this will help motivate and inspire you to get started.
Observe mindfully.
Stop and carefully think about what is going on around you. Use all of your senses to experience the smells, sounds, and feelings of the present moment. Observe what is going on without judgment, and make an effort to prevent your storytelling mind from taking over.
Try to see your current situation as if you were an outsider looking upon the scene. Think about how someone else would describe it, and the small details that may be noticed. Try to look at things from a new perspective.
Start journaling consistently.
In conclusion, the more you are able to engage in mindfulness practices, the more you will be able to see your work as being realistic because you will be focusing on all of its aspects. You’ll be able to see it for its total value.
Your writing is likely to become more dimensional and intricate as you practice mindfulness. Because you will be focusing on all of your senses, you will be able to describe things in-depth to your reader and connect with them on a new level that is less superficial than you were able to before practicing mindfulness.
What happens with mindful journaling is that you’ll begin to recognize any thought patterns that may be helpful to your life or ones that cause you to get bogged down in negativity.
You’ll be able to experience life with deep feelings and senses that are in tune with each day. As you go through your day, write down what you were doing. After each entry, write down how that made you feel – such as whether you felt valued or unhappy.
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