What to Write in Your Journal
One of the main barriers to journaling is the feeling that you have nothing to say. This article aims to help beginners with some ideas for what they can write about so there is enough material to build up a practice gradually. For those who have not read any of the other articles in this series, we refer to the act of journaling as a practice because we believe it is something that you are always learning to do better.
We’ve divided the types of content into three general levels. Of course, these are overly simplified and not necessarily the path everyone takes, but this is one option for you to try if you need a little more structure and support. Remember that this is a guide for beginners. If you’re already comfortable with writing, especially about yourself, then you should just go ahead and
Three Levels of Depth
Level 1: Recap This is the most basic level of reporting what happened throughout the day. There is no analysis, no explanation, just simply recounting the details of the day. This is a great way to start building up the habit and routine of writing about yourself and your experiences. What happened in your after-school club today? What did your friend say to you between classes? What did you argue with your parents about?
As you become comfortable with recapping your day, you can try to increase the level of detail that you include. Instead of just recalling that there was an interesting discussion in class, you can recap the details that made it particularly interesting. You can document the behaviors and comments from your classmates as the discussion progresses. You can even include specific content from the textbook that the discussion was based on. All of this adds more context and richness to your writing.
This kind of writing might feel a bit basic, but you are actually simultaneously building up two foundational journaling muscles. First, you are building your writing endurance. Writing more than a few words is not easy in this age of quick comments and threads. Second, you are building your powers of observation. By regularly taking stock of the events of the day, you will become increasingly mindful of the world around you and notice more and more details that otherwise would have escaped your attention.
If you’re not very detail-oriented, this is a fantastic way to exercise that part of your brain as you practice becoming more mindful of the details of your day.
What if I can’t even do level 1 journaling? If you’re having trouble recapping the day, you can try a slightly more accessible method of journaling: stream-of-consciousness writing. In this method, you ignore all structure and logical connections and just write whatever comes to mind as it comes to mind—in other words, a stream of words as soon as they reach your consciousness. This is a great way to familiarize yourself with the experience of writing.
Level 2: Reaction This is the next level of journaling, where you begin to insert more of your thoughts and feelings about the events that happened. How did you feel about your friend’s reaction to the announcement? What questions or concerns do you have about the new school policy? You’re evolving from a basic narrator to an involved narrator as you bring more and more of yourself into the story.
This might feel awkward or even uncomfortable at first. After all, most of the writing you’ve done in school specifically asks you not to include yourself as a character, instead focusing on objective and impersonal analysis and argumentation. Similar to the muscle-building analogy mentioned earlier, opening yourself and revealing parts of your thoughts and feelings is also a muscle that only gets stronger with practice. Since your journal will not be read by anyone else, this makes it an excellent means for practicing this type of expression in a safe, low-stakes space.
But this strengthening also has a hidden benefit. By exposing your thoughts and feelings about your experiences, you open the door to course-correcting. Imagine there was an argument between your friends where you walked away feeling one way, but after thinking about it and writing about it, you realize that your reaction outside of the heat of the moment is entirely different. By giving yourself the chance to take stock of your experiences, you are now better able to deliberately and intentionally choose your path instead of only relying on how things are in the moment.
As you become comfortable with including some reactions to the events of the day, you can try exposing details that are more and more personal. By personal, I mean things that are more unique to you and not what would typically be expected. For example, if you’re talking about how everyone was excited about the upcoming school dance but then reveal that you actually dread social events because your immigrant parents never let you attend them when you were young, and now you’ve developed a fear of them. Take this as slow as you need. Opening up and writing personally requires a degree of vulnerability and security that not everyone will have right away.
Level 3: Reflection The next level of journaling is where you not only insert your thoughts and feelings about what happens, but you begin to analyze the events and draw connections with your past experiences, hopes for the future, personal values, beliefs, and more. This is where you can get philosophical and abstract, but you always want to keep things grounded in your personal experience. Instead of grand sweeping statements about all of society, narrow your scope to just you, what you think, and why. For example, why do you think your teacher’s behavior was unfair? What does your rationale say about who you are and what you value?
Where level one recapping addresses the “what” and level two reacting addresses the “how,” this level of reflecting addresses the “why.” The key to writing reflectively is to constantly be digging through layer after layer of why until you arrive at a personal explanation that reveals some core truth about you and who you are. Imagine you just joined your school’s MUN club. Why did you join? Because you’re interested in international relations and you like public speaking. Why are you interested in international relations? Because I like solving problems collaboratively. This is an overly simplified example, but we can stop at that final layer of “why” because now we know something about you. We understand your motivations and identity better than if we had stopped at any previous layer.
Continuously asking yourself why does not always lead to productive results. Sometimes you might find yourself going down endless spirals of logic and explanation. In this case, it’s okay to stop as soon as you feel like further digging is reducing the clarity of who you are. Like before, you are exercising a muscle, and things might not always be very neat or tidy when you first begin to journal at this level. But don’t worry. As you practice, you will develop a better sense of how to navigate your why and how to arrive at a place that reveals the most about you.
Similar to the reaction level, there is also a hidden course-correction benefit to reflecting. As you explore your why for doing certain things or reacting in certain ways, you can evaluate yourself more objectively and proactively. Do you like the core truth that this particular journal entry reveals about you? Is it worth pushing yourself to change? You don’t need to change every little thing; we are all human, after all, but only by knowing are you even capable of changing course.
How Do I Progress from Level 1 to Level 3?
The good news is that you can progress through the levels simply by writing regularly (see the post about how to build a journaling habit). As you write more, you will have more to say, and your writing will become deeper and more personal.
Another great way to deepen your journaling is to ask yourself why. If you’re writing down details about what happened that day, you can ask yourself why you decided to include those specific details. If you’re addressing your reactions to the pop quiz you received in history class, you can ask yourself why you think you reacted that way. All of this deepens your writing and makes it more personal, which is ultimately the whole purpose of this journaling framework.
Writing with the intention will help you progress much faster. Like with anything, intention matters. You can shortcut the process by being mindful of what you are doing and intentionally pushing yourself to write more personally with deeper and more thoughtful reflections about yourself and your place in the world.
Lastly, we recommend finding a mentor. Yes, journaling is often a solitary activity, but the thinking and reflection that go into it do not have to be done alone. If you’re feeling stuck or daunted, it’s okay to talk through your thoughts with someone else.
Connection with College (and Beyond)
Developing the ability to write personally and reflect on your experiences is an essential skill for successful college applications. This is because college application essays are more or less just formal journals. They are leveraging the exact same kind of writing and addressing topics that are often the subject of your deepest journal reflections. Questions like, “What do you want to do in the future and why?” or “Describe your greatest challenge and what you learned from it” are classics in college essays. Don’t let your college essay be the first time you’ve ever had to answer questions like these seriously.
Journaling also builds up your vulnerability, and the best college essays are vulnerable and convey high personal and emotional stakes. This can be an uncomfortable or even painful process to go through, but it’s difficult to fake when you need to write your college application. Only with practice can you learn to do it in a way that is authentic to you, and that authenticity will be palpable and will make all the difference.
It also does not end with your college applications. From future jobs to even navigating life itself, you can constantly benefit from being able to answer, “Why?” Your life will be all the more richer and more meaningful.