Power Of A Page
I'm a morning person. I love waking up with the sun, I love making coffee just as the sun's shine is fresh. I get my best work done in the morning.
When I say work, I don't mean work for school or my businesses; I'm talking about my work as a human being.
Every morning, I sit down with my cup of coffee, a pen and journal. From Seneca to Ralph Waldo Emerson and many in-between, the greatest minds in history used journals. Whether it was to organize their thoughts, write down observations, or to just have a written record of their life, writing down anything and everything puts you in a mindset to achieve anything and everything.
Writing down my thoughts, tasks, problems, quotes I [try] to live by, and blueprint for my days has improved my life in too many ways to count, so here are just a few.
Responsibility. By writing down my daily duties and tasks first thing in the morning, I engrain them in my head. Having a list of tasks I need to get done keeps me accountable to myself.
Organization. Writing down my tasks and duties keeps me in check and provides me with a structure for the day. But writing down my thoughts keeps my emotions and thought patterns in check. Starting my day off jotting down any and all thoughts allows me to keep a clear mind and do the jobs at hand.
Reflection. When my day is done, I sit with my journal and fill in a few lines about my day. I'll write about things that stood out to me, any impediments to my day, people I met, conversations I had, things I'm proud I did, and things I wish I had done differently. Reflecting on my day allows me to make sense of my day and myself, and helps me find ways to improve tomorrow. It also has sharpened my memory, in that I am forced to recall what has happened that day.
Gratitude. At the top of every page I start writing on in the morning, I note at least 3 things I am grateful for. These gratitudes can range from people in my life, to the sounds of the birds in the morning, to even the color blue. Writing down what I'm grateful for in the morning puts me in such a positive and healthy mindset.
Presence. We are human BEINGS not human DOINGS, as author Ryan Holiday says. By simply putting pen to paper and writing about myself, I'm forced into the present moment. I'm required to feel my emotions, observe my thoughts, organize my tasks, and become aware of who I am. This helps form the truest sense of myself.
Resolution. Journaling has become my outlet to vent and figure out problems myself. I've realized that I can't vent to just anybody about just anything, people have other things going on. Sitting and writing down whatever problems I'm having distances me from my thoughts and gives me the space to think about the clearly. Most times, I can figure out the answer with a clear mind—but of course, I'm nowhere near perfect.
Final Thoughts
The world, like our mind, is a place with a lot of good and a lot of weird. It's difficult to make sense of it all, since we're just imperfectly imperfect beings striving for clarity and happiness. Filling up a page, or even a few lines, can help both dissociate you from your thoughts as well as convert uncomfortable thoughts into clear ones.
