By Carolyn Campbell
As I’ve been sharing the Fertile Ground process with groups, I’ve found that many participants have questions about journaling. Why journal? How do I journal? What do I do with my journal?
Why journal?
There are many answers to this great question. Journaling allows us to explore ideas that have lain dormant for far too long, hidden under the demands of everyday life. Some days, I journal to discover what’s behind an emotion or life challenge that keeps me from moving forward. On other days, I use journaling to explore what I truly desire.
I have long been inspired by the work of Carl Jung. Best known for exploring dreams, art and mythology, Jung emphasized integrating the conscious with the unconscious to create balance and harmony. He cautioned people not to rely too heavily on natural science and logical positivism and ardently believed in the importance of integrating spirituality and unconscious realms. Journaling is one way to explore these realms.
Our brain is always busy processing thoughts, fears, hopes, data, duties, etc. Journaling provides an opportunity to experience what is buried under these mental processes.
- It can be a great ‘dump’ for all the ‘stuff’ that is unnecessarily taking up space in your brain. This is often the case when one begins journaling. Sometimes people will say, “Nothing new came up while I was journaling, but my mind feels less cluttered.”
- It can help you work through changes and challenges in your life. Some people find that journaling, especially with a prompt (a visual, physical, or verbal stimulus used to incite a new way of perceiving), allows the mind to process an issue or experience in a new way.
- It can help you understand recurring patterns, thoughts or issues. As you journal more, and work through the issues close to the surface, you may find that there is rich terrain to be mined. It’s kind of like deep sea diving—we can snorkel at the surface, or we can dive deep into the caverns to see some amazing sights.
- Coupled with powerful questions and evocative images, it can help you see life through a new lens. We each inherit a system of beliefs from our family, teachers, intimates and friends. Journaling with prompts can push you into a new way of thinking, breaking open old beliefs and exposing new possibilities.
This is the intuitive, or exploratory, aspect of journaling. Explorers and mountaineers journal about their quests to process their experiences. Leaders and speakers often journal about their hopes and visions to understand their real significance and create a ‘framework’ to present them to others.
It doesn’t matter whether you believe the answers are coming from your mind, your soul voice, a divine presence or just random thoughts—what matters is that you begin to get the answers you are seeking.
How do I journal?
Some people choose a free-flowing approach—letting the hand flow across the page without lifting the pen. This approach allows one to access ideas that lie below the conscious realm before the ‘censor’ in our minds can repress them.
You might begin by reflecting on a quote or image. One of my favorite journaling methods involves using imagery coupled with powerful questions. The questions challenge my mind’s beliefs while the images allow me to access a new perspective. You might ask a powerful question first, or just let the image or quote guide you into an interior space.
Some powerful questions include: What holds me back from living my full Self? What part of my Self yearns to be heard? How do I want to be more fully in my life? What do I need to let go to have more meaningful connections?
I also use a daily calendar of quotes by powerful women. I will often take ten minutes to write about how the day’s quote relates to my life and what I am seeking to fully be.
As with many things, I find it most helpful to use whatever approach serves me best in the moment.
What do I do with my journal?
I always incorporate a ‘doing’ element at the end of my journaling session. This is the tangible part. Journaling moves me into the abstract, allows my dreams to surface and names the fears and frustrations I dare not say. THEN, at the end of each session, I ask myself, “What is one thing I can do today to honor what I have discovered in this writing.” Some days it is something simple, like taking a moment between meetings to just breathe. Or I might find that today is the day I make a phone call I’ve been ignoring.
The journal helps me explore my dreams, confusions and purpose.
The actions provide the ‘way’ to bring those to life.
And yes, some days I rip out the pages I’ve just written and throw them away.
Others I have kept for years as reminders of the depth of my spirit and the vision of my soul. What’s great about journaling is that you get to decide what serves you and your life! ‘Cause it’s all about being the best and truest you.