Journaling in the New Year

As you probably know, journaling is the practice of writing down your thoughts and 
feelings in a book, similar to a diary. There are many ways to journal and different types 
of journals, from keeping a gratitude journal you write in just 5 minutes a day, to 
choosing something more complex like a bullet journal.
While it is great to use a journal during any time of the year, there are some unique 
benefits to starting one in the new year. January 1st always feels like a new start, where 
you feel like you can start over, be better, and do better. This is why many New Years’ 
resolutions are about getting healthier, being more organized, or trying to keep up with 
your personal and professional obligations.
If you feel like you have been lacking or looking for a good outlet to get your life 
together, more organized, and be the healthiest version of yourself, you should consider 
starting a journal for the new year.
Now is a great time to get ready, as you try to find the best journal and writing utensils. 
If you try something like a bullet journal or art journal, make sure you get other supplies 
as well. In the following 8 sections, you will be learning the following:
Why you should start journaling in the new year 
Different types of journals to use 
How and why you should consider a bullet journal 
Types of goals and lists for a journal 
What a 5-minute gratitude journal is and how to use it 
Finding time to journal daily 
How to use the journal for your New Years’ resolutions 
Questions that help you get started with writing
Keep reading if you want to learn more about starting a journaling practice in the new 
year.

1. Why You Should Start Journaling in the New Year
Lots of people start journaling in January, and there are some clear benefits to doing so. 
Keeping a journal can help you to deal with stress, provide a serious mental boost, and 
even support your mental health. If you want to know why the new year is a good time 
to start journaling, here are some things to consider:

Stress Relief

Life can be stressful. While it is often possible to cut causes of stress out of your life, it 
isn't possible to eliminate it entirely. Instead, it is important to find healthy ways to deal 
with that stress. Journaling isn't the only option, but it is one of the best.

Journaling gives you a chance to sort through all of the things that happened during the 
day and work through your feelings about them. Since writing doesn't provoke strong 
emotions as easily as talking about things, it also gives you a little bit of distance that 
can help you to understand the situation. In some cases, it can even act as an outlet for 
anger or frustration that doesn't involve getting into a conflict with another human. 

Boosting Memory

Most people forget things far more often than they realize. Keeping a journal will give 
you an opportunity to take notes on your life while you still remember things clearly, so 
that you can check back on the details later. At a practical level, this will make sure that 
you can remember any good ideas that you have for when you have time to pursue 
them. At an emotional level, it will keep a record of the good times in your life so that 
you can look back on them when things are a little bit harder.

Getting Perspective

Humans don't remember all events equally. We tend to remember bad things more 
clearly than good things, and our emotional responses to events can change the way 
that we remember them over time. You can avoid that problem by writing things down in 
your journal and looking through them later. 

It will help you paint a picture of events as they really happened, which can give you 
valuable perspective on the balance of good and bad things in your life. It's just like 
looking at history to get a better grasp on how well the world is doing at the moment, but 
at a personal level.

Tracking Success

Your journal can also help if you find yourself getting discouraged when you try new 
things. That often happens when people focus on their failures and ignore their 
successes. If you write down your victories as they happen, you will get a clear record 
of your success. That will act as proof that you can succeed at things, and looking at 
that proof will be a powerful motivator when you feel discouraged in life.

It is a really amazing way to keep track of your New Years’ resolutions, no matter what 
they are, so that alone is a good reason to start journaling in January.

2. Types of Journaling to Choose From
When you want to journal in the new year, one thing you should know is that there are 
many types of journals to choose from. The type you decide on will depend on a 
number of factors, including whether or not you like to write, what the journal will be 
used for, and how often you want to use it. Think about your goals and reasons for 
journaling when deciding on which one is best for you. Here are a few ideas:
Simple Daily Journal
The first type of journal is a basic journal, similar to a diary. The great this about this 
type of journal is that you can write anything and everything in it. You might want a 
theme for the journal, such as using it to record what you eat and how often you work 
out if your New Years’ resolution is to lose weight, or you write down what you are 
thinking each day.
Some people also like to use these types of journals to record triggers for things like 
anxiety and depression. If you have been under a lot of holiday stress, it really helps to 
write all of your thoughts and feelings down in the journal. 
Bullet Journal
A bullet journal is one of the top types of journals to use in the new year. This journal is 
not going to rely on a lot of writing, but more organizing your life. It can be used for 
absolutely everything in your life, including what you do, what you want to do, birthdays 
and holidays, appointments and events, to-do lists, dreams, and so much more. 
You will learn more about bullet journaling in the next section, but here are a few things 
to include in a bullet journal:
Daily to-do lists 
Weekly and monthly calendars 
Lists of places to go or things to do 
Business plans 
Cleaning and errands scheduling 
Meal planning 
Tracking your weight, fitness, and other personal goals
Gratitude Journal
You can also start writing in a gratitude journal, which is a great way to journal in the 
new year and embrace your positive side. Instead of writing anything in the journal, it is 
reserved just fo talking about what you are grateful. Every day, you will have at least 
one thing you are happy about, whether that is your family, friends, job, pets, something 
that good that happened, or even simple joys like watching your favorite movie or 
buying something you have been wanting for a long time.
Tips for Starting a Gratitude Journal
Here are some different ways you can really benefit from the gratitude journal:
Write in it every day 
Try to set a timer for 5-10 minutes 
Do stream of consciousness writing (explained in next section) 
Keep it positive 
Write about as many things you are grateful for each day 
Bring it everywhere with you
Stream of Consciousness Journal
This type of journal is similar to the basic journal, but you don’t really have a theme or 
subject you are sticking to. With this type of journal, the goal is just to write whatever 
comes to mind first. This is another journal that benefits from having a timer. With a 
stream of consciousness journal, you just start writing without thinking too much about 
it. The point is not to think about what you want to write about. Just start doing it and 
see what comes out.
The options for journals in the new year truly are endless. Be creative and make a list of 
why you want to journal and what you want included in it when deciding which one will 
be the best fit for you.

3. How a Bullet Journal Can Help You
Journaling can help you stay organized and feel fulfilled. There are many different types 
of ways to journal. You can keep a stream of consciousness journal. You can journal 
weekly. Or you can use a journal to keep tabs on all the important happenings in your 
life. A bullet journal is a great way to document to do lists, events, and other milestones 
on a regular basis. As you make bullet journaling a habit, you'll begin to accrue a library 
of each year's activities. These are great mementos to look back on in the future. Here 
are a few ways a bullet journal can help you in the New Year:

Get Organized

If you've tried to keep a journal or planner before but find yourself getting off track, a 
bullet journal is a great way to get organized. Bullet journals lack the rigid structure of a 
planner. And bullet journals provide opportunities for personalization beyond pen color. 
There are a few standard approaches to a bullet journal, but it's up to you to make a 
bullet journal your own. These are some best practices:

Pick a notebook you love
Set aside the first few pages for an Index
Number all your pages
Label your pages appropriately 
Review and revise as needed

Many people choose to use a blank or grid-style notebook. These notebooks provide 
you with more flexibility than lined notebooks. The first few pages may stay blank for a 
while, but as you add content your index will grow. Your index can include topics, like 
planning a wedding or birthday party. Any time you write down information about that 
topic, put the page numbers in the index. It's important that you number all pages in 
order to stay organized. 

Use Symbols

Some people think that a bullet journal is just bullets. And those people are kind of 
correct. A bullet journal is based on bullets, but these bullets can be changed or 
modified to accurately reflect the status of a list item. For example, a single bullet can 
represent a task that needs to get done. But when you complete that task, you can 
change that bullet to an X to indicate a job is done. Some people use > and < symbols 
to "migrate" their bullets. 

Be Creative

A bullet journal provides you with the freedom to keep things as simple or as wild as you 
like. You can express your creativity with funky headlines, washi tape, colorful markers, 
or any other fun additions you'd like. Bullet journals free you from the conventional 
planner. Add what matters most to you, and enjoy seeing your life's story told one page 
at a time.

4. Types of Goals and Lists for Your New Years’ Journal
At some point, nearly everyone dreams of bigger, better things for their lives – the 
dreams of personal goals, family goals, or even business goals. As another new year 
approaches, many find the practice of journaling to be an effective way to record those 
goals and how to attain them, as well as reflections on personal development and 
growth.

Here are a few great suggestions of things to include in your new journal: 

Memories 

Many important events, both good and bad, happen in our lives, but unfortunately our 
minds can’t capture every single one of those experiences. Journaling is a great way to 
record those significant memories, including life milestones such as a graduation, 
reaching a certain age, or buying a first home. 

Personal Development

Want to lose 20 pounds or start a new business? Writing down personal goals, including 
step by step lists of how to reach those goals, is a great way to make use of a journal in 
the new year. 

Gratitude

In the midst of life’s challenges, maintaining a journal listing of all the things you have to 
be grateful for can be especially helpful. But hardship or trials aren’t required to keep 
such a list; jotting down expressions of gratitude, no matter how small, on a daily or 
weekly basis can help keep life in perspective through good times as well as bad. 

Quotes

Quotes are a great way to keep you inspired and motivated to reach particular goals or 
to persevere during difficult experiences. Get in the habit of writing them down in a 
journal so you can reflect on them whenever you need or want.

Bullet Journals

Many people also find great use in a bullet journal – a relatively new, creative way of 
journaling that helps maintain organized lists of goals and tasks. These journals can be 
kept by the day, week, or month, but rather than simply filling out a typical day planner 
or organizer, the blank pages of a bullet journal can be completely customized by the 
author. If the idea of bullet journaling intrigues you, some great journaling ideas can 
include: 

• Tracking finances/monthly savings goals
• Weight loss management/daily workout routines 
• Meal planning 
• Books read
• Relationship goals (such as spending more time with friends/family)
• Daily/weekly to-do lists 
• Educational goals 

One of the hardest things about journaling is actually getting started, but the fact is that, 
with a little discipline and creativity, journaling can become a fun, enjoyable, and even 
therapeutic habit to develop this new year.

5. The Power of a 5-Minute Gratitude Journal
The Social Psychologists Are on The Case

Are you looking for a way to enhance your feelings of gratitude in day-to-day life? 
Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania have shown amassed a body of research 
on the benefits of gratitude exercises, a subfield of positive psychology. Being grateful 
can be an incredible way to cope with stress, making you more resilient to begin with 
when facing stressors. There are simple strategies to nurture and increase feelings of 
gratitude in yourself, which can be easily be incorporated into your daily schedule by 
taking 5 minutes each day to document your progress in a gratitude journal.

Put it in Your Planner

Intentions are not the same thing as follow-through. Set aside time during the day to 
engage in this practice, such as while you are having your morning coffee or before you 
go to bed at night. These exercises are thought to bring your attention to the existing 
positive events happening throughout your day, you can greater steep yourself in these 
experiences, leading you to notice energizing things around you that been overlooked 
before. 

Often times we fail to appropriately savor these things, and they quickly become 
forgotten, leading us to dwell on the bad. Taking time to refresh these memories of 
pleasure and satisfaction is an incredible way to enhance your psychological and social 
health. Look back at your notes when you feel like your motivation needs a pick-me-up.

Different Ways of Engaging in Gratitude

You can note three good things, successes big or small that have happened to you 
during that day. These things can be relatively small in importance such as having a 
really good cup of coffee, or bigger successes such as completing a long-term project or 
making it to the gym. This can help you to put a positive tone on your day, and prevent 
you from getting stuck thinking about the things that you didn’t get done. 

Savor your successes and be grateful for the life that you have right at this very 
moment, break out of your lack-mentality. This is most effective however, if you keep it 
up. Try to do it at least once a week for as long as you can, likely you’ll begin to enjoy 
doing it so much that you’ll want to continue with your journal. 

Getting Others Involved

In addition to keeping a journal, by sending a heartfelt letter of thanks to someone in 
your life that you feel gratitude towards has been shown to lead to feelings of happiness 
and contentment. This can allow you to savor the connection with the other person, as 
well as strengthen your relationship as you show your appreciation. Working to nurture 
your sense of gratitude can have the effect of warding off depression and anxiety while 
instilling feelings of well-being.

6. Finding Time to Journal Every Day
Journaling is a habit that a good majority of people would love to get into. It's a way to 
document your life and get your worries, excitements and frustrations out onto paper. 
You might have heard experts claim that journaling helps with anxiety, depression and 
other mental health issues. You might be journaling for any one of these reasons, or 
you might just want to keep a journal because you want to remember small details that 
you're likely to forget in a year.

The New Year is the perfect time to start a journal and to stick with it all year. You'll find 
that it's fun and even informative to go over your journal a year from now and 
remembering all of the little things you did throughout the year. However, if you don't 
start in January and keep leaving it until "later", you'll likely never make it a habit.

Here are five tips for finding time to journal every day and actually get into the habit:

Try a Method That Works for You

You need to find a method of journaling that's right for you. If you're constantly on your 
tablet or computer at night, you might want to think about keeping a journal online. Not 
only are there tons of lockable journal websites that you can make a free account on, 
but there are tons of mobile apps as well. If you're a paper and pen type of person, get 
yourself a large notebook of your choosing and try to find a little time each day to journal 
your thoughts of the day.

Make it a Habit

The key to keeping up with your journal is to make it a habit. This might not come easy 
if you're not used to journaling every day, but over time, you'll notice that you feel off or 
weird when you skip a day. The key is to stick with it. If one morning you don't have time 
to journal, do it at night. Try to pick the same time every day so that it's just something 
you do, like brushing your teeth or showering.

Keep it Short and Simple

One issue that a lot of writers have when keeping a journal is that they get too detailed. 
If your journal entries are a mile long, you're probably not going to be able to write a 
post every single day without it taking an hour or longer. Keep your posts short, simple 
and sweet and you might even find that they're more enjoyable to read through later on. 
No one wants to read through an entire essay on how your day went, including the 
future you.

Make it Public

One way to keep yourself motivated to journal is to make the journal public online. If you 
have an online journal and don't care about privacy, keeping the journal public allows 
people to visit, view and comment on your entries. When other people show interest in 
your journal, you'll find that you begin to get motivated to write more often.

Customize Your Journal

Another method for getting into the habit of journaling is customizing your journal so that 
you'll want to write in it. If you have an online journal, you can grab a template or create 
your own so that you can customize it to your needs and interests. If you have a pen 
and paper journal, you can easily find a great-looking book and get a really nifty pen 
that you'll look forward to using every day.

Getting into the habit of journaling each day is a great way to keep tabs of what's going 
on. It's a good outlet for mental health issues ranging from anxiety to depression, and 
it's a wonderful source of memories that you might want or even need to go back to a 
year or two down the road. Be sure to utilize each of these methods so that you're able 
to find both the time and motivation to journal each day.

7. How to Use the Journal for Your New Years’ Resolutions
Your journal is a tool that can help you to keep your resolutions during the coming year. 
There are a few different techniques that you can use to help, so you can probably find 
at least one that meets your needs. It's best to give them all a try, and then mix and 
match to find a program that works for you.

Organize Your Plan

Planning is the key to success, especially if you have complex resolutions that involve 
dieting or other major life changes. Relying on a vague plan is a recipe for disaster, but 
you also need to be able to adjust your plan when necessary. The key to managing both 
of those things is your journal.

Start by writing out your plan for the first week or two of the year. As you progress 
through that period, take notes on where you succeeded or failed with it. Once you have 
done that, you can look back on your records and adjust your plan to deal with any 
problems. Repeat the process until you have something that works well!

Track Your Success

It's important to have big goals, but it can be hard to work towards those goals if you 
don't see any signs of success. Fortunately, this is another problem that you can solve 
with a journal and a little bit of planning.

Start by breaking up your big goals into a bunch of little ones that are easier to 
accomplish, and keep a list of those little goals in your journal. When you reach one of 
those goals, be sure to make a note of it. This will immediately give you a feeling of 
progress that can motivate you to take the next steps. If you ever feel discouraged, you 
can look back at your journal to see the progress that you have made and find the 
strength to keep going.

Emotional Support

Major life changes can be stressful, and resolutions are no exception to that rule. 
People who give in to stress are more likely to fail to achieve their resolutions than 
those who find a way to deal with that stress and keep working towards their goals. 
There are a lot of ways to do that, but journaling can be a vital part of a stress-relief 
program.

Writing about your experiences and how they made you feel will help you to work 
through those emotions and put them behind you. It will also give you a chance to look 
back at the past when you feel stressed. Since it usually gets easier to keep resolutions 
as time passes, that will give you a chance to see how far you have come. It will replace 
feelings of failure and anxiety with a feeling of success, and that will help you to keep 
working at your goals.

8. Simple Questions to Help You Decide What to Journal About
If you want to write in a journal in the new year, but aren’t sure where to start, you’re not 
alone. The hard part is often figuring out what you should write about. Journaling 
prompts are a great way to get a little more insight into what to write about, but the 
simplest type of prompt is a question. So, here are some questions that you can answer 
in journal entries, making it easier to start with a new year’s journaling practice. 
1. What do you want to accomplish this year?
2. Do you have any personal health goals? Maybe you want to lose weight or reach 
some fitness goals.
3. What made you want to start a journal?
4. Did something good happen to you today?
5. What is one goal this week that you can accomplish?
6. What are 10 things you want to accomplish this year?
7. What actionable steps can you do to make your first goal a reality?
