To operate from a state of expanded possibility, we first have to prime our internal environment to support limitless thinking. Journaling can be a great way to check in with yourself, identify any emotions that may consume valuable mental real estate, and let them go.

Journal Prompts for Checking In

If you have not read the first two articles in this series I invite you to start with Journaling as the Art of Self-Reflection and The Power of “Pre-Day” Journaling. Then, come back to this post and you’ll get the most out of the journaling practices and prompts.

• How does my mind feel right now?
• Where do I feel this emotion in my body?
• How do I want to feel?

Journaling Prompts to Explore Expanded Possibility

With a clear mind, think of the most prominent challenge you are currently navigating. Describe the situation with one clear line of text.

Now, take a couple of long, slow, deep breaths and answer the following questions:

• What if everything went right?
• What would unfold?
• Who would be involved?
• How would I feel?

These questions naturally open our minds to thinking from a place of expanded possibility. Not to say that everything will go as planned or be perfect, but ideating from a perspective of possibility versus limitation allows for new paths and ideas to surface.

Pro Tip: Experiment with different journaling ideas and mediums such as drawing or capturing audio notes in the Day One app to activate different parts of your mind and expand your thinking.

Rechanneling Limiting Beliefs

Let’s also be honest and real with ourselves. At some point, old programming can kick in, surfacing limiting beliefs that try their very best to undermine our progress and diminish the incredible thinking you just materialized. Take care not to let negative thoughts and language creep in and steal your motivation and inspiration.

Some examples of limiting beliefs include:

• “I can’t…”
• “I can never…”
• “I don’t have enough…”
• “No one will…”

Thoughts like these will drain your energy. Thankfully, we can leverage journaling to short-circuit this programming before it happens.

How to Journal Through Limiting Beliefs

While your mind is in a state of possibility, turn to preventative mental fitness and journaling techniques to prepare for the limiting beliefs that will attempt to hijack your mind.

1. Start by listing the limiting beliefs that typically circulate in your mind. 

2. Next to each of them, write one line about a previous accomplishment that you are proud of and how you mentally overcame this particular limiting belief. For example, think of a moment when you initially felt scared, but conquered the situation and felt proud of yourself. 

3. Repeat this exercise for each limiting belief. 

In a matter of minutes, you will generate a “stack of experiences,” reminding yourself of your capabilities and helping maintain a mindset of possibility.

Pro Tip: In the Day One app, create a separate journal, tag, or favorite journal entries that can immediately shift your mind into a state of possibility.

Wrapping Up: Journaling to More Possibilities  

Having studied the minds of many remarkable humans, such as Maya Angelou, Kobe Bryant, and Picasso, to name a few, I noticed that they all share one common characteristic in living rich with expanded states of possibility: They prioritized time to calm their minds, and reflect.

It’s in these moments of reflection that we can train our minds to be clear, focused, and intentional. And over time, through a consistent journaling practice, opportunities and ideas will naturally surface.

Marc Champagne is the author of Personal Socrate: Better Question, Better Life, a best-selling book exploring the pointed questions that stimulate our mental fitness and teach us how to direct our internal narrative to work for us instead of against us. He is the host of the top 50 ranked podcast Behind The Human, unpacking mental fitness practices and reflective questions shaping the lives of some of the most successful and brilliant thinkers in the world.

The post Attaining a State of Expanded Possibility Through Journaling appeared first on Day One | Your Journal for Life.

The Segments of a Day

Your day can be segmented into three time periods:

• Pre-day
• Day (~9 a.m. – 5 p.m.)
• Evening

What is “Pre-Day”?

Evaluate Your “Pre-Day” Routine & Priorities

What does your pre-day look like? Does it exist? Can it exist? The answer is yes! And you can do so without completely disrupting your current routine.  

1. List everything you typically do from the moment your eyes open to when you start interacting with the outside world. And if grabbing your phone to check in with the world is the first thing you do when your eyes open, I invite you to give yourself and your mind a 10-minute gift of zero input from the outside world. You’ll thank me later! 

2. Now, reflect on your pre-day list of everything you typically do first thing in the morning, and identify the moments when your mind is most quiet. Start by looking at natural instances of stillness in your day-to-day, the regular occurrences of your routine. For example, as your coffee brews, or your tea steeps, try checking in with yourself.

3. Once your pre-day priorities are identified, stay true to them. For example, have you ever intended to work out first thing in the morning but woke up tired and negotiated with yourself to work out later in the day? Yes, I’ve been there too, and we all know the conclusion to this negotiation—the day unfolds and the workout is squeezed out for moments requiring our immediate attention. Those “urgent” situations typically don’t exist during the pre-day, allowing the opportunity to direct our attention on ourselves.  

Pre-Day Journal Prompts

Here are three journaling prompts to get you started with pre-day journaling:

1. How do I feel today (one word)?
2. Where do I feel this in my body?
3. How do I want to feel today?

Pro Tip: Leverage hashtags in Day One to easily tag and track your mood (i.e., #anxious, #grateful, #energized) to spot trends. 

This simple sequence of pre-day journal prompts can be answered in under 5 minutes and has the power to influence your entire day. Because here’s the reality: the emotions you identify while your coffee is brewing are present whether you ask the questions or not. But by reflecting on these prompts, you start the day with a clear and primed mind. 

Pro Tip: Prompts are helpful to start or spice up your practice but are not essential. I often open Day One to a blank screen and start writing whatever comes to mind. It’s like taking my mind to the spa first thing in the morning.

More Daily Journal Prompts

Now, I realize that the early morning is not for everyone, and I can feel this question coming at me: What if I’m just not a morning person? 

I’ve got you covered because there are many journal prompts below to guide your practice at different times of the day. I’ve emphasized “pre-day” because from my research, this time of day provides the highest probability of delivering consistent results, but not at the expense of holding you back from establishing a journaling practice in the first place.

The trick is to design a practice that you’ll look forward to and that integrates into your existing routine. For example, you could try noting a few reflections from your day while on your commute back home or calming your mind before going to sleep with a couple of gratitude prompts. Start with what feels most aligned for you, be open, and experiment with different times of day to find the flow that works best. 

Now, let’s get to the daily journal prompts! Follow your intuition and start with the prompts you feel most called to answer.

Morning and Afternoon Journal Prompts

• What would make today great?
• What would leave me feeling accomplished today?
• What deserves my energy and focus right now?
• How do I want to show up for myself and others?
• What’s one step forward that I can take?

Evening Wind Down Journal Prompts

• What did I learn today?
• What would I have changed today?
• What can I celebrate today?
• How am I different from yesterday?
• Imagine my greatest desires materializing; what do they look and feel like?

Journal Prompts for High-Pressure Situations

• What is within my control right now?
• Is the energy I’m giving this situation warranted?
• Who am I without this thought?
• What can I learn and celebrate about this situation?
• What if everything went right?

Wrapping Up: Find a Journaling Practice that Works for You, No Matter the Time of Day

Your journaling practice is just that, a practice. Pre-day journaling can be one of the many ways you unlock the benefits of journaling to start each day with a clear and primed mind. Be patient and kind to yourself. Experiment with different times of day and flows that integrate with your current rituals and routines. Over time, you’ll slowly adjust and shape your practice in support of the life you are designing.

Marc Champagne is the author of Personal Socrate: Better Question, Better Life, a best-selling book exploring the pointed questions that stimulate our mental fitness and teach us how to direct our internal narrative to work for us instead of against us. He is the host of the top 50 ranked podcast Behind The Human, unpacking mental fitness practices and reflective questions shaping the lives of some of the most successful and brilliant thinkers in the world.

The post The Power of “Pre-Day” Journaling appeared first on Day One | Your Journal for Life.

In short, both examples—and many others—can be described as journaling. What is rarely discussed or understood is the practice behind journaling. When you understand the practice, a whole other world of use cases opens up, many of which have stood the test of time and can be used by anyone, in any situation. 

The Practice Behind Journaling

So, what is the practice behind journaling? Self-Reflection.

According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, the definition of journaling is: 

“A record of experiences, ideas, or reflections kept regularly
for private use”

When it comes to questions, there’s a difference between casual banter with a friend around a question like, “Where would you like to live?” versus taking the time to reflect on a series of journal prompts. Self-reflection journal prompts dig deeper, such as: 

• What is most important to me about where I live?
• Which city supports the life I’m creating?
• What location feels most aligned to me? 

There’s nothing wrong with banter between friends as it often leads to insights you may not have reached on your own. But, I invite you to take your journaling practice one step further by reflecting on a series of intentional self-reflection journaling prompts. You will reach deeper insights to help make clear, smart and aligned decisions. 

We can save tremendous time, resources and mental capacity when taking a moment to pause and journal to a clear decision.

For example: Think of the most significant moments in your life and reflect on how you arrived at those decisions. 

• How did I make those decisions? 
• What went well? 
• What would I have changed? 

Pro Tip: You can create a personalized journal template of prompts in Day One to reflect on when making big decisions. 

Now that we’ve moved past the flickering candle scene and have expanded the definition of journaling to include self-reflection as the practice of journaling itself, a whole other world of benefits will surface from new ideas to increased mental clarity and the opportunity to design your future life.

Imagine if you set out on a walk while listening to your favorite podcast and were able to apply the learnings of that episode to your life, in real-time, through journaling. Or what if you recorded a quick audio note to capture a new idea while on vacation, or during your commute? 

Pro Tip: Leverage the features in Day One to create journal entries by adding media to entries such as photos, videos, drawings or even audio recordings. Personally, I often use the audio feature and love how the recording is immediately transcribed.

Before we get ahead of ourselves (because the possibilities are exponential), I invite you to first reflect on what you want to get out of a journaling practice and why it’s important to you. Clarifying your “why” will lead to a more consistent and integrated practice. There is no right or wrong answer, only what feels most aligned for you.

• Where would I like more clarity in my life/work?
• What do I want to get out of my journaling practice?
• How do I want to feel after journaling?

In the next article, we’ll discuss how a clear and aligned objective will help design an integrated (not forced) and personalized journaling flow that serves you.

This post is the first of a three-part series designed to help you understand the fundamentals and practice behind journaling; how you can establish, upgrade and personalize your own writing practice, and what we can learn from the world-class thinkers who also employ this technique. From New York Times best-selling authors to Michelin Star chefs and award-winning designers, they all share one thing in common: they journal.

Marc Champagne is the author of Personal Socrate: Better Question, Better Life, a best-selling book exploring the pointed questions that stimulate our mental fitness and teach us how to direct our internal narrative to work for us instead of against us. He is the host of the top 50 ranked podcast Behind The Human, unpacking mental fitness practices and reflective questions shaping the lives of some of the most successful and brilliant thinkers in the world.

The post Journaling as the Art of Self-Reflection appeared first on Day One | Your Journal for Life.