How to Journal to Create Your Best-Self
Hello, my name is Diana Ruiz, a licensed mental health therapist in the Chicago-land-area.
Have you ever felt "stuck" somewhere in your life? Perhaps you often think about what you want to do, and how you want to feel? You may even think about "being better" and feel happy, but somehow you continue to feel stuck. You think about how hard it is to be "unstuck" and feel in the same place. Feeling stuck in your life is complicated, but there are ways to create your best self and start living your best life. So let's get started on your journey to be your best self!
What does it mean to feel "stuck." Feeling stuck may include:
• Not accomplishing your goals.
• Not feeling good about where you are right now.
• Not feeling good about yourself.
• Experiencing intense emotions.
• Feeling stressed.
The truth is that you are where you need to be. Your challenges may be an opportunity to learn about yourself. The growth that can come from your challenges can be life-changing.
Creating your best self can be challenging and or confusing about where to start. It may not be the first time you have thought about how to live your best self and feel consistently grounded. Finding methods or plans and sticking to them long enough to see your best self is challenging.
I want to share the essential tools you need to create your best self using your journal.
In this blog post, I will share five steps to create your best self and start living the life you want and desire. I will share important steps to take and share journal prompts.
We will go over:
• Visualizing your best self
• Self-Assessment
• Establishing your goals
• Knowing your barriers and how to overcome them
• Self-Love, acceptance, and believing
Visualize your Best Self
First, let's set some time to journal and visualize what your best self is like. As you envision your best self, don't let yourself limit what the best can look like. Don't restrict the possibilities; in other words, make sure you dream big.
Both guided and free journaling have benefits. As you complete the prompts below, it is ok to start with the guided prompts and then flow into free journaling.
So as the saying goes, here we go! Use these journal prompts to envision and visualize your best self. While journaling the following prompts, write in the present tense and be as detailed as possible.
What does your best self look like?
What does your best self feel like?
What does your best self do daily?
Does she work, is she a stay-at-home mom, does she run her business, does she work 9-5, does she have most of her time to herself?
What is your best self's ideal routine?
When do you wake up?
What do you do first thing in the day?
What does your day look like?
What does your best self's life look like?
What does her month and year look like?
Journal about what your best self's relationships look like and feel like?
How much money is she making monthly?
What material possessions does she own (maybe just basic needs)?
What activities is she involved with?
2. Self-Assessment
Self-assessment is the best way to start. Assessment involves gaining information and knowing where you are now. The evaluation also involves knowing your history and clarifying what you want and where you are today.
As you complete the journal prompts below, find areas you want to track. Track where you are now, and track your progress. Tracking progress is crucial because you may miss the smallest progress you are making. Then if you don't see improvement, you may give up. Remember, progress is made in small steps.
Below are journal prompts to help you complete a self-assessment. Use your journal to write about the following journal prompts focused on assessment.
Generally, how do you feel?
What are your challenges?
Describe them in detail.
Make a list of them for quick reference.
What are you looking to work on?
Currently, what causes stress, emotional stress, or anxiety?
Do your stressors, distress, and emotional state interfere with your functioning? If so, how?
What problems are you encountering right now?
What emotions do you encounter lately and frequently?
What is the status of your health?
Have you noticed patterns in your life that are troublesome?
Does your history interfere with being your best self? If so, write about it.
3. Goals - Be Clear about Your Goals
Identify Goals
Now that you have clarified your challenges let's move forward with your goals. Let's keep the goals clear and in your mind but remember that goals are the destination. It's important to enjoy the journey as you work on your goals. Finally, remember that many goals need to be kept up with, like weight loss, health, mental health, etc. Finally, make sure not to forget that challenges, setbacks, and barriers are a normal part of progress and should not deter you.
What are your goals?
Make a list of them
Describe the goals in detail
Identify how you want to track progress
Visualize them
Find a way to visualize your goals (vision board, reminders, etc.)
How will you feel when you have your goals
Tips and Tricks to Identify Steps
In your journal, identify the steps for your goals
Breakdown down your goals into steps and the steps into "tiny steps."
Create habits and tasks to complete your tiny steps.
Schedule your tasks.
When you fall off the wagon, get back up.
When working on your goals, know that you will encounter barriers, challenges, and setbacks; this is part of the process.
When you encounter challenges, address them.
4. Get to Know your Blocks and Negative Thoughts
Negative thoughts are exhausting and stressful. You must address negative thoughts to feel your best and work towards your best self. Another reason to address irrational, negative thoughts or overthinking is that they are often connected to anxiety and depression. Negative thoughts and overthinking often cause us to feel on edge, anxious, depressed, and "bad" about ourselves. It is important to journal and increase your awareness of negative thoughts to create your best self, feel good, and accomplish your goals.
In your journal, track your negative thoughts. These thoughts maybe include
Pessimistic thoughts
Excessive worry
Overthinking
Self-abusive thoughts
Self-sabotage
Hurtful thoughts about yourself
Irrational fears
Negative thoughts often get in the way of obtaining goals and feeling our best selves; therefore, managing these thoughts is imperative to creating your best self. Once you have identified your negative thoughts, here is what you can do:
Evaluate how accurate your thoughts are
Identify facts/evidence that supports your negative thought
Identify facts/evidence that DOES NOT support the negative thought
Balance your negative thoughts
Consider if there is a different way to see the situation
Develop self-talk, affirmations, and coping statements to read daily
I want to emphasize how important it is to address your negative thoughts to create your best self. Negative thoughts are the root of self-sabotage, anxiety, and the blocks to creating your best self.
Need more help managing and reducing your negative thoughts? Do you need some extra help managing anxiety? Snatch the workbook, "Control Your Negative Thoughts and Stop Overthinking" The workbook has 73 pages of tools and worksheets to help you reduce anxiety and manage your mental health. "Control Your Negative Thoughts and Stop Overthinking" is also a workbook for self-help, self-improvement, and Build the life you want. GET IT HERE NOW! The printable journal includes all the tools you need to create your best self and manage your negative thoughts. The workbook includes therapeutic techniques and methods.
5. Self-Love, Acceptance, and Believing
As you go about your journey of journaling to create your best self, accept where you are today. Self-love and acceptance of your present are an integral part of the process. Acceptance in this journey is essential. Putting yourself down or hating yourself for not being where you want to be is counterproductive. It is important to accept that you (or anyone) are not perfect, and we are humans that are constantly growing, developing, and changing. Love and accept all of you; physically, emotionally, and intellectually. Love your personality and what makes you, you. Throughout this process, treat yourself the way you would treat a friend, family, or even a child, with encouraging words, support, and cheerleading. Be your cheerleader constantly.
Believing that you can be where you want to be is also imperative. Believing and having hope is a practice, not a state. You will need to practice having hope and thinking you can accomplish all your goals. Without that initial thought, you are less likely to make a plan and take action. Here are a few journal prompts to help you practice self-love and hope:
1. Make a list of things you want to give yourself credit for today. Think about big things but also the day's most "minor" accomplishments.
2. What do I like about myself?
3. What are my best characteristics and personality traits?
4. What strengths do I have? How can I use them?
5. If you have negative thoughts about yourself, look for facts and information that make your negative thinking false.
Warmly,
Diana Ruiz, MA, LCPC