Lately, it seems everywhere I look, someone is talking about establishing a morning routine to set ourselves up for a successful productive day. Some of the most successful people in the country start their day, every day, the same way. Everyone from Rachel Hollis to Oprah has talked about their morning routines, and those routines include journaling. Journaling is a form of self-care that allows us to find clarity from our thoughts and feelings, get to know ourselves on a different level, and can be a creative outlet or just an outlet.

                As I’ve mentioned before I am a HUGE advocate for self-care. Self-care is the single most important thing we can do for ourselves. It doesn’t have to cost any money, and it doesn’t have to take up a lot of time. You can easily fit in 5-30 minutes of self-care every day. Some ideas include meditation, read your Bible, exercise, listening to music/podcast/audiobook, journaling, or soaking in the tub. All these things can be done for free and require minimal time to do them. If you do have more time to devote to a self-care practice you can add things together. For instance, I like to start my day by drinking my pre-workout supplement then reading a devotional book and writing in my journal for 20 minutes before I do my workout. This helps me start my day on a positive note. By clearing my head and getting my exercise in, I’m setting a positive intention for the day, and I feel a sense of accomplishment before the day really begins.

                Most people find journaling to be a daunting task. I know I did the first time I sat down to an empty piece of paper with the hopes of pouring my thoughts on to it. The concept of daily journaling is not new. There are records all the way back to the beginning of time where people wrote down their thoughts, feelings, struggles, and triumphs. But sometimes getting started is hard. Or maybe getting started is easy because you are excited, but you quickly begin to struggle with what to say.

That’s where I come in! I have compiled a list of 21 journal writing prompts. Why 21? Why not 30? I chose 21 because evidence suggests it take 21 days to form a habit. When starting a new practice, you must give it your all for the first 21 days, and then it becomes more natural because it’s a habit, and you don’t have to think about it as much.

                Before you begin your journaling practice, you must set realistic, journaling goals. Start small with a 5-minute goal. Read the prompt for the day and set a timer for five minutes. If you aren’t done at the end of 5 minutes keep going. If at the end of the week you are consistently going over the 5 minutes increase the time, if not keep it at 5 minutes and reevaluate the next week.

Day 1

Plan out your morning routine. What activities would help you start your day best? DO you need a cup of coffee before you can think about the day? DO you enjoy a morning workout? How much time can you give yourself in the morning? Get up an extra 30 minutes or an hour before everyone else and see what you can accomplish. Write down the plan and make it a goal to do that plan every morning for the next 21 days.

Day 2

Describe your strengths and weaknesses. How can you turn your weaknesses into strengths? Are they really weaknesses or things you don’t like about yourself?

Day 3

Do you have a happy place or a place you think of as safe? It can be real or imaginary. Describe it. What about it makes you feel safe.

Day 4

Think about your family’s traditions. They can be positive or negative. Do you look forward to them? Have you incorporated childhood traditions into your adult life?

Day 5

List 5 things you are grateful for and why.

Day 6

List 3 activities that bring you joy and why.

Day 7

List 2 things you generally say yes to and 2 things you typically say no to. Are there things you say yes to often that you should say no to? Are there things you say no to that you should say yes to?

Day 8

List 3 qualities that you aspire to and why.

Day 9

List 5 roles or labels you feel define you. Why did you choose these things? Are they your truth? Can they be changed? Can your perception of the role/label be changed?

Day 10

Write a letter to a loved one, living or past. It can be about anything. Do you want to tell someone how much you love them or a lost relative about all the things that have happened since they passed?

Day 11

Think of the one thing you need most right now. How can you communicate that need to a particular person?

Day 12

Think about your job. Do you have a traditional job, do you work from home, or do you stay home and manage the family? Do you get satisfaction for what you do daily? How would you change it?

Day 13

Think about your relationship with food. Do you feel you have a healthy or unhealthy relationship with food? Do your feelings affect the foods you eat? Do crave certain foods when you are stressed?

Day 14

Revisit your morning routine. Have you stuck with it? How has it changed? Does something need to change?

Day 15

Think about a time when you felt an emotion very strongly. Was it a positive or negative emotion? Did you have a physical reaction to the emotion? Did the emotion affect your interaction with your environment? What did hear and smell? By expressing your emotional state through your physical experience of it, you’re able to probe into the heart of it.

Day 16

Think back on yesterday’s prompt. Can you do the same thing with your current state? What emotions are you experiencing right now? What is your physical response to it?

Day 17

Describe your relationship with your spouse or significant other.

Day 18

Describe your relationship with your children. If you don’t have children, reflect on your childhood relationship with your parents.

Day 19

Describe your relationship with your parents.

Day 20

Describe your relationship with your siblings. If you don’t have siblings, reflect on your life as an only child.

Day 21

Think about your friendships. Is there one that is more significant than the rest? Is there one that needs more or less of your attention?

Once you have completed these 21 days, I hope that you will find it easier to sit with your thoughts a moment and write about what is on your heart that day. If you still have trouble, consider making a list of topics as you go about your day. Thoughts that re enter your mind, events that have occurred, a theme in the service at church. Writing prompts are everywhere, you just have to stop and look for them. Just remember, journaling is for you. It’s not intended to be shared unless you choose to share it.

I challenge each of you to give journaling a try. I find it to be relaxing to reflect on my thoughts and experiences. To open our own eyes to ourselves and the beauty within.