Category: journaling

January 21, 2019

The key to everything you ever wanted to be…

…is right now.

Whatever you’re doing right now determines your future.

Let me explain...

So, I just got done with a really powerful journaling session. I didn’t intend for it to be seen by anyone other than me, but after it came out of me, I felt like I should definitely share it.

It just kind of poured out.

And the message was too important to not share.

So, I’ll publish this rather private peek into my journal hoping whoever needs to see this will.

{BTW, if you don’t journal yet, you need to. Here’s what grownup journaling looks like for me.}

I use journaling to realign with my goals every single morning.
I use journaling to “think out loud” and follow thoughts further than I would in my head.
I use journaling to identify obstacles to my goals and then move past them.

That’s what happened this morning. I identified an obstacle (trusting everything to the future) and moved past it.

I hope this article gives you….

An example of how to journal
Inspiration to live in the present moment
A journal prompt to prompt actual visceral change in your life

The key to everything you ever wanted to be…is right now

I realized this weekend,

I feel like I’m constantly in a state of ready-for-the-next-thing.

Anticipation.

Expectancy.

I’m thinking about what I have to get done later today, Wednesday, next month.

I’m anticipating the errands, the bills, the events, the responsibilities.

As though everything good actually happens in the future.

As though right now isn’t important or exciting enough.

But the thing is…

And this is important. So take note.

The thing is, everything about right now sets the precedent for the future.

Your habits…

How you use your time…

The work you do today…paves the path for what happens later today, Wednesday, next month.

We are the product of our daily habits, emotional responses, what we’re doing right now (any now).

So, in order to get to the outcome you want in the future, you need to string back your focus to today, right now.

Right now,

I’m drinking water to hydrate, because I know it’s a key to a healthy body.

I’m journaling because it awakes my goals every morning.

I’m at the dining room table. I don’t have to get up and go into the cold at all today.

I’m thinking about the Super wolf blood moon last night and what the dog is up to.

And thinking about how all of the above contributes to my future.

Hmmmm….

Right now is the truth of what’s going on in your life.

The future doesn’t hold the answers. Everything doesn’t just miraculously end up fixed in the future.

Well, it could, depending on what actions you take right now, but…

Right now is the truth of what’s going on in your life.

Right now is the way to change the future.

If you want to get fit, you need to start right now. Drink a huge cup of water, pull the workout up on your phone, order the eggs and asparagus.

If you want to establish your business, you need to take action right now, not plan for it sometime in the future.

If you want to be more confident, you need to sit up straight in your chair and hold your chest proud right now.

(Did you just sit up straighter? I did!)

You need to interrupt the discourse in your head that says “who do you think you are?” and replace it with “I have the confidence of Cleopatra.”

Right now.

If you want people to see you as the leader of a revolution, you need to embody that right this instant.

If you feel like you know who the “this is who I really am” version of yourself is, then you need to live into it right now, not wait for some future version of you to turn around and wait for you to catch up.

Because you’ll never be able to catch up.

That future version of you stays at the same arm’s length away as it always has, no matter what.

So, you need to do it right now.

What you do right now determines your future.

Not the other way around.

What are you waiting for?

Get out your journal and free-write about who you want to be and what you can do right now to be that person.

March 23, 2017

Change Your Life On Your Lunch Break: Grownup Journaling

*This post contains an affiliate link for a book I personally adore, but it doesn’t affect the cost to you in any way.

Dear diary,

Ugh! So much angst wells up inside of me from just those two words. Does it for you too?

Those words feel embarrassing. They drip with teenage restlessness and elementary immaturity.

So much so that I never revisited keeping a diary for a decade. And I’m guilty of rolling my eyes at people that suggest it. #timewaster

But now…

This is an incredibly juicy topic for me. It makes me light up. It makes me want to jump up and down while I tell you about it breathlessly.

So, picture me jumping up and down with a geeky smile on my face as I tell you about it, m’kay?

How to journal as a modern mature woman

First of all, let me introduce you to the woman who ignited this giddy pleasure within me.

Kat Loterzo and her book: How to Journal and Make Sh*t Happen!: The Book Every Woman Craving an Exceptional Life Must Own!

It’s a whopping $3 on Amazon, so just get it and start devouring!

I was turned onto the world of journaling again by this crazy beautiful wild woman, whom I’ve now hired as my mentor.

Her way of journaling as a modern, mature woman has finally clicked with me in a way that nothing has before!

See, I’ve dabbled in art journaling, which was like the perfect marriage between journaling and scrapbooking. I purchased this course (not available for sale anymore) and never finished it because it just didn’t have any relevant, immediate value to me. It was just pretty for pretty’s sake, and mostly felt like an unproductive use of time in the grand scheme.

The difference with Kat’s style of journaling is that EVERYTHING about it is meaningful. Not one bit of it is a waste of time. It’s no-fuss and it’s not necessarily pretty. But it’s absolutely life changing!

It’s hard to explain until you try it, but this kind of journaling unleashes something inside of you. It builds you into the person you want to be. And it helps you sort through your barriers to…anything. Which is really handy when you have a goal that you think seems unreachable.

Let me try to explain it as best as I can.

First, what is the purpose of this journaling?

To change your life.

Moving on…

Haha, no, but really. That’s the short answer. The answer you’ll figure out when you make journaling a regular habit for yourself. But let me try to explain it in a more practical and less esoteric sense.

Journaling realigns you with your goals every single day. You know how you have that Post-it on your computer or that sheet buried in a binder somewhere that lists out all your goals for the year? When’s the last time you looked at it?

Exactly.

With journaling, you rewrite your goals every single day until they become so real to you, that you can’t help but make them happen. They stay in front of you every day. And each time you write them out, you get the feels from them. They stay front and center in your mind.

Journaling gives you a sense of purpose. Instead of treating each day like a race to the weekend, running on autopilot, and just doing what’s necessary to get by, journaling helps you focus on your short-term goals and your big picture life purpose goals.

News flash: You can live with intention rather than being dragged along.

First of all, you might have to journal to “figure out” what your life purpose is to begin with. Then, once you figure it out, you can journal it into focus. And journaling about it gives you a sense of purpose and gives you an opportunity to re-commit every single day, especially once you make journaling an everyday habit.

Journaling makes your dreams tangible. Bringing your goals into focus in a clear way, every single day, makes them easier to visualize, tangible even. It brings them into focus. Doing so makes them much easier to achieve.

Journaling helps you uplevel your life. You know my motto, the one that keeps popping up everywhere on my site because it’s so close to my heart? ~Better every day. That’s exactly what journaling helps me to do. Be a little bit better every day.

I might journal about what’s not going quite right in my life and why to find an answer. I might journal about ways to make little parts of my life even better, like holding flowers in your hands instead of walking around empty-handed. Or drinking out of a gilded wine glass instead of a plastic cup.

Yeah, things like that. But also BIG things like turning myself into an online influencer. Journaling helps me to think bigger and reach higher.

Journaling helps you figure out your blocks. And by blocks I mean, whatever is standing in your way to getting to your goals. Say your goal is to become a coach, but you keep telling yourself that the barrier to entry is so high that you don’t even now if you should bother. You would journal through that.

See, the difference between journaling and just “wondering” is that when you wonder inside your head, you don’t get very far. Your wonder wanders. With journaling, you can key in on your wonder for as long as necessary. And you can’t forget what you’ve written down, but you can forget thoughts you have.

Journaling helps you raise your vibe. Whenever I’m feeling kind of flat or even distressed, I know that an elevated high is just a pen and journal away. I’ll just grab my journal and work through the feelings until I’m energetically high again.

I’ll ask myself “why do I feel so down today?” and “what would make me feel better right now?” and “what can I be thankful for right now?” Immediately upon penning the answers, I will feel my vibe rising and my mood elevating. Even just writing this post about journaling is making my energy rise. It’s a mental health trick I use all the time!

Journaling redirects my mind to the good things. Once you get into the habit of journaling what you’re thankful for, your mind will be trained on all the things to be thankful for.

Journaling makes me a better writer. You know how they say that to be a better writer, you need to practice writing every day? Journaling is my Two Birds, One Stone. With my writing, I am able to capture emotion in my reader. And I have journaling to thank for a lot of that. Practicing reflection really helps nail those emotional triggers on the head.

Journaling is an idea incubator. One of Kat’s exercises in her book above is to use journaling to help you come up with ideas. And this happens to me all the time now. I come up with article ideas, program ideas, kid activities, pitching ideas, you name it. I am an idea machine.

The magical thing about journaling is you can write something down, let it germinate for awhile, and see what happens. For example, I came across several people on Facebook that were doing really interesting work and I wrote down what they were doing and why they fascinated me. Then, I came up with my own program ideas based on that! I am also in the practice of writing lists daily, so my mind is trained to come up with more, more, ever more.

Writer’s block is not a thing for me.

Journaling equips me for daily productivity. My favorite question to ask myself in my journal is, what do I want today to be about? When I focus on that right away in the morning, it equips me for the most productive of days. It gives me a focal point and something to shoot for. And on the days when I do that, I actually am more productive.

How do you actually journal?

I mean, it sounds too simple, right? But how do you actually approach it?

You get out a pen and notebook and you start asking yourself some reflective questions (like the ones below) and working through them. Or you just start writing about what’s on your mind right NOW. Or what you’ve been thinking about lately. Or who you want to be.

Don’t think too hard about what to write, just let anything come out. Even if you don’t feel like saying anything, write down “I don’t feel like saying anything today. Why is that?” And go from there.

Sure, you could ask yourself these questions without writing them down, but it will never be effective or life-changing to just “think about” these things. I’ve tried that. I’ve tried just thinking about what I want my life to look like, but “thinking about it” doesn’t hold my attention for longer than about 10 seconds. I get distracted. My mind wanders in a million directions.

There’s something really effective about writing it down, bringing it into and keeping it in focus, that actually allows you to work through your thoughts better than just “thinking,” if that makes sense.

I will also say, don’t waste time with all the pretty stuff like stickers, washi tape, decorative hand-lettering, and heart-dotted I’s: that’s a waste of time. Once you start writing, it will come at you faster than you can keep up with. And if you’re a high achieving person like me, you’ll find all that stuff to be a waste of precious productive time.

You don’t need to take too long writing either. I literally set an online timer for 15 minutes every morning as part of my morning routine. And since this article is about changing your life on your lunch break, this would be a phenomenal way to use your lunch hour–or even one of your 15 minute breaks.

Journaling isn’t just something that “sounds nice” in theory, it’s a game changer, a life changer. It changes everything. I dare you to try!

I hope you’re as excited about this as I am now! Because I want you to try it, to feel the energetic lift that I feel every day from journaling, I created some journaling prompts to get you started.

Journaling prompts

What am I feeling unsettled about today and why?
What do I want today to be about? (I use this one daily)
If I were living the life I’ve always dreamed, what would I be doing? How can I live that TODAY? (inspired by Kat)
If I look around the room I’m in right now, what do I have to be grateful for?
If I chose to be lighthearted and joyful right now, what would I be doing?
What does my perfect day look like?
What is the version of me that I want to be every day?
What is my personal mission statement?

I typed up 26 kick-butt journaling prompts like this in a pretty little document for you to get you started on this life-changing journey. Give it a shot, and then stop back here and gush about how it’s working for you. Get it here:

***Note: after you fill out the form, the link to the prompts is on the following screen.

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So, tell me…

When’s the last time you journaled? Have I convinced you to start again, in a new way? If you regularly journal already, what has it done for your life?

February 24, 2016

My Favorite Planner Notebook: Staples Arc System

Oh, the Arc System, how I love thee. I was first introduced to these notebooks when I was searching for a graduation gift for one of my interns. She was an uber-organized, Type-A person who I knew would appreciate what these had to offer. Once I found them and bought one for her, I knew I absolutely had to have one for myself. I used the notebook as a reward for myself for when I passed my NASM exam.

Meet the Arc System. I’m having a love affair with them. Don’t tell Hubster.

Check out this video to peek into my planner on YouTube.

Staples and Office Max both have their own versions of this notebook, as do Levenger, Rollabind and Martha Stewart. In fact, they’re all compatible with each other. What these notebooks consist of are circular disks (which come in various sizes) that the paper attaches to. But each page is entirely removable and then replaceable. What makes that so amazing is that its a perpetual notebook that works forever. You can continue tearing pages out and buying refills as needed. And you can combine all your notebooks for all your different projects in one so you don’t have to carry them all around separately.

You can also purchase all different kinds of fillers from graph paper to calendars to regular lined paper. Believe me, I stood in that aisle for a good half-hour weighing my options. Ok, probably more like an hour. Not only can you buy different fillers, but you can also buy file folders, page dividers, small list pads, sticky notes and other things that work with the disks too.

You can also use any of your own paper to refill the planner. To do that, you just need to pick up a compatible paper punch. The big hole punches cost upwards of $50, but you can get this “portable punch” from Levenger for just $16 like I did.

I only punch a sheet here and there so this works perfect for me. One such sheet is this page of scriptures that speak to my anxiety so I can reference it when I need it.

I like to use cute printables for my calendars instead of the ones that Arc puts out. Just do a quick search on Pinterest for calendar printables and you’ll find something in your style. Right now, I’m liking these.

I also have a small Rollabind version of the notebook that I found at work. I love the portable size! I use this notebook to record the workouts that I’ve been designing.

We had another sale at work where I found a few more Rollabinds and I snatched 3 up right away because I love them so much. They’re stashed away for a day where I decide I need another notebook for something. I’m a writer. It happens.

I encourage anyone that loves notebooks, planners, organizing, printables, etc to pick up one of these systems and choose a few inserts that suit your taste. Then, come back here and tell me how addicted you are. What are your favorite planners/notebooks?

September 10, 2012

Four Simple Goals

Following in Elsie’s footsteps, I decided to post four simple goals that I will be dedicating myself to for the remainder of the year.

1. Spruce A Space once a week: We are a typical family with typical “piles” in unsightly places and little non-beautiful messes. I would like to take time once a week to clean at least one little nook of dust and randomness. If I really want to impress myself, I might even add something beautiful in its place (a scented candle, a picture? We’ll see). *Reward for finishing: one small Etsy print purchase

2. Find Balance (in my checkbook): This is a boring one, but one I constantly struggle with and wish to overcome. Because, you see, my wellbeing depends on a balanced checkbook. When I have handfuls of receipts poking out of nooks in my purse and have that uneasy feeling of not quite knowing where we’re at, I feel unnerved. Even though its boring, this goal is dedicated to my personal happiness. I’ll sleep better, believe me. *Reward for finishing: a new checkbook cover

3. MOVE: I have a desk job and I often find myself coming to the realization that I haven’t moved from the time I punch in until lunchtime, except to take a bathroom break (oh, that sluggish feeling!). I need to get up at least once an hour to rest my eyes and move some blood around. This is a simple goal that I know I can do, I just need a silly written commitment like this to make it happen. *Reward for finishing: a new tea flavor

4. Art Journal Date: I signed up for Art Journal All Year, one of Elsie’s classes, at the beginning of the year and have yet to finish more than, um, three pages. I don’t want this to become a chore, so I’m changing the curriculum a little bit and making my art journal more of a dream journal where I make lists of things I want to accomplish and ways to bring them to fruition. The thing is, the process of journaling my dreams and making pretty pages is cathartic, stress-reducing, and productive. I also believe the process of dream planning leads to good things. It’s funny how those things you love the most get pushed to the side first.
*Reward for finishing: a new roll of washi tape

I am not only posting these goals here and submitting them to A Beautiful Mess, but I am also tracking them on DailyFeats, along with a few other achievable goals. The site encourages you to make healthy habits stick by creating little goal “triggers” like “after I brush my teeth, I will drink one cup of water.” They also offer a built-in rewards system for each feat that you accomplish every day/week. Tangible prizes like $5 off coupons make really good incentives to make your life a little better. Hopefully these rewards will coincide with the rewards listed above (i.e. a $5 coupon to buy a new checkbook cover).

I encourage you to take Elsie’s challenge or just dedicate a little time to some “Daily Feats” that you’d like to accomplish. Being stagnant is suffocating. Taking action will transform your life.

I’ll meet you back here to follow up as I achieve these goals.

May 4, 2012

Book Pages: Beautiful Hand Calligraphy

I remember doing a unit on calligraphy in my middle school art class. My mom took me to the store to buy an extra-special set of calligraphy pens because of my fervent interest in this particular art unit. Besides wanting to be an actress, ranch worker, artist, writer, singer-songwriter, fashion designer, beach bum and naturalist, I also wanted to be a professional calligrapher at one point. I even collected all the necessary tools and scavenged this seconhand calligraphy book:

Check out these rad typeface techniques. These would be perfect for art journals or scrapbooks.

Beautiful spiralling calligraphy:

Have you ever tried calligraphy before? It’s an enchanting art form. You can add another dimension of visual beauty to your handmade greeting cards or handwritten wedding invitations. This triple-tip technique looks reminiscent of manuscripts from the 18th century or something.

And here is my own attempt at an ancient typeface. This sheet was tucked inside the book and probably written by the little 7th grade version of me. I can hardly believe that I could pull this off at age 12.

Immediately upon seeing this practice page, something reignited inside of me. I just love the aesthetic of calligraphic letters. I think a part of me has always wanted to combine art and writing in some meaningful way. Well, ta-da!

February 21, 2012

Here an Art Journal, There an Art Journal

It must be a sign that I need to keep up with this art journaling business. Even my inbox is teeming with inspiration. I love the idea of art journaling because it’s a combination of a bunch of my favorite things. I’ve never been much of a scrapbooker, but I like the idea of combining pictures with quotes, thoughts, or literature passages. There was an English teacher in high school who had everyone keep an art scrapbook for the semester and I was sooooo jealous I didn’t sign up for that session. I like the idea of keeping a diary, but not in a “dear diary” sense of spouting how your day went, but in a more messy stream-of-consciousness way. And I like the idea of keeping a scrapbook of art inspiration, doodles, ideas, intentions and self-reflection. I think you can learn a lot about yourself by discovering patterns in your work. The art journal does all of this in one pretty little place.

If you’re interested in giving this art journaling thing a shot, here’s a link to a free e-book that just came to my email: Cloth Paper Scissors: Art Journal Techniques.

Note to self: it’s about time you publish a few of your pages:)

January 30, 2012

Packing More Life Into My Days

I have to say, I’m just loving these “10 minute increments” that I’m building into my day. I do sometimes truly feel like I’m packing extra life into my days. These are a few of the things that are keeping me busy:

1. TalkShoe.com: how come no one ever told me about this site before? Ha! You can literally take classes for free. I’m currently listening to a podcast course on entrepreneurism. I can sneak in clips here and get a Carnegie Mellon University-worthy education for myself along the way. What a concept!

2. TedTalks: These are just mesmerizing, if you didn’t already know. These come in 20-minute increments, but I often just have them playing in the background. Some are motivating, some are educational, and some are downright awe-inspiring.

3. I just picked up these two books from the library as a complement to the journaling course I’m taking. I’m just trying to soak in all the different journaling techniques to use and coming up with of some of my own.

Journal Junkies Workshop

Visual Chronicles

4. Born to Run, by Christopher McDougall: I keep trying to squirrel away time to read this book, because I’m completely mesmerized. I’m a runner, so I find myself just wanting to steep myself in this culture of mega-distance runners and learn all their little secrets. My aunt was visiting last week and she was the one that turned me on to the book. Thanks Aunt Mary! And thank goodness for the public library.

5. Picnik.com: I messed around on this site this past week. Wow! Right now Picnik is offering all their premium stuff for FREE!!! Until April, when they merge with Google, the site is just open to the public. Oh, what fun it is to ride in a Picnik open slate, hey! I am trying to learn new ways to make my blog cuter without Photoshop. So, slowly but surely I’m teaching myself little techniques in those spare moments. I just played around with the above banner, designed an Etsy banner and made a really cool picture invitation. That’s right friends, I’m actually taking steps to open an Etsy shop. S’about time!

Any other ideas of great things to sneak in during the day? What do you accomplish on your lunch break?

January 16, 2012

How to Spend my Christmas Money

So, I am notorious for holding onto chunks of change until I find something I absolutely adore. There are no holes burning in my pockets like there was in my husband’s. His Christmas money is long gone, spent mostly on the magnetic force that is his appetite. I joked that he’d have his money gone by Tuesday, following Christmas, and mine would be gone by June. Anyhow, here are a few things that are stealing my thoughts lately and will perhaps be the means to the end of my small Christmas stash (because I guess you’re never too old to get Christmas checks):

1. The Crosley Lancaster: I haven’t owned a record player since college when one of my friends decided to borrow my thrifted find and returned it in “not working” condition. But instead of updating my vinyl collection, I decided I just couldn’t part with them and must.find.record.player. This particular record player has a CD player and radio built in. Best of the old and the new. I have a feeling that when I pull off the bubble wrap and test out the fresh needle, my level of inspiration will skyrocket. This is an investment in my productivity people!

2. Washi tape: I am an improviser the the nth degree, but you can’t really improvise on pretty tape, right? This will get used for all sorts of projects from art journaling to banner-making and other pretties.

3. Speaking of art journaling, my first $30 was spent without blinking an eye on Elsie Larson and Rachel Denbow’s Art Journal All Year e-course. That was literally a no-brainer. No thought whatsoever. My fingers did the walking before my brain even had time to process it. I never make impulse buys, so that must tell you something… I might consider buying another e-course from Red Velvet as well.

4. Feist CD: Every Pandora station I tune into comes around to her in one way or another. What can I say? Love it!

I have already spent a few bucks here and there one treats for my husband, a trip to the thrift store and a trip to Office Max to get a fresh new sketchbook for the art journaling challenge (which I will offer a sneak peek in a future post:) Oh, and I bought my boy some requested fine-point pens for his second semester of college. I am so proud, I don’t even know how to fully express it!!!

March 29, 2011

The Mother of Invention

My mind has recently taken to thinking up inventions and website development ideas. Of course, I don’t have the wherewithal to carry most of them out (or maybe I do and don’t know it). I just like to think them up. I keep reading about 16-year-olds who started up their own websites and became overnight millionaires. I’m not necessarily looking at this with dollar signs in my eyes, but the concept of coming up with these ideas just fascinates and intrigues me beyond belief.

Some of the websites that I’ve been thinking about are already out there in cyberspace. And they help me tremendously once I find them, such as this online recipe organizer. I start with the basic concept that the mother of all invention is necessity (I really need a place to store all my favorite recipes online!). Such a simple adage with such profound effects in the world.

I’m working on developing a personalized notebook where you can reload or remove sheets as needed. It would also include and organize a bunch of needs in one place. Mine would have about a million tabs in it for writing ideas, sketches, gratitude lists, books to read lists, things to buy lists and about 999,995 more. Different types of papers and designs would also be required. My notebook would probably be more like something you would find on Etsy. I’ve been doing a lot of research on quality sketch and watercolor papers and bookbinding techniques to make it just right. If I get good momentum going, I could probably make some others for upcoming gifts and sell them in my own yet-unestablished Etsy store. Here is a peek at some of the designs that are inspiring me right now:

I absolutely love the three-ring laminated designs by Crown Bindery

Monika Wright’s mini notebooks and albums are just darling and absolutely perfect.

I am a big fan of repurposing old tattered old books into something new and cherished. I’ve had my eye on storybook notebooks like this one from BigLittle’s shop for awhile now.

My husband has promised to try an experiment with a drill to see if we can bring some of my ideas to fruition. I am at least hopeful that we can “invent” some kind of paper organization system that works for me. I am so tired of seeing my little piles of tattered notes and musings scattered about everywhere. I need a place to keep them all safe and sound.

Plus, I’ve been on an artsy creation streak for awhile now. I recently made some no-sew applique scarves, fridge menu boards, fabric flowers and other ephemera. I just.can’t.sit.still!!!!