One of the most productive and useful thing I did with the lockdown time in 2020 is to start a journal. it was something I had heard about a lot of people doing, but I never could find the time. Suddenly many of us were gifted a bit of extra time, for me the endless school runs and after school activities vanished, and I decided to start a journal, which I have kept for the most part ever since.

What is Journalling?

Journalling means a lot of different things to different people, and there are many different styles of journals. Whether you are describing and logging past events, planning for the future, or using a journal to create something new, it all falls under the broad umbrella term of journalling.

Why a Journalling Challenge?

If you have been thinking about starting or restarting a journal, what better time than now? I have set up a 14 day challenge, where you will plan a time and a place to journal and try your hand at various different journal styles, which will hopefully lead you to discover what kind of journal would suit you best. This challenge is free, and you can take as long as you like over it.

You will receive a daily email, but there is also a cheat mechanism where you can go faster or slower than that if you want to. There is also a fun Facebook group where you can share your discoveries and meet up with fellow creatives and journallers.

Have you ever tried to set up a new habit, and found that after a few days you just forget about it and give up? This challenge should help you to get over that and form a lasting and enduring practice of journalling.

This challenge is better than just deciding to start journalling yourself for the following reasons:

  • You have a short task to do every day. You will have to do your journal on work days and rest days, good days and bad, and you will be encouraged to find your ideal time, place, and duration for your daily journalling. Regular repetition will help to build the habit.
  • The tasks are varied and fun. Some of them you should find interesting – others maybe not so much, but you could find that you surprise yourself. I certainly did when I started adding doodles to my journal. I still don’t think I can draw well, but it makes me happy and so I do it just for myself.
  • You will be getting daily emails to nudge you to continue for the whole 14 days, and if you want, you can get some accountability from the Facebook group as well.
  • I encourage you not to invest too heavily in this habit to start with. Try it with no pre-conceptions. Have a go, have fun, and by the end of two weeks you will know if you are a journalling person or not. if not, you can chuck it all away, you have wasted nothing, and nobody ever needs to know that you did it. If you are, then you can go out and buy stationery supplies of your choice, set up a fancy journalling nook and buy accessories of your choice, and join the merry band of regular journallers.

Who knows, you could even end up getting something published! This is how many authors and poets start out.

So what are you waiting for? Come and join me and find your creative side.