Maybe you want to leave something behind for your children that tells your story and what you accomplished.
Maybe youre more practical, and want a way to harness your creativity.
Maybe you just want the cathartic release that comes with regular writing.
Whatever it is, these are all great reasons.
Heres why you might want to sit down regularly to jot down your thoughts.
Regular writing has mental health benefits
Writing can do wonders for your mental health.
For example, weve mentioned thatkeeping an awesomeness journal can do wonders for your self-esteem.
Journaling has beenspecifically effective in people with severe illnesses, like cancer, for example.
The key, however, was to focus on what you werethinking and feelingas opposed to your emotions alone.
Youve likely heard that the best way to get better at writing is to just keep doing it.
Thats true, but the benefits go deeper than just crafting better sentences.
For example,regular writing can help you learn to process and communicate complex ideas effectively.
It can also help you memorize important information, and brainstorm new ideas.
It also helps you learn to break down complex experiences into relevant, useful bits of information organized coherently.
Regular writing opens the door to those opportunities every time you sit down.
For example,keeping a work diary can serve as a track record of mistakes and successes.
Regular writing can apply to more than just work, too.
You have plenty of options, and what works for one person wont work for another.
You have to choose the one that works best for you.
and 3 Great Things that happened today.
If you prefer free and open-source, tryRedNotebook.
Its a fantasticwiki-style journaling toolthats cross-platform.
Of course, you dont have to use apps at all.
There are plenty of free options, likeWordPress,TumblrandMedium.
All of them offer different looks, cater to different audiences and are designed for different kinds of people.
However you choose to keep your journal, there are clear benefits to doing it.
This story was originally published on 3/19/14 and was updated on 9/20/19 to provide more thorough and current information.
