How Can Mindfulness Journaling Transform Your Life?

50 Journal Prompts For Those Practicing Mindfulness
Can tuning into the present moment really transform your life? In this episode, we explore the powerful connection between mindfulness and journaling. Drawing from thought-provoking prompts featured in a Lestallion blog post, we discuss how simple, reflective questions can deepen your awareness of both your surroundings and your internal experiences. You'll learn how to observe your emotions with curiosity and compassion, building a stronger "mindfulness muscle" that extends beyond the pages of your journal and into every facet of your day-to-day life.

But that's not all. We also shed light on how integrating mindfulness doesn't necessitate a complete lifestyle overhaul. Discover how everyday activities like washing dishes, eating meals, and going for a walk can be transformed into mindful practices by simply engaging all your senses and staying anchored in the present moment. Plus, we emphasize the importance of mindfulness in relationships, offering practical tips for active listening and being present with others. This episode encourages you to start small, providing actionable steps to make mindfulness a natural and enriching part of your daily routine, ultimately fostering deeper connections and enhancing your overall well-being.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hey there, deep divers.
So I've been on this wholemindfulness kick lately and you
know I'm always looking forpractical ways to like actually
bring more of that into my life.

Speaker 2 (00:09):
Yeah, totally.
It's one thing to like readabout mindfulness, but it's
another thing to actually makeit a habit.

Speaker 1 (00:15):
Right.
So I was doing some digging andstumbled across this really
interesting blog post onLestallion.
It's called 50 Journal Promptsfor those, prompts for those
practicing mindfulness, and letme tell you it is jam-packed
with thought-provoking promptsoh cool, I'm always up for a
good journal prompt me too, andI thought it would be fun to
kind of like use this blog postas a springboard for today's

(00:38):
deep dive.
We're gonna unpack this wholeintersection of mindfulness and
journaling.

Speaker 2 (00:42):
Sounds fascinating, I'm in.

Speaker 1 (00:44):
Awesome.
So I guess like a good startingpoint would be to define what
we even mean by mindfulness,right, because it's one of those
buzzwords that gets tossedaround a lot these days.

Speaker 2 (00:54):
It really is, it's everywhere you look.
But at its essence, mindfulnessis about tuning into the
present moment, like right here,right now, without judgment.
Okay, okay, so it's about beingpresent without overthinking or
analyzing everything yeah,exactly, it's about noticing
your thoughts, your feelings,your bodily sensations, all of

(01:15):
it without getting swept away bythem, like not getting caught
up in that endless loop ofmental chatter so it's like
hitting the pause button on thatinner commentary and just being
present with whatever ishappening in this moment.

Speaker 1 (01:24):
So it's like hitting the pause button on that inner
commentary and just beingpresent with whatever is
happening in this moment.

Speaker 2 (01:27):
Exactly.
It's a way of like steppingback from your thoughts and
observing them with a sense ofcuriosity rather than getting
totally absorbed by them.

Speaker 1 (01:35):
Okay, that makes a lot of sense and it sounds like
journaling could be a reallyhelpful tool for that right.

Speaker 2 (01:39):
Totally Like.
This blog post we're talkingabout is full of journal prompts
that are like these littleinvitations to practice
mindfulness.
They give you a structure, astarting point.

Speaker 1 (01:49):
I love that.
It's like having a minimindfulness coach right there in
your journal.

Speaker 2 (01:53):
Right, and the prompts can be so simple but so
powerful, like there's one thatjust asks what is one thing you
can hear right now?

Speaker 1 (02:01):
That's so interesting because it seems so basic.

Speaker 2 (02:10):
But when was the last time you actually stopped to
really listen to the soundsaround you?
Totally, it's like we gothrough our day so often on
autopilot, not really payingattention to what's going on
around us, but when we take amoment to just tune into our
senses, it brings us right backto the present.

Speaker 1 (02:20):
It's like hitting the reset button on your awareness
right.

Speaker 2 (02:23):
Exactly, and that's what mindfulness is all about.
It's about waking up to thepresent moment, and the more you
practice, the easier it becomesto access that state of
awareness.

Speaker 1 (02:32):
I love that, so it's like building a mindfulness
muscle right.

Speaker 2 (02:35):
Absolutely, and just like any muscle, the more you
use it, the stronger it gets.

Speaker 1 (02:39):
Okay, I'm all about building that mindfulness muscle
, but you know, it's one thingto be aware of your surroundings
, but what about our internallandscape?
How does mindfulness play intoour emotions?

Speaker 2 (02:50):
That's such a key part of this right Because our
emotions can be so powerful.
They can really drive ourthoughts and behaviors.

Speaker 1 (02:57):
Yeah, and sometimes it feels like our emotions have
a mind of their own, like theyjust take over and we're along
for the ride.
Right, but mindfulness gives usthe tools to like, step back
from that emotional rollercoaster and observe it with a
bit more objectivity.
So it's not about suppressingour emotions or pretending they
don't exist.
It's about learning to observethem without judgment.

Speaker 2 (03:20):
Exactly, and the blog post we're talking about has
some really great prompts forexploring this, like there's one
that asks how do you feel todayand what do you think that is?

Speaker 1 (03:29):
I love that because it encourages you to not just
label your emotions but toactually dig a little deeper and
understand where they're comingfrom, Like what's the root of
that feeling?

Speaker 2 (03:39):
And once you start to understand the why behind your
emotions, it can be soempowering because it gives you
more choice in how you respond.

Speaker 1 (03:47):
That's huge, because it's not always about changing
the emotion itself, but aboutchanging our relationship to it.

Speaker 2 (03:52):
Right Mindfulness helps us create a little bit of
space between us and ouremotions, so we're not so
overwhelmed by them.

Speaker 1 (03:58):
And that space, that pause, can make all the
difference in how we navigatethose tricky emotional moments.

Speaker 2 (04:06):
A hundred percent, and the blog post even has a
prompt for that too.
Describe an emotion you hadtrouble with recently.
How did you handle it?
It's all about reflection rightLike taking the time to look
back and learn from ourexperiences.

Speaker 1 (04:20):
And I love how it encourages you to look at those
challenging emotions withoutjudgment, like it's okay to have
struggled, it's okay to havefelt overwhelmed.

Speaker 2 (04:28):
Totally.
It's not about judgingourselves for having those
emotions.
It's about approaching themwith curiosity and compassion.

Speaker 1 (04:34):
I think that's such an important message and it's
something that I think we couldall use a little more of in our
lives.

Speaker 2 (04:40):
For sure, we're all works in progress, right.

Speaker 1 (04:42):
Absolutely.
And speaking of progress, I'mcurious to dive into some of the
more practical aspects ofmindfulness, like how can we
weave these practices into oureveryday lives, beyond just
journaling?

Speaker 2 (04:55):
That's a great question, because it's one thing
to be mindful while we'resitting quietly with our
journals, but how do we bringthat same awareness into the
busyness of our daily routines?

Speaker 1 (05:05):
So we're back and ready to dive into the practical
side of mindfulness.
It's all well and good to talkabout being present, but how do
we actually make that happen inour crazy busy lives?

Speaker 2 (05:16):
Right.
It's like I can totally get onboard with the idea of
mindfulness when I'm like on ayoga mat or something, but then
real life comes knocking.

Speaker 1 (05:23):
Exactly.
So where do we even begin?

Speaker 2 (05:25):
Well, the good news is it doesn't have to be this
big, complicated thing.
We don't have to like overhaulour entire life to make
mindfulness a part of ourroutine.

Speaker 1 (05:34):
Okay, that's reassuring because, honestly,
who has time for that?

Speaker 2 (05:38):
Seriously, but like the blog we're talking about, it
actually has some really coolprompts that relate to this,
like there's one that asks howcan you turn a daily chore into
a mindful practice.

Speaker 1 (05:48):
Oh yeah, that one really jumped out at me because,
honestly, when I think ofmindfulness, I definitely don't
think of chores.

Speaker 2 (05:54):
Right.
It seems kind ofcounterintuitive, but that's the
beauty of it.
It's about finding those littlepockets of mindfulness in the
midst of our everyday routines.

Speaker 1 (06:02):
Okay.
So how do we actually do that?
How do we turn something like,say, washing dishes, into a
mindful experience?

Speaker 2 (06:09):
Okay.
So picture this.
Yeah, instead of like rushingthrough the dishes so you can
get back to whatever you weredoing, you decide to make that
dishwashing time your mindfulmoment and you start to pay
attention to all the sensationsinvolved the feel of the warm
water on your hands, the scentof the dish soap, even the sound

(06:29):
of the water running.

Speaker 1 (06:30):
It's like you're engaging all your senses in that
moment, instead of just goingthrough the motions.

Speaker 2 (06:35):
Exactly, and you know what else.
The blog has another greatprompt about this.
It says describe your last mealusing all your senses.

Speaker 1 (06:42):
Oh, that's a good one , because let's be real, how
often do we actually payattention to what we're eating?
We're usually like shovelingfood in our mouths while
scrolling through our phones.

Speaker 2 (06:53):
It's so true, but imagine if we actually slowed
down and savored our food likereally tasted.
It noticed the textures, thearomas.
It could totally transform theexperience of eating.

Speaker 1 (07:03):
It's like turning your meal into a mini meditation
.

Speaker 2 (07:05):
Exactly, and it's not just eating and chores either.
Think about all those othereveryday activities that we
usually do on autopilot, likewalking.

Speaker 1 (07:13):
Oh my gosh.
Yes, Walking is my go-to forzoning out.

Speaker 2 (07:16):
Right, but what if, instead of letting our minds
wander while we walk, weactually paid attention to the
feeling of our feet hitting theground, the rhythm of our breath
, the sights and sounds aroundus?

Speaker 1 (07:28):
It's like you're suddenly more present in your
own life.

Speaker 2 (07:31):
you know, instead of just going through the motions,
Exactly, and the more we cancultivate this awareness in
those simple everyday moments,the more it starts to spill over
into other areas of our livestoo, like our relationships.

Speaker 1 (07:43):
Ooh, okay, yeah, let's talk about that, Because
relationships can be trickyterritory even without adding
mindfulness into the mix.
Okay so, mindfulness inrelationships.
I'll be honest, this is thepart where I'm like how do I
actually do that without makingthings weird?

Speaker 2 (08:00):
I hear you.
It's like you don't want to bethat person.
Who's like staring intensely atsomeone while they're trying to
tell you about their day, right?

Speaker 1 (08:07):
Exactly so.
How do we bring mindfulnessinto our relationships in a way
that feels natural and authentic?

Speaker 2 (08:13):
Well, I think a good starting point is to think about
it as bringing that samequality of presence to our
interactions that we've beencultivating in other areas of
our lives.

Speaker 1 (08:22):
Right.

Speaker 2 (08:23):
Like remember we were talking about how mindfulness
is about really paying attentionto the present moment.

Speaker 1 (08:27):
Right Like remember we were talking about how
mindfulness is about reallypaying attention to the present
moment, right Like when we weretalking about turning those
everyday tasks like washingdishes or eating a meal into
mindful moments.

Speaker 2 (08:35):
Exactly, it's about bringing that same quality of
attention to our interactionswith the people we care about,
so like instead of halflistening while we're also
checking our phones or planningout our next to do list item.

Speaker 1 (08:46):
Oh my gosh, I'm so guilty of that.

Speaker 2 (08:54):
We all are.
It's so easy to get caught upin our own heads.
But when we make a consciouseffort to really tune into the
other person, to really listento what they're saying, both
verbally and non-verbally, it'slike we're giving them the gift
of our full attention.
Exactly, and that's such apowerful thing because it says I
see you, I hear you and whatyou have to say is important to
me.

Speaker 1 (09:10):
I love that.
It's like we're shifting fromsimply hearing the words someone
is saying to actually listeningwith our full being.

Speaker 2 (09:17):
And you know what's cool, the blog post actually has
some journal prompts thatrelate to this, like there's one
that asks how can being mindfulchange the way you talk to
others?

Speaker 1 (09:27):
Oh, that's a good one , because it's not just about
how we listen, it's also abouthow we speak, right?

Speaker 2 (09:32):
Totally.
When we're mindful, we're morelikely to speak with kindness,
compassion and authenticity.

Speaker 1 (09:38):
And less likely to say something we regret later
because we weren't fully presentin the conversation.

Speaker 2 (09:43):
Exactly, and you know what else I love about this
blog post.
It reminds us that mindfulnessis a journey, not a destination.
Like we're not going tosuddenly become perfectly
mindful beings overnight, oh,thank goodness.
Right, but the more we canweave these little moments of
mindfulness into our liveswhether it's through journaling,
paying attention to our sensesor simply taking a few deep
breaths before we engage in aconversation the more we

(10:05):
cultivate that muscle ofpresence, and that benefits not
just us but all of ourrelationships too.

Speaker 1 (10:11):
I love that.
So, as we wrap up our deep diveinto mindfulness and journaling
, is there one final piece ofadvice you'd like to leave our
listeners with?

Speaker 2 (10:21):
You know, I think it all comes back to that idea of
starting small.
Don't put too much pressure onyourself to be perfectly mindful
all the time.
Just pick one thing, whetherit's paying attention to your
breath for a few moments,savoring your next meal, or
really listening to a loved one,and make that your mindful
moment.

Speaker 1 (10:43):
That is such great advice Small steps, big impact.
This has been such afascinating conversation and I
feel like I've learned so much.
Thank you so much for sharingyour insights with us.

Speaker 2 (10:47):
It's been my pleasure .

Speaker 1 (10:48):
And to all of our deep divers out there.
We encourage you to keepexploring the power of
mindfulness in your own lives.
Until next time, keep divingdeep.