Episode 48 - WHAT of Journal Writing

"Be Better Bit-By-Bit" is a unique self-transformation platform.

In this episode, Nishith speaks about how Journal writing can be a powerful tool in your life. He speaks about 10 "WHAT" of journal writing and shares simple tips to start journal writing - TODAY.

"Be Better Bit-By-Bit" platform's members call themselves "Improvers," and the endeavor is to help each other and grow as a community and, in due course, progress in our personal lives too. Whatever your goals are, this platform and the activities will ensure a sustained and compassionate change in your beliefs and attitude. That will help you grow big in life and achieve whatever you wish for.

Join us and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Linkedin, and YouTube. If you wish to become an Improver, you can drop me a message, and I will send you the group invite link.

Intro and background credits:

Cherry Monday by Kevin MacLeod
Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3495-cherry-monday
License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Wish Background by Kevin MacLeod
Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4633-wish-background
License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/


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About me: I'm a CA ranker (AIR 48), ultra-marathon runner, and author with 20 years of work experience.  I believe in getting better bit by bit—through daily journaling, honest reflection, and small actions.

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One bit at a time, we all get better.

See you in the next episode!

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
Hi, improvers, Welcome to the Be Better bid by Bait podcast.
I'm your host, Goel and the creator of this unique
self development platform called be Better Bait by Bit. Welcome
to the episode forty eight and a new perspective. Today
we will talk about things that you can journal about
or keep a diary. Let me start this episode with

(00:30):
a very very beautiful quote. Journal writing is a voyage
to the interior. It's a quote by Christina Baldwin, the
popular diary writer and author of multiple books. Friends. Journaling
is probably the most underrated self improvement tool. It's been

(00:50):
over two decades of writing journals for me, but unfortunately
there was no discipline and structure in the first probably
five or ten years. But in the past at least
five to ten years, it has been very very different.
Besides consistency, now there are experiments with different genres and
more learning in the shape of dialogues with diary writers

(01:15):
from across the world. A blank page is often daunting.
Whether you are an accomplished writer, or an author or
a journalist. The beginning is always tough. It's tough to
express the first words on paper. Writing a journal is
the same. Unfortunately, the why to journal writing is often

(01:38):
too weak. Why are we writing? Why I should write
a journal? The answer to this why is either unknown
or very weak. The what is even weaker. Hence the
habit either flies away or takes too long to show results.
The primary reason for like king any stickiness is fear,

(02:03):
an apprehension. Fear of the unknown, fear of someone else
reading my diaries, apprehension of taking out time for something
as simple as writing, apprehension towards doing something different from
what the world is doing. I believe if you can
keep these fears and apprehensions in a box, lock it

(02:25):
in the corner of your house, and then attempt to
write a journal, the habit will yield results you have
not even thought about yet. And here attend strong What
to help you kickstart this habit quickly? First, gratitude? What
am I grateful for today? Simple prompt? Note down five

(02:49):
bullet points to this prompt before you sleep every night,
Just a few words of gratitude will relax you, improve
your sleep quality and own overall health. Second, positive affirmations.
Affirmations act as a guiding force for our minds. Repeat

(03:10):
affirmations to yourself in your notebook, and they have the
power to become true. Believe in the power of your mind. Example,
I am worthy of what I desire. I am in
charge of my life. I am choosing and not waiting

(03:32):
to be chosen. Now it's time to create your own affirmations.
Take a blank paper, write five or even ten I
am prompts. I am dot dot dot dot dot. Write
this ten times on a blank paper. Leave enough space
for your mind to express. Give yourself five to ten

(03:52):
minutes every morning or every evening to express these positive affirmations. Third,
what journal writing is self awareness. The most beautiful thing
journal writing does to us is that it lets us
meet ourselves. Answering a few basic prompts on the paper
lets us view ourselves from the inside. Yes, it can

(04:17):
be daunting, but it can help you relax. Journal writing
creates self awareness. A simple way to incorporate self awareness
in your journal is to answer prompts like what irritates me?
Who knows me the best? What habits do I want

(04:37):
to incorporate into my life in the next thirty days. Yes,
they might be. These prompts can be tough. The problems
can be easy. The initial hayes will be very, very
difficult to clear. But once it does move to difficult questions.
Discover yourself. The more you know about yourself, the more

(04:59):
your everyday life will improve. The Greek philosopher Aristotle, who
lived between three eighty four and three twenty two BC,
once said, knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom. Fourth,
what of journal writing? Travel? When on vacation or commuting

(05:20):
to a new place, keep a journal. Our travel experiences
are completely different from our everyday lives. The views, food, people, experiences,
sounds and smells are different. Allow your life to make
a note of them. Then when you write about these experiences,
it elevates your travel experiences. A travel journal is a

(05:42):
way to relive moments of those exciting memories. Such journals
are a repository of adventures, stories, memories, and discoveries. Use
it to write about memories, be them, be it large,
be it small. Just write about them, who you met
along the journey, and what you learned. Fifth, what of

(06:04):
journal writing is food? I don't write too often about
the food I eat, but I write about it when
I eat out in a restaurant. It allows me to
explore the mbiens the restaurant people's presence different anomas flavors,
the servers, the staff, and so on. Looking back at
these journals, I can easily recall these beautiful memories. People

(06:28):
might maintain a food journal in a completely different manner
than this. In whatever shape you include your food stories,
that's fine. Writing about your food experience is not just
about the food you eat. It's about the experience, and
if your journal can store these experiences, they become a
rich memoir of your life. Sixth what of journal writing?

(06:54):
The morning pages? Julia Cameron suggested this method in her
book The Artist's Way? What is it? Write three pages
of long handwriting, no filter. Get up in the morning
and offload your mind by writing three pages of everything
and anything that your mind is talking about. Listen to

(07:17):
your mind. Morning pages are freedom. It allows me to
be honest with myself and write whatever is there to write,
no filter, no apprehensions, no fear. The biggest benefit of
the morning pages is there are no rules. Write bullets,
write to do list yesterday, today, tomorrow, about self, about others, anger, happiness,

(07:42):
whether whatever you want to talk about, Just pour that
out on the pages. Seventh what of journal writing? Ideas?
The most important variation of my journal writing habit and
idea journal. When my mind talks about ideas, I record

(08:03):
them while reading a book, taking a bath, driving, meeting,
or eating. If an idea hits me, I write it.
But if I let it go, it will fly. And
I am very, very selfish about my ideas. I don't
judge these ideas. I give them respect because I know
when I give respect, it will turn back and help

(08:25):
me find execution. Maintaining an idea journal is very easy.
Promise yourself to write ten ideas every day. Let them
be foolish, silly, nonsense meaningless. They still are ideas. They
are a product of your mind. Respect them. The eighth

(08:48):
what of journal writing to do list? A to do
list is a form of journal. It uniquely records your life. However,
don't just see a to do list as a time
management tool. Instead, see it as a rich repository or
history of your days. When you prepare and guide your

(09:09):
life using a structure, in this case, a doo dooo list,
you ensure a structure to your days. A too doo
list journal helps me control my apprehensions and procrastination. When
my priority is on paper, it automatically ensures it comes true.
The ninth what of journal Pandemic or Tough Times COVID

(09:32):
nineteen was a reminder of how short our lives are,
and that's why I started a pandemic diary and recorded
everything about those days and emotions. Maintain a journal to
record what you feel about your bad days. Don't write
about your normal life. Explore the hidden fears of tough times.

(09:54):
The Diary of a Young Girl or the Diary of
Anne Frank, discovered in the attic in which she spent
in the last years of her life. Na Frank's remarkable
diary has become a world classic, powerful reminder of the
horrors of war and an elocuan testament to the human spirit.
The tenth what of journal writing dreams? I love my sleep,

(10:17):
and more than that, I have loved the idea of
recording my dreams. Am I learning from them? Not sure?
But to go through these vivid images is a fantastic
reminder of the power of our minds. As you record
these fragments of dreams, they sue themselves back in the
journal and eel back meaning and a realization that our

(10:39):
minds are a powerhouse of ideas. Friends, journal writing is therapy.
The time I spend with my journals let me deep
dive into these pages and helps me take a dip
inside my soul and bring out some hidden jewels. My
journal books never fail me and I always come out
with something valuable. While writing my raw thoughts and allowing

(11:01):
my mind to connect with paper, I consciously opt to
settle and slow down. As a result, my thoughts get
a channel to express themselves. Journal writing is mindfulness. Journal
writing is power, and I wish to surrender to this
power and learn every day. Friends, join me in the

(11:24):
next episode of be Better Bid by Bit. My two books,
Be Better Bid by a Bit and my daily five
Minute Gratitude Journal, are available on Amazon, So grab your
copies and leave me feedback. So till next time, Bye bye,
Let's be better bid by Bit.