JOURNALING HELPED ME BECOME A BETTER WRITER — AND PERSON
YUSHA AZIZ
JOURNALING HELPED ME BECOME A BETTER WRITER — AND PERSON YUSHA A ZIZ
“Why?”
technique and confidence.
That’s the question people ask when I tell them I journal every day—and have done so for the last three years. I’ll say it’s to improve my writing skills, and that’s why I first started.
By journaling often, over weeks and months, you can catch yourself speaking. That means you develop an awareness of your inner dialogue. You see the negative labels you self-attach, the way you twist and distort external events. And you’ll see how kind or toxic you are to yourself.
But it’s become more than an exercise to hone my writing skills. It’s increased my discipline and self-awareness. It has sharpened my powers of perception and observation, and let me reflect on my past, values, and struggles tangibly. The above combined have shaped me into a better person—all because I wanted to ‘write better.’ Bryan A. Garner, author of Garner’s Modern English Usage, inspired me to start. He suggested writing non-stop for ten minutes at the end of the day. The point is to flex your writing muscle each day. It builds fluency and confidence. By writing often it becomes second nature. Then, when you start your novel, or your feature length piece, you can dive in with alacrity, writing skills primed, strong, and ready to soar. Yet the benefits of journaling go beyond
Your self-awareness of your mental patterns grows. Since they’re on paper, and not in the formless void of your mind, these patterns crystallise. You learn to spot the helpful patterns and torpedo the negative ones.
And journaling can serve as a record of your life in all its glory and awkwardness. You can use it for positive, helpful reflection. You see past struggles, like the nerves before a job interview, or the dread of an upcoming exam, and see how you triumphed over each. You learn to better accept yourself, and importantly, laugh at yourself. It’s funny to witness yourself stress over something that turned out fine.
9
