Positivity journaling is a great way to place your focus on all the good things in your life. Big things and small things alike, anything that puts a smile on your face can provide you with an opportunity to push away negativity and focus on positivity.
Jump ahead to these sections:
- What Is Positivity Journaling?
- What Are the Benefits or Effects of Positivity Journaling?
- How to Start a Positivity Journal
- Positivity Journal Prompts
- Positivity Journal Examples
- More Positivity Journal Ideas
If you’re familiar with gratitude journaling, you already have an idea of how this works. In positivity journaling, however, you might focus on things you’re thankful for, good things that have happened, or any other positive thing in life, from flowers to an on-point haircut. Ready to get started? Read on for everything you need to know about positivity journaling.
What Is Positivity Journaling?
Positivity journaling is an excellent self-care exercise that helps you focus on the things that are good in your life, things that are going well, and the many things to be grateful for that are right in front of you.
This world is full of negative thoughts, rude actions, and discouraging events. You get enough negativity just by turning on the TV or scrolling through social media. With positivity journaling, you take a short amount of time each day to focus on the good instead of the bad. You shut out the voices, distractions, and noise of the world and tune in to positive thoughts, feelings, events, and ways to increase your happiness.
Unlike “dear diary” journaling, positivity journaling doesn’t require a significant chunk of time to complete. With this type of journaling, consistency is more important than the amount of time you set aside. So if you only have ten minutes each day, that’s okay. If you have longer, that’s fine too.
One of the best things about positivity journaling is that it can be done from anywhere. Waiting to pick up your kids from school? Whip out your journal or journaling app and complete an entry. Have a few minutes to yourself before the workday starts? Journal time. Want to wind down from the day by thinking happy thoughts? Pull out that positivity journal.
You’ll quickly find that the regular habit of writing about positive things in your life will benefit you in many ways, starting with a better mindset, increased contentment, and a more positive outlook on life.
What Are the Benefits or Effects of Positivity Journaling?
With a quick Google search, you’ll find study after study praising the effects of positive journaling. No matter what kind of journaling you do, the habit in and of itself contributes to lowering blood pressure, reducing stress, easing anxiety, improving memory, boosting your mood, and creating emotional resilience.
The results just get better when you add in the “positive” aspect. Similar to keeping a gratitude journal, positivity journaling helps improve your mental well-being, helps create a positive mindset, helps contribute to a better night’s sleep, leads to improved relationships, and helps improve your perspective.
Given the long list of benefits that positivity journaling can have, it’s well worth starting and keeping a positivity journal, whether you choose to keep a journal for a few months or an entire year or more.
How to Start a Positivity Journal
Starting a positivity journal is a fun and exciting process that can lead to years of a better outlook, a more positive mindset, and an improvement in mental and physical health. Here’s how to get started.
Step 1: Choose a journal
In order to start journaling, you need a journal to record your thoughts. You can go simple and start writing in a blank notebook or purchase a positivity journal from Amazon, Etsy, or a store like Walmart. There are many types of journals to choose from, including:
- Blank journals: These are empty inside, and you’ll need to find your own journal prompts. You can find blank journals that are lined and unlined.
- Bullet journals: These journals provide space for journaling, recording daily to-do lists, monthly calendar items, and more. It’s like a planner and journal in one.
- Writing-only journals: These are lined journals that come with prompts. The layout of these journals is crafted with the expectation that you’ll only be writing in it.
- Writing and creative doodling journals: These journals provide you with lined writing space in addition to unlined space for doodling and drawing.
- Art-focused journals: These journals provide minimal writing-focused space and maximum creative space. They might come with stickers, washi tape, and other creative elements for you to dress up your journal entries.
Step 2: Determine a time for journaling
While this may not always work for everyone, it’s best if you can set aside a consistent time each day for your journaling. Having a dedicated time for this habit will make you more inclined to stick with it instead of forgetting about it.
Choose a time you know you’ll always have open. Do you have to wait for 10–20 minutes in the pickup line to get your kids after school? Put away the social media and journal during this time. Can you wake up a few minutes earlier so you can get in 10 minutes of journaling? Perhaps you want to wind down with your journal at the end of every day before bedtime.
There is no right or wrong time to complete your daily positive journal entry. The important part is that you do it.
Step 3: Pick a place to journal
In the same way that choosing a consistent time to journal is helpful, choosing a designated place to journal can also help you stick with the habit. Choose an area that is comfortable and inclined to help you focus and stay on task. Consider places like:
- Your car
- A comfy chair
- The kitchen island
- The empty living room
- On the front porch or back patio
- In your office or study
The goal in designating a place for journaling is to single out an area that provides quiet, contemplation, and space for you to reflect. The area should be as free of clutter and people as possible.
Step 4: Set up the environment
If you plan on having a longer journaling session, you might want to create an environment that contributes to your time. Consider lighting a candle or two, having a cozy blanket nearby, diffusing essential oils, playing soft music, and getting something to drink like a cup of coffee, tea, or some lemon cucumber water.
Remember, journaling is all about self-care, so treat yourself and add any self-care elements you want.
Step 5: Get supplies
Before you sit down to journal, it’s best to have all supplies you need on hand and ready. This might just be your favorite pen or pencil if the journal you purchased is a writing-only journal. On the other hand, if you purchased a journal that provides space for creative journaling, make sure you’re ready with sharpened colored pencils, calligraphy pens, markers, stickers, and any other elements you want to use in your creative journal.
Step 6: Start journaling
Now the fun part begins! Whether you start with a simple question or you jump into your journaling journey with thoughtful self-reflection questions, the important thing to remember is that this is your journal. That means there’s no right or wrong way to complete your entries.
If you want to make all of your entries bullet-point lists, that’s okay. If you want to fill up a page in handwriting, that’s great. If you want to draw pictures of your responses instead of writing them out, awesome. You do you when you journal and make it the most positive experience possible.
Step 7: Review past journal entries
If you keep up your journal for any length of time, it can be a very positive experience to periodically read past entries. You’ll be reminded of events, emotions, and experiences that were positive in your life. You might be inspired to revisit an idea or activity that brought you joy.
If you plan on doing this, you might even include a future self journaling prompt to answer from time to time.
Positivity Journal Prompts
If you’re using a notebook or a blank bullet journal, then you’ll need to find your own positivity journal prompts and enter them. Here are several positivity journal prompts to get you started.
- My proudest accomplishment is…
- My favorite flowers are…
- Dear future self, the best thing that happened this year so far is…
- The best piece of advice I’ve ever been given is…
- My favorite hobby is… because…
- How can I make one person’s day better today?
- I love my home because…
- Three things I love about myself are…
- The last compliment I’ve received is…
Positivity Journal Examples
Here are a few positivity journal entry examples to get you inspired.
Entry #1
Date: 2/6/22
Prompt: Dear future self, the best thing that happened this year so far is…
Dear future self, the best thing that happened this year so far is that I launched my business! I can’t believe I actually did it, but after a year of planning, I finally flipped the switch. It’s a ton of work, but so worth it for the fulfillment I feel. I love seeing the look on peoples’ faces when they find the right wedding dress or suit for their big day. I get so much joy from running this little bridal boutique!
Entry #2
Date: 2/7/22
Prompt: My favorite hobby is… because…
My favorite hobby is hiking because it gets me away from hectic city life and plunges me into the quiet, solitude, and beauty of nature. There is no place I’d rather be than pushing myself up a steep trail up to the top of a lookout where I can see the entire valley floor. The beauty, the solitude, the birds and wild animals, the colors, the fresh air… there’s just nothing like it.
Entry #3
Date: 2/8/22
Prompt: I love my home because… (name three things)
I love my home because I’ve been able to create a sanctuary of solitude and peace. I love the way the sunlight streams into the living room in the morning and the kitchen in the afternoon. I love our front porch and our back deck. It’s just the perfect home for our little family, and I couldn’t imagine living anywhere else.
More Positivity Journal Ideas
Want some more journal ideas? Here are several of our favorites.
- Focus on positive things about yourself to promote self-worth and self-esteem.
- Focus on positive things about your body to promote a positive body image.
- Focus on positive things about your career to promote positive momentum.
- Focus on positive things about your family to promote enjoyment of your family unit.
Improving Your Outlook Through Journaling
Positivity journaling can help you create a more positive outlook on life by focusing on the good for a short amount of time each day. The more you think about good things, the more you’ll see good in your life. Sometimes, just being aware of the positive can help overrule the negative thoughts, emotions, and feelings you experience.