How to Keep a Journal That Will Help You to Grow

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By stlscientist
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Journals are great ways to track personal progress.

Journals are like diaries, but with a cause. You can keep a journal during a vacation or through a career change. No matter what the reason, if you keep the journal properly you'll be able to refer back to it from time to time and see how you've progressed as a person.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

Journal
Pen

Step 1

LIFE JOURNALS
These are journals kept on a day to day basis that record important life events. I love this type because it's like a living history book. For this type of journal you could use the format of:
Past - what has happen since the last time you wrote?
Present - what is happening today?
Future - what are you working toward?
Family - write a brief statement about the state of your family.
Relationship - write a brief statement about the state of your relationship.
News - what type of news events have happened since the last time you wrote.
Entertainment - what specific movies, concerts, or music do you enjoy?
Goals - what goals do you have and where are you on completing previous goals?
Step 2

CAREER JOURNALS
These journals keep track of your career through things that happen to you on the job, new hires, and even people being fired. I keep this type of journal on each job I accept and it really puts into perspective if I need to leave or if this is a place I can grow. For this type of journal you could use the format of:
Hire / Leave Timeline - Save about 4 pages in the back of the journal and make a list of all the employees in your department or immediate contact. After the name write the date they were hired and the date they were terminated or quit and their position. Keep this ongoing record for all new hires too.
Goals - where do you want to be and what are you going to do to get there?
Progress - How are you progressing on those goals?
Relationships - How well are you getting along with everyone?
Mood - This is important to people's perception of you. No one likes a downer or complainer all the time. What kind of mood were you in today? Be honest!
Step 3

DREAM JOURNAL
No, this isn't a journal about your nightly dreams, although you can certainly keep those as well. This is a journal about your day dreams. What is your dream job? How much money would you like to make? This type of journal format might look like this:
Dream Job - What is it and what do you need to do to get it?
Dream Job Progress - What steps have you completed?
Dream Vacation - What is your dream vacation and what do you need to do to take it?
Dream Job Progress - What steps have you completed?

You can even include smaller dreams that are just as important. Maybe you want to learn Yoga, or learn to scuba dive, or maybe you want to meet a famous person. Write it down! Create sensible steps to accomplish it and start doing it today.