Bringing Reflection into 2024

I grew up as a ‘third culture kid’, having spent my childhood in Taiwan, Malaysia, and California. I developed my Mandarin Chinese speaking and writing skills in middle school, when my parents sent me to the local Taiwanese middle school.?

Taiwanese middle schools ask students to write daily journal entries. When school starts, students turn in their journal to the homeroom teacher, who spends his/her entire day looking over these journal entries and returns the journals back to the students by the end of day so they can write the next entry for that day.?

I loved this academic strategy. The journal served several functions: as a diary to document our day-to-day, as? a self-reflection practice, and even as a way to self-soothe. It built our writing and vocabulary skills. Plus the homeroom teacher got an inside look of how their students are doing at school and at home and could intervene if necessary. This journal was how I informed my homeroom teacher that I was being bullied at school. I didn’t know how else to share this information (I was likely ashamed that I was bullied) and the routine of turning in my daily journal was familiar and comforting, and I knew instinctively that I could get my teacher’s help this way.?

As a coach now, I also emphasize the importance of journaling for my clients. The benefits of being able to articulate one’s emotions and thoughts, writing them down on paper and ‘clearing’ it out of one’s mind, in addition to releasing anxiety and reducing stress are all well studied benefits of journaling.?

I credit middle school with starting my journaling practice. Having tried various journaling methods throughout the years, I continue to appreciate the various benefits of journaling.?

Not starting is one of the most common obstacles to starting a journaling practice. When I’m paralyzed to start something, I look for both external and internal motivators. The beginning of a new year is a great external motivator to start a new habit, as you’re naturally in a cohort with others who have selected various new year’s resolutions for themselves. The social pressure of belonging to this group might galvanize you to try something different from your routine. One research studying teenagers shows that just having another peer around can change the reward response in the brain and also the risk-taking tendencies.

A gentle reminder I like to tell novice journalers who are facing the same paralysis is to simply pick up a pen. Start writing. Don’t worry about the “rightness” of the words. Ultimately, what works for you is what’s right for you. In someone’s beginning days of journaling, I always encourage them to get their reps in on journaling first. Build the consistency of reaching for their journal before worrying about the details of the practice.?

Try journaling today. If you need some inspiration to kickstart that first entry, consider these prompts on reflecting through this year and vision-casting for the next:

• What moments stood out to me this past year? And why?
• What do I want to remember about this past year?
• What about this past year do I want to carry into this new year?
• How am I feeling going into this year?
• What word/phrase/metaphor do I want to set intentions for this year?

Jess Yen | AWCC Member and Coach and Founder of Daily Work Journal