Journal Exercises
Each month there are three journaling exercises to lay the groundwork for the value we’re exploring. They helps us get clear about what we want to discover, and give us a baseline to look back on at the end of the month.
Clarify Your Intention (Week 1)
This activity helps us articulate what a given value means to us, why it’s important, and – most importantly – what does it look like in practice? It’s a way to make something abstract – perspective, kindness, community – specific and personally meaningful in the context of our current lives. It grounds the idea in terms of how we act, and not just as something we think about in general, or see in other people.
The Seven Questions (Week 1)
These are structured to help you look at your practice from multiple perspectives. They’ll help you articulate what you want to get out of your practice and, they’ll also bring up the thoughts, feelings and motivations lurking below the surface. All that stuff is there whether we acknowledge it or not – it’s much more useful to take a look at it ahead of time, so we can recognize it when it comes up. You’ll be less likely to get sabotaged – and more likely to stay on track – if you know what your discomfort, resistance, and motivations are.
Don’t skip this step! That being said, don’t overthink it either. A few sentences for each fine; more than that is fine too.
- What are my expectations? – Write down what you expect to have happen as a result of your practice. This gives you a way to check what you imagined would happen, against the reality that occurred. Write down what you’re excited about, what you want. It’s also okay to write down stuff that’s vague, negative, or not realistic – comparing what we do with what we expect is a big part of what this practice is all about. Specific expectations are fine too.
- What do I value? – This is about articulating what you want to accomplish, independently of how it happens. It helps us understand the outcome we want – what’s important to us – without being attached to the way we get there.
- What do I want? – This question is about tapping into your motivation for practicing. Sometimes this might be very clear, other times, not so much. It’s okay if you’re not sure – just put it on the page.
- Where is the resistance? – We all resist change, even change we want. It’s disruptive, and requires us to do things differently. Naming our resistance makes it easier to let go of what we’re attached to, and the excuses (even if they’re true) that keep us stuck. Writing these down helps create a little space between us, and the things we we’re afraid of – and the problems we haven’t figured out how to solve yet.
- What am I willing to do? – This helps us understand our limits. Committing to practices that aren’t realistic can lead to a lot of missed marks – and if we don’t know it wasn’t something we were willing to do in the first place, we feel discouraged and blame ourselves. Knowing what we’re willing to do affirms our commitment to the practice, and sets us up to succeed.
- What is gained? and What is lost? – This helps us see changes that we think will occur as a result of our practice – both pleasant and unpleasant. It’s natural to focus on the positive parts of change, but that’s rarely the full experience. This question helps us anticipate all of what we might experience. It prepares us to accept discomfort, and to notice and appreciate the positive.
Lessons Learned (Week 4)
This is a reflection about what you noticed – and learned – during the month. Look back at your Intention and the Seven Questions from week one.
Did your experience match what you thought would happen? What was different? What surprised you? What did you like and dislike? What do you want to keep doing, or stop – and why? This activity isn’t about coming to a certain conclusion, or being right or wrong, or good or bad. It’s simply to assess what happened.
The reason for this practice is to better understand ourselves, how we want to show up in our lives, and how to do it. It helps us understand how our internal world, impacts our external world. By taking stock of what happened, we can incorporate what we learned, into what we do in the future. It gives us agency – it allows us to take responsibility for what we believe, and how we act, so we make the things we care about.