Noisy Deadlines

noisymusings

How I managed to write on my journal every single day of 2016

Journaling

When journaling was a thing…and then it disappeared

For years during my adult life I struggled with starting a journal. You know, simple, personal daily journaling where we sit down and write about our day. It doesn’t need to be public. It is a space that is all ours, with our own reflections and sorrows.

The weird thing is that I remember having lots of “Diaries” when I was young. I enjoyed writing on my “Diary”. It was a daily practice that soothed my pre and adolescent despair. I decorated it with drawings. I even did collages with small souvenirs of my young adventures. By the end of the year, my diary was huge!! And kept them hidden from view, of course.

What happened to this habit? It has suddenly disappeared by the time I entered the “grown-up” stage of my life. I don’t remember when it was exactly, but it just happened. Poof! One day I was journaling, the other I was more interested in, what? Internet? Sometimes I wonder if the Internet destroyed some of my habits. It probably did… See, I grew up without internet and then this new amazing technology appeared and dominated me. It was fascinating. Maybe it is Internet’s fault…I don’t know.

Anyway, when I reached my 30’s and started to worry about productivity, I found out that there is such a thing as adult journaling!

Wait, what? Adults have diaries too?

I wondered how I could start this habit. There are tons of articles online stating that journaling is good for your brain, good for stress-management, good for creativity and so on.

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So, the idea of starting a blog or online journal sparkled in my head by September, 2012. I was having a very boring day, so I decided to write down a list to shake things up:

  1. Start a blog to write things down and organize list(s) and thoughts about life, universe and everything.
  2. Reduce time browsing Facebook drastically: it is really depressing when you realize you’ve spent half an hour on Facebook and the most useful thing you saw was some news about a cool book coming out (and it was just some advertising, actually…). Note: I got inspired by this post @TheOnion — a must-read all you Facebook slaves!!
  3. Okay, there was just one more cool thing on Facebook today: some cute art saying that making lists keeps us creative. Yeah. Lists. Great.
  4. Say “no” more often. It is good.
  5. No multitasking. Multitasking is bad for your brain (there was some study I read about this, but I’ve lost the link, sorry).
  6. Assume my antisocial side, no need to feel bad if you don’t enjoy karaoke.
  7. Just say “no”.
  8. Sometimes people don’t care about what you find essential in your work, well f@#* them.
  9. Swim today. No excuses.

The list was called “A list out of boredom” when I wrote it. And after that I tried to continue blogging, but it actually didn’t work out very well. Looking back, I realize today that it was a difficult year for me. I had to make choices. I skipped many activities I usually enjoyed, but at least I had a main goal in mind, and I’ve managed to complete it. It was a big and long project: a master’s degree.

I was completely exhausted after this achievement! I needed some time to cool down and reorganize myself. I started making changes in my life, including routines, habits, life style and so on. I stumbled upon GTD, minimalism, paperless life, zero waste lifestyle, simplicity. And all those things changed my world view. And are still changing me.

I’m still in the process, and now I’ve found time and energy to dedicate myself to this blogging project.

In a way, I believe I’m going through some changes which, hopefully, are for the better. From the things I wrote on that list in 2012 I can say today that I have achieved them all, one way or another. I see that as a sign of growth and evolution. I’m very happy about it!

And maybe that’s what this blog is all about, besides thoughts about life, the universe and everything!

#writing #noisymusings #blogging

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By Noisy Deadlines Minimalist in progress, nerdy, introvert, skeptic. I don't leave without my e-reader.