Never Been Able to Keep a Journal? This Is the Journal Format for You

“One sentence is enough. When I look back on it years later, that one sentence really does keep memories vivid — it really does bring back the past — which is one of the things you really want a journal to do,” Rubin explains. Science is on her side — studies show simply looking back on everyday experiences can bring us outsize joy.

“Pick a handful of entries in your journal. Ask yourself what it teaches you about yourself, people, or life. You won’t find answers all the time. Once in a while, you will find one of those aha! moments that lead to growth,” he writes. For him, those eureka moments spurred some of his most successful writing. For you, they might include that insig... See more

Next, write down one or two thoughts that bubbled up during the day. Ask yourself: “What anxieties, worries, or dreams occupied my mind?” And that is all you need to do each day (really, it’s that simple).

Begin your journaling each night before you go to bed. In your journal, write down 10 to 12 experiences from your day. The experience could be anything. It could be something you experience yourself or something you observe.

You might overhear an interesting conversation at a coffee shop. You might spill a full cup of coffee on your pants in the mid

... See more

While finding the right rituals and practices for you is a matter of trial and error — as well as continual adjustment — more knowledge about the breadth of available options can help.

Meditation, for example, sounds simple. But tons of people struggle mightily to set up a habit. Journaling (like going to the gym) is the same. You start with the best intentions, keep it up for a while, and then your motivation flags and you’re left with a bunch of dusty, mostly blank notebooks.