So the point of my keeping a notebook has never been, nor is it now,to have an accurate factual record of what I have been doing or thinking.That would be a different impulse entirely, an instinct for reality which Isometimes envy but do not possess.

So the point of my keeping a notebook has never been, nor is it now, to have an accurate factual record of what I have been doing or thinking. That would be a different impulse entirely, an instinct for reality which I sometimes envy but do not possess.

Joan Didion • On Keeping a Notebook - Joan Didion

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A personal journal can be many things. It can be a record of life events, a sounding board, or a tool for personal growth.

Phillip Lopate • Writers and Their Notebooks

a diary or journal of personal reflections. It was a learning tool that the educated class used to understand a rapidly changing world and their place in it.

Tiago Forte • Building a Second Brain: A Proven Method to Organise Your Digital Life and Unlock Your Creative Potential

I keep a daily diary for many reasons, but the main one is that it helps me pay attention to my life. By sitting down every morning and writing about my life, I pay attention to it, and over time, I have a record of what I’ve paid attention to.

Austin Kleon • Keep Going: 10 Ways to Stay Creative in Good Times and Bad (Austin Kleon)

Keep Your Notes App Under Lock and Key

Charley Locke theatlantic.com

"Why do I keep a notebook at all?"

Alex Dobrenko`open.substack.com

And of course none of it matters very much at all, none of these early successes, early failures.

Joan Didion • Let Me Tell You What I Mean

I suppose that it begins or does not begin in the cradle. Although I have felt compelled to write things down since I was five years old, I doubt that my daughter ever will, for she is a singularly blessed and accepting child, delighted with life exactly as life presents itself to her, unafraid to go to sleep and unafraid to wake up.