6 Step Journaling Routine

When Glori was born, I went through really bad postpartum depression. I had struggled with depression off and on since I was a teenager, and it came in full force after having a baby

One thing changed all of that… journaling. I use a 6 step journaling guide, and it’s easier than you think, just start. PLUS, I have a fun freebie included for you at the bottom of this blog: "The Journaling Starter Kit" 

Let's talk about a few other benefits of journaling. To get a better visual of these, check out the corresponding video that goes with this week's blog by clicking here. Here are a few other benefits of journaling.

Can help with anxiety by focusing on truth

Provides a healthy, creative outlet

Great place to brain dump

Can be an awesome keepsake

Will help you reach goals

Helps with spiritual and personal growth

If you’re wanting to start journaling because you're struggling with depression like I was, or because you'd like to tap into any one of the benefits above. I’d challenge you to do one thing for the next 10 days.

Step #1 is gratitude. Write down 5-10 things that you’re grateful for that happened in the last 24 hours. This forces you to find the positive in each day. 

Get specific and don’t focus on how big or how small, write down every positive thing. Ideally, wake up 15 min earlier than your kids, get yourself some coffee, and find a quiet space to do this. If that’s not possible, do it during nap time or heck, do it during your first bathroom break of the day. JUST DO IT.

You may have to restart multiple times before you hit ten in a row, that’s ok!! After you hit ten, do twenty, then thirty, etc. Before long it will be a daily habit.

This is just the first step, when you’ve done step one for 10-20 days in a row, come back to this post and add on step two.

At this stage, you should’ve completed at least a few consecutive days of gratitude journaling, now it’s time to add on #2: Acknowledgement

To be clear, you add, not replace. The goal is to do all 6 steps each morning.

This is my favorite of the five because it forces you to see God’s hand in your every day life. Write down 5 ways that you saw or felt Him in the last 24 hours. Don’t overthink this. Here are a few examples of things I’ve written down in previous months.

Brett took a walk with us (he hates walks, so this was huge)

Created an awesome new Habit Tracker for kids

Had an amazing candlelight service

Got rides lined up for church while Brett was gone (I don’t drive at night)

hit my first goal weight even though I wasn’t as strict as I should’ve been

found new dress sandals, in my size (11/12 isn’t exactly easy to find) for 10 bucks! They were on sale from $70.

I could literally type out DOZENS more

Moral of the story, if you look for God, it’ll amaze you how often He shows up in your every day life. Acknowledging His presence is a crucial part of having a consistent calm and peace while the world around us is chaotic

It’s easy to bleed #1 and #2 together and that’s ok! Being grateful and acknowledging His presence definitely go hand in hand. Personally I try to be a little more specific with #2 and look for things somewhat out of the ordinary, but do whatever feels right for you.

This is the second step, again, I suggest adding this to step 1, completing for 10-20 days, then coming back and adding step #3.

First things first, how did you do with the first two steps of journaling?! Let me know in the comments please, I love to hear feedback

At this stage, you should’ve completed at least a few consecutive days of gratitude journaling AND acknowledgement combined, now it’s time to add on #3: Worship

Just a reminder, you add, not replace. The goal again is to do all 6 steps each morning.

To me, this is a fun one. It’s also very simple to do. We’re simply going to worship God for WHO HE IS. We’ve spent a significant amount of time already thanking him for what He’s done for us, now we’re going to kind of brag/dwell on who He is as a person.

The way I do this is I just go through the alphabet, so day one would be A. I’d write down Abba, Amazing, Alpha, Awesome, Ageless, All in all, etc. The next day i would do the same for the letter B, and so on and so forth. When I come to a letter that only has a couple things I can think of, I do an extra letter or two that day. For example, usually q is combined with r and u, v, w, x, y, z are all on the same day

You can do this however you’d like, I personally keep adding letters until I have at least 5 things on my list, but it’s 100% up to you.

Y’all know the drill at this point, add to the first two steps, complete for 10-20 days, then head back to this post.

Step #4: Affirmations

This is one of my favorite ones to pass on to my daughter and has helped grow my self confidence and productivity SO MUCH!!

You can practice daily affirmations so many ways, so have fun playing around with them. What I like to do is read them aloud in front of a mirror like you’re giving someone a pep talk…except that someone is yourself!

Pick 4 or 5 I AM statements from the list below and get started. If you struggle with your appearance, you’re going to choose “I am” statements that relate to outward beauty. If you struggle with motivation, choose statements like “I am a hard worker, I am always learning”, etc.

I am beautiful

I am brave.

I am happy to be here.

I am always learning.

I am intelligent.

I am proud of who I am.

I am beautifully and wonderfully made.

I am happy.

I am responsible.

I am not in a race, there is plenty of time.

I am kind.

I am loved.

I love Jesus.

I am strong.

I am going to get through this.

I am unique.

I am patient.

I am made in His image.

I am not alone.

I am here for a purpose.

I am loveable.

I am fun.

I am creative.

I am trustworthy.

I am a survivor.

I am a hard worker.

I am “me”.

Keep in mine, these aren’t meant to be magic. They’re simply a habit to put in place that will help keep you motivated, keep you focused on the positive, keep you grounded, etc.

See you back here in a week or so for the last step!

Step #5: Goal Setting/Vision Casting

This is a fun step because it allows you to get a crystal clear picture of where you’re going. I’d suggest writing down a few things that are long term goals, but then write down 5–10 things that you can achieve THIS MONTH with just a little bit of elbow grease. Really serious about your goals? Grab the S.M.A.R.T goal planner and take things to the next level.

Visualize each goal coming to fruition and you write it down. Be careful! Because many of these goals you’ll be writing down daily, it’ll be easy to let your mind wander as you fall into repetition. Be mindful of what you’re writing each time.

Doing your journaling first thing each day will keep your goals in the front of your mind which will help you set intentional action.

Step 6: Prayer

The first three steps prepare our hearts and set the tone for our day, steps four and five ensure that we are focusing on things that move us closer to our goals, but step five is the most important. Step five is where we get to invite God into our day.

This step includes traditional prayer time where we pray for other people, and then this is also where we pray over our daily schedule and goals.

Have a drs appt today? Pray and ask God to lead the dr in wisdom and understanding.

Need groceries? Pray that you’ll find a close parking spot, find the items on your list on sale, find that brand of ranch your husband likes that’s always out of stock, etc.

Is one of your goals to lose 25lb? Maybe pray for the discipline needed to eat healthy and the extra energy to get your workout in.

Whatever’s on your mind, God doesn’t care how big or how small it is, ask Him to walk with you daily. You’ll be surprised at the places He shows up.

In addition to the 6 core steps above, there are other options you can include in your journaling such as tracking sleep habits, water intake, nutrition, mood, exercise, etc. Check out the video at the top of this blog to see some examples of this. You can also download the 12 month journaling pack below.

That’s it! This is the complete 6 step journaling blueprint I’ve taught to hundreds of women. Now you can tweak it to fit your life, teach it to your daughters, and then pass it on to your friends and family. I appreciate you tuning in to another post, and would love to hear how you use this in the comments.