Posted by Jesper on September 15, 2024
This is a post about the practice of reflective journaling. I’m someone who likes to think about the world and myself and the relationship between the two, and writing down these thoughts makes them clearer and more concrete. However, sitting down in front of an empty page can be discouraging, and there is only so many times you can write about the feeling of sitting in front of an empty page before it gets really old. Journaling prompts are a great way to skip that part and get the ink flowing. So here is a list of prompts I’ve used over the past two years of (irregular) reflective journaling. You can easily find hundreds of prompts online (just search for `reflective journaling prompts’) and there’s nothing that makes these ones special, except that these are mine.
Look, it’s none of my business whether you keep a journal or not, but if you also like to journal or are open to the idea, feel free to give these a try. And if you have prompts of your own, feel free to share them with me!
- What are some of the things you are curious about? How can you learn more about them?
- What does courage mean to you? What is a situation where you showed real courage?
- What is the thing that you most need to hear in this moment?
- How is your relationship with your creativity? Would you like to be more creative? Are there any negative thoughts you have around creativity?
- Think of one of the elements Air, Water, Earth or Fire. What does this element represent to you? What is there to be grateful for?
- How do you feel about being in a position of power over another person? Does it feel good or bad, or both?
- What objects are there around you? What is their history? What do they mean to you?
- What are the things in your life you are trying to control, and are there any that you can let go of?
- Don’t write anything today and don’t ask yourself any questions. Instead, just draw something silly for your own eyes only.
- Are you keeping any secrets from the people close to you? Does keeping these secrets cause more suffering than spilling them would?
- What are the things in your life you are unhappy about? Try telling yourself that these things are actually okay the way they are. How does that feel?
- Do you have any recurring thoughts that you are trying to suppress? What would happen if you would just give them some space and listen to them?
- Do you have an Inner Critic who always knows exactly what you did wrong and how everything is your fault? How is your relation with them?
- Do you have an Inner Fanboy who reminds you of all the things you did well, how much you have grown, and whose lives are better because of you? How is your relation with them?
- Do you have an Inner Rascal who just likes to do whatever they feel like, be crazy and play pranks on people? How is your relation with them?
- Do you have an Inner Deity who quietly observes your life and watches over you, without any judgement? How is your relation with them?
- Do you have an Inner Artist who lives in a world of fantasy and stories and colors and magic? How is your relation with them?
- Do you have an Inner Warrior who is determined, defiant, fierce, and uncompromising? How is your relation with them?
- Do you have an Inner Narrator who is continuously observing your thoughts and actions and turns them into a story? How is your relation with them?
- Are you an emotional person? How do you react when you feel strong emotions? Do you push them away, or do you embrace them?
- What are some things in your life that you could use help with? Are there any people in your life who you could ask for help with them?
- How has your life influenced the lives of others living now and in the future, directly or indirectly?
- How do you have conversations with others? Do you listen and ask questions? Do you think about what the other person needs?
- What is something you worry about often? What is the worst thing that could happen if it comes to pass?
- Is there an opposition between having self-compassion and wanting to grow into a stronger person, or can these two exist side by side?
- When given a choice between a conflict with someone else and a conflict with your own values, which do you usually choose?
- What are the things you consider yourself addicted to? What is their importance to you, and what do they allow you to get away from?
- What would you do if you were free from expectations of other people and yourself?
- Are there any projects where perfectionism is stopping you from continuing them? How can you take one messy and imperfect step towards finishing it?
- What is intimacy to you? Why do we need it?
- What is your style of leadership? In what parts of your life could you show more of it?
- Are there any things from your past you keep blaming yourself for? Can you forgive yourself for them?
- Do you think feeling uncertain is a good or a bad thing? Why?
- Is there anything you miss about yourself when you were young? Can you find ways to bring them back into your life?
- How do you deal with criticism from people close to you? Do you reject it or embrace it?
- What does optimism mean to you? Is it a blind trust that things will go well, or the courage to believe that the things we do make a difference?
- Is there anything about yourself that you consider abnormal? Do you view these things with shame or with pride?
- Which groups, identities, or movements do you consider yourself a part of? How do they influence the way you think about yourself?
- Are there aspects of your life where you feel “stuck”? Do you ever feel frustration or hopelessness about them? Is there someone who you can share these feelings with?
- What are the values that you care most about, that you want to live by, and that you want to protect?
- When you think about your future self, do you look at them with suspicion or with trust?
- Is there anything you are currently angry or sad about? Can you recognize the source of love at the root of these feelings?
- How can you tell the difference between things you really want and things that society expects of you? Is it even necessary to want anything?
- What are things you enjoy talking about with others? Do you do so?
- How can you make others feel safe and have trust in you? How do you give them space to think and listen?
- When was the last time you used your imagination to dream of a brighter and kinder future? Did you share that dream with anyone?
- Be quiet and listen. What do you hear right here and now in the present moment? What does it sound like?
- What is your number one priority in life? What concrete things can you do to make sure it does not get buried beneath the daily routine?
- Is it true that thoughts cannot hurt people? Or are we hurting ourselves by holding on to old thoughts about ourselves? Does the same hold for positive thoughts?
- Imagine you are in a zombie apocalypse. What are the 100 things you want to do before you turn into a zombie? (This prompt brought to you by the Zom100 anime.)
- What are the ways in which you take care of yourself? What are some ways you do not, but wish you would?
- How can you help people who are stuck in their assumptions to rediscover their imagination?
- Who is your ideal partner or best friend?
- What does it mean to exist, apart from any assumptions or judgements or goals or desires?
- In which ways have you grown or changed over the last month? The last year? The last ten years? Since you were a child?
- Which parts of your parents and grandparents do you recognize in yourself? Is there any trauma that they were unable to heal and have passed on to you? Can you heal it in their stead?
- Imagine you have the opportunity to meet a wise teacher, what questions would you ask them? Imagine someone came to you with these questions, how would you answer them?
- Do you ever stop and listen to what is going on inside you? Do you accept what you hear and feel in that moment?
- How often do you judge things as good or bad, happy or sad, loving or hating? Do you need to?
- Imagine yourself camping out in nature. What do you see, hear, smell, feel, and taste?
- Think of two opposite concepts, such as life and death, or interesting and boring, or love and hate. Are they really opposites, or can you find one in the other?
- Imagine yourself 10, 20, or 30 years in the future. How have you changed? How do you look back on yourself now?
- Is the opposite of love hate? Or is it ignorance, indifference, or the feeling of inevitability?
- Where do you find inspiration? What can you do to become more inspired?
- What stories do you tell about yourself? Where did these stories come from? Are there any stories that no longer apply and you could let go of?
- Is there anything you are afraid of telling to someone close to you? What is missing for you to allow yourself to be more vulnerable?
- Do you have any desires that you’d rather be rid of or you judge yourself for? What happens if you suspend that judgement for a moment and instead approach the desire with curiosity?
- Do you consider yourself a humble person? What does humility mean to you? When is humility fake and when is it real?
- How do you decide what is the right thing to do in any given situation? Do you follow your intuition or do you follow a moral framework?
- Are there things in your life that you enjoy doing, but not so much as the things you value most? What would it take to let go of them?
- How would your life be different if you did not have any plans or goals or ambitions? How would you spend your time differently?
- Which person who is no longer in your life do you miss a lot? What are the things you learned from them?
- What are your dreams for the future? Do your dreams make you feel empowered or overwhelmed? Are there dreams that no longer serve you?
- What are the things you feel responsible for? Are they within your sphere of influence, or outside it? Where can you make a real difference?
- When you are feeling down, what are the things that make you feel better again? How can you make them easier to remember at moments when you need them most?
- What makes a story different from just a list of events? Why do we tell each other stories?
- Think of a good friend you haven’t spoken to in a while, and write them a letter. Consider whether to send them this letter, or keep it to yourself.