UPDATE: Making this into a workbook as we speak !! Thanks for the suggestion ALSO THIS - someone suggested a journaling card deck typa thing... any interest? Could be cool to have like 100 techniques, drawn + written properly etc... ☝️✨️let me know✨️👆 Just coz someone asked: this collection of techniques is very much a pick-and-choose situation, definitely not a "do all 30 every day" typa thing. It's more like "here’s 30 options (grouped into 5 reasons), if one makes sense for ya give it a shot" Some of these i do twice a week, others twice a year. Different situations/days/problems call for different ways to talk to your brain, if ya get me. Take what works, leave what doesn't, chop and change, go bananas, really. And also someone asked about format... notebooks, voice recorder, word doc, etc. To each their own, but I'm pretty format agnostic, personally. My rule: whatever's closest = the right format
I love your content, it is helpful and makes me smile! Personally, I think paper is the bomb, probably showing my age, but we are physical beings. The technological tools are too easy to delete or loose in the either. Paper is "concrete", and forces you to do something with it, i.e. deal. Thanks for your work!
Is it possible to get the VOMIT sheets as a PDF so that makes them printable? - I want to stick them on my wall and refer back to them when journalling!
@@NeylenaI just watched the video for a second time specifically to take notes (some copying from the screen, some in my own words). For my (ADHD) brain it’s the only chance I have of remembering and applying the steps. I rarely remember what I print out, and if I post it, within a week it’s become invisible. Just part of the wall. However, If _I_ write it down and then post it above my desk I have a fighting chance of remembering. It might work for you, too?
Long time therapist here: Much of this is amazing and a great guide. One caveat: Please don't take deeply troubling or traumatic things and try to re-frame them into something positive. Not only will that not work because it's too much cognitive dissonance, but it's a bit dangerous of a paradigm to create for yourself. It's probably why it felt inappropriate when you did it. I would suggest acknowledging how terrible the thing is, allowing yourself to have that real human emotion, and then asking the question: "How can I grow from this?" I'm sure nobody will read this but just a suggestion from someone who has been working with traumatized people for a very long time.
I hear you, I wrote this next to my notes of this video. Thank you very much for saving me and probably others from the possibility of a severe mistake.
@@rivkat801 I'm glad my comment was helpful. It lacks some nuance but in general it's healthy to acknowledge that something is painful and traumatic and then sort of start the process of either how do I move forward even though this is in my past or how do I grow from it...admittedly, the growth part is generally a bit farther down the road from the living with it part and that's where the nuance comes in (ie. - how long has it been, how severe was it, etc.) This is were a good trauma therapist can be helpful though.
Thank you for saying this. I fell for this toxic positivity stuff early in my healing and think it's really important to let people know why it isn't helpful and can even be harmful. Sadly, I've even seen therapists who weren't very trauma informed push this idea. I get the temptation to avoid the feelings, but can attest from having tried the re-frame that it just stalled my healing for many years and made me feel worse about myself for still struggling with it. Feeling all the feels is uncomfortable, but it's a better discomfort than that which comes from trying to just bypass or cover up the trauma. Especially since when you feel it and process it, then things actually start improving.
So he's done a whole video about this, and one of the things he's used it on is his childhood sexual abuse - he said it felt inappropriate in the "transgressive" way, but still radically helpful for him. It's the kind of thing you can never say to anyone else, but you can say to yourself, and it has the potential to be powerful. I don't think he's toxic about it, just being honest about what worked for him. It's helpful to have your warning, but I think also helpful not to take any techniques off the table if you feel ready to practice then safely
*VOMIT-system* 1. Vent 2. Obligations 3. Mindset 4. Ideate 5. Trajectory 1. Start with what makes you angry because that easily gets you going and takes the clutter out from your head onto your sheet 2. Get out everything that feels like an obligation, from actual to dos to things you want to do or think about, etc. 2.1 Collect obligations 2.2 Organise (put them into categories) 2.3 Prioritise (possible guiding question: What of these, if done, would make everything else easier?) 2.4 Write a to-do list (with sections "bare minimum" (to make tomorrow suck less) and "killing it" to be able to adapt according to your energy level) 3. Adjust your mindset in order to better be able to cope with things 3.1 Reframing (possible guiding questions: How is this the best thing, that ever happened to me? How can I grow from this?) 3.2 Possibility (Formulate affirmations as "I am … because…" in order to collect evidence and be able to believe them as well as be encouraged to create evidence in order to be right about the statement) 3.3 Inversion (ask yourself how to make the opposite of the actual solution work in order to more easily identify 3.4 Perspective (ask yourself what advice you would give if you were a well-meaning friend in order to get unstuck from details and encourage yourself to do what's good for yourself) 3.5 Discipline (keep journalling and make adjustments in order to be able to do so, e.g. create habits) 3.6 Gratitude (think about things that are good. Possible guiding questions: What was something mundane, something that happened by chance and something you yourself made happen you are grateful for?) 4. Generate ideas to cope with whatever is worrying you 4.1 Brainstorming (if you have a problem, challenge yourself to come up with 30 possible solutions within 5 minutes, something valuable will be among them. Don't edit within that time frame!) 4.2 What would … do? (What solution would someone smart, someone I admire come up with?) 4.3 Open the loop (write down the question in order to make your brain want to answer the question and close the loop again so that you passively keep thinking about it) 5. Get a sense of whether your life is headed in the direction you want and/ or what you can do to make it move that way 5.1 Direction (reflect on whether today moved you towards or away from the goal, collect evidence for that and think about what you can draw from that for your next moves) 5.2 Hidden metrics (figure out which hidden metrics you might overlook in your day-to-day hustle, achievements that are harder to measure but equally or even more meaningful to you. Possible guiding questions: What excited me today? What drained me of energy? What did I learn? At the latest after 30 days of doing this, trends should become notable)
Man, I just gotta say, that in a sea of male role models that promote toxicity and anti social behavior. Your idea of simply being venerable about your own struggles against yourself, and explaining how you have been able to make changes for the better is so powerful. The amount of care you exhibit towards yourself and others is really inspirational, and I hope that more men will start to think this way.
Bruh, the concept of journaling on a side-ways turned sketchbook has made me immediately more interested in journaling than any other journaling video/blog post ever
My favourite prompt is "What surprised you today?" You'll end up noticing the coolest stuff (internally and externally) when you start expecting a surprise from life 💫
Cam you gotta check out a book called 'A life discarded' by Alex Masters. A non fiction tale written by a guy who finds 50 years worth of a single persons journals thrown out into a garbage can, takes them home, and tries to construct a biography of the mystery person from only their diaries. Deeply moving, painfully relatable, and truly impactful.
Thanks for the recommendation. I recently inherited my father's journals - over 60 years of books. I haven't brought myself to read them yet. The life of a man who left to find himself when I was 6, a loved but veritable stranger.
@@KlingonPrincesswow. That is a GIFT. My dad left at the same age for the same reason and, while I totally understand your hesitancy, god I would be grateful for that opportunity. You will know when the time is right. PLEASE keep them though. I’m 35 now and the ups and downs ive had in wanting to know about my father are IMMENSE. If you ever feel tempted to dump them, maybe just toss them in a garbage back in the back of a closet lol. I feel like there are aspects of myself that I don’t understand BECAUSE I never knew my father. Lol sorry for the rant…just hoping to add some “perspective”😉
@@Shmyrk I have similar feelings as an adoptee - I never got to meet my birth mum and only had limited contact with my dad once I got hold of him as an adult. I don't really talk to my birth family much now, but finding more about my mum and other family members was immensely helpful and healing for me.
This is one of the only books I've read more than once, it's incredible and I wish I could have met the diarist herself, she seemed like an interesting person.
I love how you drew all the things just on paper, and I really like this video format, it makes it feel very sincere, honest and organic. Just like a friend that is explaining some techniques to you.
I'm 52 years old, this is the first time I've actually heard REAL, HELPFUL advice about journaling and list making! Thank you so much!!!! Going to listen again and maybe a third time if I need it!
I had a therapist once tell me to write down three positive physical experiences I had every single day. It could be something like "the moon is beautiful tonight," (seeing something beautiful in the physical world), or "the sound of the rain on the roof was soothing," or "the recipe I cooked today was super delicious." I have chronic pain, and this focus on the positive physical experiences I have on a daily basis helps remind me that pain isn't the only physical experience that exists, and gets me out of my head when I get hyper-focused on the pain. It's been really helpful.
That is great advice! I have found it helpful to keep something like a gratitude journal doing exactly that. It doesn't take away anything but it forces our brains to find something to be grateful for.
I used to keep a "fantasy self" journal. I had all sorts of adventures and traveled the world. It was really fun, I should start that up again. It helped give perspective on what I really wanted out of life and what makes me happy.
@@andrew4635 I was trying to figure out the essence of what drives me & what makes me happy. I struggled with those questions. A fantasy, "other lives" journal helped me find answers because money (and reality) were removed from the equation. Aso helped define what I didn't want. It worked wonders for me. And it was a lot fun.
I have used the "how is this the best thing that ever happened to me" THIS MONTH. I was knocked out by an unexpected health problem. Asked myself the question. Rest without guilt! Audiobooks! Snuggle time with dogs! I asked friends to come up with wacky reasons, too, that amused me. I ended up grinning more than suffering. THANK YOU so much!
I had covid end of last year and it hit me hard yet, in some ways it was great. The illness was bad but the rest and freedom from the constant battle of juggling responsibilities was frankly amazing. It wasn't until reading this I realized why and how I had found something good in it all. Thank you and I hope are doing well.
I honestly thought "the vomit system" was going to be about "just dump it all out, it doesn't have to make sense" because that's kinda what I've been needing to do for myself. But this was a very pleasant surprise. As someone who's been journaling for 26 years for life-documentation and for help navigating internal struggles - this system is very much for deep psyche expansion. I love it. Thank you so much for putting this together, and for your humor sprinkled in. Days later and I'm still laughing at your giggles over the word "vomit" 😆😆 Congrats on your sobriety and fatherhood!
I need to do that frequently, particularly if it's been a while since I've "gone deep" in journaling. It's like a bunch of dust and grime starts covering my head and I've got to just blow out the lines for a few thousand words or pages or whatever.
I've been just vomiting all my thoughts down messily. I remember when the person who got me into journalling compared diaries with mine, hers was very organised but mine had messy wording, typos and abbreviations all over the place. I like it this way.
I love the idea of “collecting data on yourself”. Often times, we don’t actually know who we are and what we like. This is a great way to understand ourselves better.
In case anyone else wants a helpful summary to keep as a reminder Vent: Example: Writing about what makes you angry or frustrated. This can be a way to start a journaling session and help clear your mind. Obligations: Obligation Dump: Writing down all obligations, big or small. Organize: Categorizing these obligations into broader categories like family, finance, health, work. Prioritize: Using guiding questions to identify the most important tasks. For example, "Does this make the boat go faster?" or Tim Ferris's question, "Which of these, if done, would make the rest easier or irrelevant?" To-Do List Form: Creating a list with a 'bare minimum' and 'killing it' section to set realistic daily goals. Mindset: Reframing: Asking, "How is this the best thing that ever happened to me?" to change your perspective on challenging situations. Possibility (Because Statements): Writing statements like "I am healthy because..." and then listing reasons that support this belief. Inversion: Looking at problems from the opposite angle to find solutions. Perspective: Writing advice you would give to a friend in your situation. Discipline: Building discipline through the act of regular journaling. Gratitude: Listing things you are grateful for, focusing on different aspects like mundane things, chance happenings, and things you made happen. Ideate: Rapid Ideation: Setting a timer for 5 minutes and trying to come up with 30 ideas or solutions. How Would X Solve This?: Thinking about how someone else (like a famous brand or person) would solve your problem. Open the Loop: Writing down a question before bed and letting your subconscious work on it. Trajectory: Direction: Regularly assessing whether your daily actions are moving you towards or away from your goals. Day-to-Day Hidden Metrics: Asking yourself at the end of each day: "What excited me today? What drained me of energy? What did I learn?"
Another promt: writing letters to something or someone more or less random. Like Dear 2024, Dear wedding ring, Dear 10yo me, Dear cellphone, Dear Spiderman, Dear joy, Dear Struthless. And of course Dear diary and Dear God, but expanding on this prompt can be so interesting, it often surprises me what comes out when I do this!
Congratulations! You should be proud of yourself :) I haven't been journaling for long, but it has been so helpful. I never knew how much I was storing in my brain until I could let it out on paper. It brings lots of clarity and peace.
I know this is an absurdly self-congratulatory comment....but when you asked how many ducks could fit in the Kia, my mind immediately thought 495. The answer you gave? 494.7. I love being accurate to within 0.3 ducks of anything!!!!!!!! This was such a wonderful video, and beneficial even to those who don't really have an intention to journal regularly. I am working on time management and goal setting. I have found the "Which of these tasks would make the rest of these tasks easier to do?" a WONDERFUL organizing technique. Thank you for this video!!!!
A great journal prompt is “what terrible things haven’t happened to me today?” This kind of forced gratitude practice is helpful I if you’re stuck in a rut. I haven’t been diagnosed with a fatal illness. I’m not suffering debilitating pain. You get the idea. When you realise how many people in the world are suffering in these acute stages of painful experiences, it can make you feel a bit better about a seemingly minor inconvenience that your mind may have blown out of proportion.
Yesterday I wrote down all my intrusive thoughts uncontrollably and with some real ugly handwriting. It looked like crying but on paper. After that I wrote all the feelings and ways of being that I want out of my life. Tore up the paper and tossed it in the trash. Let's just say I feel better and lighter already. It's more than just venting, it was a much needed release. The amount of junk that was in my head, junk that wasn't mine. It was insane.
This is actually a journaling technique too. You write without needing to be legible. So you essentially just scribble at the speed of your thought rather than think at the speed of your handwriting.
I do this too when I'm venting about work and having issues with work itself or colleagues. I find writing down my angry thoughts stops me from thinking about it and the next day I'm not already starting the day resentful.
I used to do this as a way to control my temper. I would write every horrible thing I wanted to say or felt. Then I took great care in deliberately tearing the piece of paper to itty bitty pieces so no one would ever find the evidence. By the time I was done I felt much more calm and able to see that all my horrible thoughts were blown out of proportion. I haven’t done that in a long time, maybe I should start again whenever I feel overwhelmed
I turned 65 today and opened my TH-cam to see what's special about this day. Your video was the first thing I saw. Awesome topic for me ! You made my day! ❤
I'm 54 and have watched thousand of self improvement videos on TH-cam. This is the best one I've seen on improving an aspect of your life. Journaling is something I've wanted to start for several years, but I have never started. Because of this video, I am now a journaler and it is one of the best things I've ever added to my life.
Dude. This is EXACTLY how I naturally ended up journaling after doing it for decades. Truly, the vomit process is liberating. It's not about having brilliant thoughts to record. It's about swatting cobwebs out of your brain meat so you can use it to DO things, not ruminate on things. PS: thank you for closing the duck loop! Ugh. Though you were gonna leave my brain hanging.
I know imposter syndrome is rampant among content creators but you have truly, truly, TRULY changed my life for the better and I hope you know the amazing work you’re doing is beyond appreciated ❤
I've never taken more notes while watching a youtube video in my life - I am not super young. I've never taken a single note while watching a youtube video - I watch A LOT of videos. And now, a WORKBOOK! Yay. Tada. Closing the loop. How satisfying =) ... Tripped over you yesterday. Wildly happy I did. Thank you youtube algorithm; you finally did something right.
I had a bad attitude coming into this video, like “you don’t need rules for journaling.” And…I walked away completely blown away. I feel excited to VOMIT now, lol! And…I am grateful for you and this helpful video. 🎉 Thank you, you lovely human.
The best part that goes in to Obsidian :) - Prioritization: 1. Obligation dump 2. Does it make boat go faster? 3. ==What’s the one thing you can do, such that by doing it, everything else will be easier or unnecessary?== 4. Bare Minimum List + Killing List (If I feel like snowballing)
"How best to get started with Obsidian [or similar] with actual instructions or concrete tips" is definitely something that could warrant a straightforward, concise video. Do you have anything in mind?
Posting this after watching 80% of the video - it's already the best no-nonsense video on the topic I have seen here on TH-cam. Thank you for your work :)
At the end of each martial arts class I teach, I ask the students "What was easy today? What did you struggle with? What did you see someone else in the class doing well? What new or surprising thing did you learn today? What do you want to learn in a future class? " I just never thought about using these prompts in my daily life!
I'm 67 years old. I've been writing down my thoughts & ideas since 1978. I couldn't organize my deeper thoughts, and problems until I could get the mental storm on paper. Back then I just called it brain storming & mental exercises. Others would just call it thinking. As in "I gotta think about that". Most of the time it required paper. But I really like your organized methodologies; it's much better than my random notations.
I can't believe I both enjoyed this video and strongly considered journaling. Not sure why TH-cam thought I needed to watch this while I'm trying to figure out how to start a business, but it picked a winner. Great video, thanks for sharing!
So many self-improvement creators are not the real deal. They're trying to sell you a book or a course or something and they include maybe one really useful tidbit of information in between all the hype language and psychobabble. When I saw the title for this video, I was like great. Another one of those. How happy I am to be so wrong. This video is so chock full of useful information that I've had to watch it several times in order to fully digest it. It's not just about "journaling," it's about concrete ways of reframing your mindset, creating accountability, and working WITH your brain instead of against it. This video and discovering this channel has legitimately changed my life. I started microjournaling and limiting my social media usage five days ago and I've already had some of the most productive, healthy days I've had in a very long time. I've bookmarked this video (and others) to come back to when I need to remember the specifics about these writing prompts. I'm so unbelievably grateful to have found you! Thank you for making your videos practical, fun, authentic, aesthetically pleasing, and FULL of useful, thought-provoking information. You're the real deal, Struthless!
Wow Thank you for: 1. Grabbing my attention with the name of the system. 2. Breaking the categories up into actual individual concerns that collectively overwhelm a creative mind 3. Clarifying each category by organizing them into actionable steps. I’ve been interested in journaling for many years and most of my journals have 2 pages complete due to my over active mind lacking the structure needed to focus. Many thanks for this creative approach to approaching the tool of journaling
Ideation is a skill that you can learn. I’m in school for Industrial Design/product design and it’s basically one of the most important part of our job. If I was asked to come up with ideas as fast as I do now in freshman year I wouldn’t have been able to. They teach you ways to ideate in the first major specific class you take. Idea generation is not just being creative, it is a learnable skill, and I hope more people feel comfortable to start getting better at it.
One thing I noticed is that the guiding question for prioritizing actually prompts you to think what's best for YOU whereas when using other metrics (or in case of the ones which I used at least), I felt the compulsion to do what's "expected" of me, than what might actually serve me in reality.
I always struggled with journalling because writing down words was always hard for me. Until I started incorporating drawing on how or what I was feeling! This way I was able to vent through art and journalling at the same time. This was a great video! Thanks for sharing your techniques with the world
I get you. Been there too. Now been journaling for 5 years every day, and just once in a while I realize how much I changed because of it. Even if you feel its not doing anything, keep writing me friend, it will add up to a lot more than you think🙏🏼💥
I'm having to learn journaling as part of a Mindset course I'm doing at the moment and this video has just unlocked EVERYTHING. What an insanely informative piece of content.
This is more of a one-time journaling prompt, but i really like, 'if everyone on earth was exactly like me, what would improve or get worse?' ...basically what would the world be like. I think it can shed some light into both your strengths and weaknesses.
@Dancingswan98 lol. It's funny that some people think the world would be terrible, and that other people think the world would be amazing. But I think the reality would be somewhere in the middle; there would be some very positive changes and some very negative changes. I mean the sky is the limit with this prompt. There are so many things to consider, if everybody had the exact same political and religious beliefs as you, the same outlook on life and society, views on family, kids, food, the same relationship problems, goals, hobbies, pet peeves... Would you regress back to the stone ages? Maybe you're good with kids and therefore every child would have an amazing upbringing. Would everybody live in a commune and collectively agree that money doesn't exist anymore? Would everyone be super healthy or unhealthy? Would we all be introverts or extroverts? Would we be too lazy to upkeep the cities or would everyone be workaholics? The more self awareness you have the more complex it can get.
It's rare to find channels with content that I get excited to watch not only because these videos are fun and comforting and inspiring all in one, but also actually provide tools to help me grow as a person and even improve mental health. Struthless is the best!
Congrats on 1 million subrcibers! I started watching your videos four year ago when you were at 50k and it's been great seeing your journey. I've also been going through a lot of changes and I'm happy that I'm coming out the other side closer to your compassionate attitude that embraces the great things in life. Keep doing you, it helps a lot :)
Dooood, I've seen so much "self help"-related content from so many great content makers, but you sir are by far the realist. And I've been to therapy and been told I "should start journaling", but just as you said, I didn't know how to start or where to take it once I started. I guess I never truly understood the "why". I'm not even halfway through and I FINALLY GET IT! Thank you for the visuals, the analogies, the wisdom and your great sense of humour! 🙏 An instant subscribe!
I’ve been back-and-forth on journaling almost my entire life, and I’m 61 years old 🤦♀️ I’m going to grab myself a notebook and pen and watch this video again, taking notes this time. Thank you for some great tips!
15:19 As an ADHDer, I thrive when making everyday demands, motivations, reminders etc VISIBLE and physical. Things like setting a visual timer on my watch, using post-its and scheduled reminders, printing copies of motivating photos and important instructions. Without externalising these I have to rely on my poor executive functions. I'm not lacking in skills or knowledge when it comes to organising my home or appointments. If I am not aware of needing something at the point that I need it, it may as well not exist because it doesn't in my working memory. After my prompts are no longer useful, it's equally important for me to discard/reset them - with gratitude - so I'm not encumbered by growing clutter or mess.
this video is PURE GOLD!! Thank you so much from the bottom of my poor soul, struggling to improve my overall situation, and finding nothing concrete on the internet. Truly grateful!! thank you!
Thank you so much for this video! I'm currently a college student in my twenties, and everything feels so confusing in life. From being diagnosed with multiple disabilities in my teens to over a decade of mental health challenges, journaling was something that helped me stay sane. I've been journaling for a little over a year now, but I usually stuck to "venting" and "day-to-day" activities. I'm really looking forward to using this system to learn how to better understand myself, my feelings, and my path to success. Thank you!
On direction, I think it's also worth remembering that sometimes your pile of evidence showing that you're moving away from a goal might mean you're a failure, but probably it means your goal isn't a good fit. Like, my 2023 plan to be more like Steven Segal totally backfired, but that's a good thing because now I know more about myself and I can play to my strengths and leave comically lazy action movies to someone better suited to the task.
❤journaling (kind of) since i was 9. When my daughter was sick, hospitalized for almost 2 months. I had my journal, and through each test, cancer, and everything, i was writing. I was writing all day long. All the worries, i couldnt deal with, was going on my paper. But that kept me going. I never knew how to explain, the extend of the help it brings me, small or big concern. But you did! Wow! If this can bring more people to discover this self-help we can bring to ourself, this is just great! I usually, write my concerns on paper (if i have any), when i go to bed, and its like, my mind can rest, because its on paper, i can forget it, and anyway, usually i cant solve it at 11pm anyway. But it free my mind, at least to let me sleep better, and you know what, when i wake up, what i thought ,was a big deal, either i get the solution, or its 10 times less important than i thought it was. You verbalized it better, than everything i've heard before. Journaling for 40 years now. And will do for another 40 ish years ;-)) New subs. And i will watch all your videos, ❤
At 73 I'm just starting to think about creating a journaling approach for myself. Thank you for sharing your approach through the illustrations. I also enjoyed the self-effacing humor and your giggles. All that you shared were challenging experiences that you created work arounds to solve issuess on your life's journey. Thank you again!
I truly did not know what to expect, but this is such a good method to remember that journaling can be a lot of things and you don't need to feel constricted to one single way of doing it. I've always intuitively known that, yet I mostly use it to vent, and always get frustrated when I find myself only ever journaling when I'm sad and upset... I want a future version of me to get to see other more neutral or positive sides of me, after all! And I've consumed many journaling videos along the years to try to expand my vision of how to approach it as a practice, but I always end up forgetting the tips I was given. Once again, I feel like one of the biggest strengths of your videos is that the advice in them is memorable, be it because of how clearly and straightforwardly you deliver the message in them, or because you find a way to help the viewer remember through visual or linguistic aid to do so. It's topically truly an art how you turn the most artistic and creative sides of you into useful systems!
You are seriously changing my life in the best way! The way you explain things and are so visual in your explanations resonate with how my brain comprehends things. I've started "The Wall" and my dream of being a motion designer doesn't feel as daunting when I watch your videos. As others have said a PDF would be wicked, and I agree that a deck of cards (kind of like those palm reading/angel cards) of 100 techniques etc printed/designed on your art style,... I would 10000% purchase it. Keep being the absolute legend you are!
A part of me was about to just take all of this advice and start the cycle of getting overwhelmed with beautiful advice I see online, but I noticed that I already use journaling to vent everything, instead of learning today to see how I can use it to affect trajectory, it makes more sense to learn to use it to free my mind of storing obligations. All this to say, baby steps and we're all just blessed to have you Cam!
I think journaling is insalenly good for your health. Recently I really messed up and embarrassed myself and felt super stuck with that suffocating anxiety feeling I journaled and boom it’s gone. Once the hundreds of thoughts are on paper it’s much more easy to pick out ones that make zero sense and those that I don’t have to worry about l. It also helps my brain deal with it.
Hi! I would recommend writing down each step of the VOMIT system and each of the substeps in your journal, easily accessible and after summarizing and notating it, it will be come cemented in your mind, and you'll catch things you missed, plus you essentially will have the entire video on a few pages of your journal, making the whole process easier and alleviating the need to store the information in your brain! This system has helped a ton in my life even though I was misusing it! I watched the video twice and kept vomiting, but I didn't pay attention to the sub-categories within each letter, because I hadn't really been paying attention. Writing down the steps and summarizing it has taken me some time but I cannot overstate how helpful it has been to slow down and pay attention, even though it has been a bit of work.
Wow! For me, a guy that just started journaling 30 days ago, this video was amazing! I’ve heard or seen some of the techniques before but not explained to me as simple as you just did. Thank you for this, feels like my journaling is going to evolve the following days, weeks, months and years. Keep it up dude, you are absolutely fantastic and inspiring!
Such a refreshing community here in the comments, thank you for the Journal Make Over ! So many wonderful applications and clear instructions in this video - you are a brilliant teacher ! 2 situational prompts: 💡"Decision Journal". You make a promise / major new decision about yourself or a situation, capture it dream into the impact and reread frequently. ❣️ "Mistake Journal" Capture the "mistake" as it happens, come back a week later and note what you learned, come back 6 months later and note the good that came from the mistake. Thank you everyone for your great ideas 🎉
Mistake Journal: I don't keep a specific journal for Mistakes only. But when I make a mistake, I always analyze it, find solution, fix it, and note how to avoid same mistake in future. A 'present' to my 'future' self...
The doodles help so much. I literally screenshotted every page. Thanks so much for all the tips!! Will definitely e implementing in my journal routine.
Dec'24: I Loved the idea of Direction in Trajectory, it’s an excellent method to ensure that you’re not straying from your long-term goals. Thank you so much!
The idea prompts reminders me of art school. A regular exercise was to draw as many small boxes as you could on a page and fill them with really quick sketches. Usually there was some kind of restriction like "you have to draw still life" or "20 hands in different positions" or "20 different pottery shapes you cant make on a wheel". I even had some teachers set stop watches so you have to go as quickly as possible. It really helped with creative thinking and coming up with a direction for the art project.
These are so good! Thanks for sharing. Every once in a while, with certain problems I’m dealing with, I write it down in the form of a question, then pluck a random tarot card from a deck, and journal about what I observe from the card/how it relates to my question. I’m not a huge tarot person, but it helps me find a new perspective of my problem (or it pushes me to be honest about the answer!).
Hey struthless, just wanna say thanks for this video in particular and your channel as a whole. I've been going through some mental health issues combined with chronic migraines and this video has been a breath of fresh air in what has felt like a hopeless period. Your prompts for *M* indset have been really helpful these last few days as I've put them into practice in my journalling. I've been struggling with feeling like my life is over and there is no end in sight for the pain, but for the first time in a while I've felt like I am in control again, and there is HOPE. You'll probably never read this but thank you man. Your videos are appreciated by both me and my wife, keep on being you bro. Love you
One thing I always do is leave a "NFNT:" at the top of my next future journal entry. It's a Note For Next Time, a short phrase or sentence to remind me of what I want to do, how i've been feeling, or an affirmation. Leaving a short note helps jump back in. I've never seen your channel before, and this was such a good video I had to drop a comment. I've been journaling on and off since 6/10/2022, but I never researched any guidelines or techniques, this video was really helpful, thank you for sharing your 15 years of journaling wisdom lol.
I appreciate your candor with talking about your sobriety. It’s cool and honest and empowering for me. Im glad you are turning it into a book so instead off writer the questions. I can fill the pages in the workbook. Please let us know when the book is ready. I live in New York so shipping. Thank you.
I've watched a memorable number of videos about journaling - both for healing/mindfulness/self care reasons and also for thinking/ideation/creativity reasons, and yours is BY FAR the most helpful and useful I have seen. I read your pinned comment and so I'm aware you're planning a workbook by popular demand, but I'm already going to turn this video into a document-flowchart-checklist situation to start implementing IMMEDIATELY!!! Thank you for this GOLD MINE of insight and keep up the hard work! You'll never know just how many people you're helping everyday with these types of videos, but just know the number is significant 💛
I appreciate you putting down the number of ducks that fit into a Kia so much! 😂 Thank you! I used to journal pretty much every day growing up but trying to get back to it has been like pulling teeth but even so life is so much easier when I do journal. Thank you so much for your videos.
These are amazing ideas, some of which I already do but you have a way of breaking them down and describing them that my brain understands. It makes journalling more enriching when you understand WHY it works for you, and it makes you more inclined to continue. I like recording 'glimmers' which are probably a cross between gratitude and what excited me today. Love your channel, congrats on 1 million!
I absolutely loved this video. It actually got me excited to start journaling. I got so much value out this little 15+ minute video. I will no doubt refer back to it again and again! I love that you keep things simple, straightforward, and to the point. Your content is always easy to understand and with clear, actionable steps. Never getting bogged down in superfluous details. Thanks man! 👍🏼😊
11:18 To "yes and" on gratitude, what you are grateful for can impact the benefits. Writing gratitude used to make me shitty (I have so many things to be thankful for and I am still sad). But then I learned that gratitude works best when you find gratitude in capacities (I am grateful for being able to do something) and living things (I am grateful for my friend/cat) than objects (I am grateful for having a working shower).
I like the journalling prompt: "How did help, help?" It is a really useful way to remind yourself of the improvements you've made and why you are making those improvements in the first place. I came up with it myself to help me stick to having a good routine (although I wouldn't be surprised if someone else has had a similar idea.)
one of the best, effective and engaging journaling vids here! and so much fun watching becaus eof the drawings! you make me write it down and actually do it on my own. feels like a Dad and cool prep teacher explaining to me how it's done!
I turned to a random blank page in my journal to take some notes on this video...... But ⅓ way through, ive already finished the allotted page... This is such good info that even the familiar tips have a new interesting spin that makes them click for me in a novel way. Great content!
Thank you so much for this🙏🏽 You can tell there’s aaaa lot of practice try and error and experience behind this. I haven’t tried it yet, since I’ve just seen the video, but I love journaling. And lately I’ve been struggling with writing my thoughts as I haven’t been very honest with myself. It’s been like this for a while. This said, I can’t wait to try this out, I think it can really help me to finally get out of darkness and into illumination☺️✨
I have been journaling since I was 12 (turning 32 in a month). It's a really personal journey. I learned what didn't work for me was venting; that just made me cranky and whenever I would think of journaling I automatically got stressed out because it became associated with anger. I learned that I am a neurotic, obsessive person, and that people like me shouldn't do stream of consciousness, because it becomea a way to ruminate and it'll never end. One day I realized I was writing stuff that wasn't worth looking back on ("I really want to read this book. I have a lot of errands to run. I wish I had this leather jacket I saw at the store"). I started reading 20th Century Boy which is Duncan Hannah's collected notebooks of the 70s, and I thought "wow! I want to journal like that." Then I read Sylvia Plath's journals with the hopes that it too would make me a better diarist. They did. I started looking at my world differently, describing my day with more interesting sentences, and also journaling about any lessons I learned, anything I was pondering, anything I read in a novel that really stuck out to me, or a documentary or movie that inspired me and got me thinking. I like this way of journaling a lot better. It works for me. If I come across a prompt that really gets me thinking, then I try that out too; I like my journal entries to be more focused on one topic/idea/concept rather than the stream of consciousness I had been doing for all of my 20s. It took me 18 years to start journaling in a way that actually interests me to look back on. Journaling is very personal, so it is difficult to give advice on how to do it. There are so many ways. Just wanted to share my story. I love your video - your ideas, and the format.
Oh my gosh how cringe is it to read back on some early journals right? For me the worst was my teenage years when I was like “I am in love with this boy…” and it gets so so much worse from there. Though it is cute to see how innocent we were when we were younger and how the things we are worried now just isn’t a thing back then. I kinda wish I could journal backwards, I wonder if that’s possible. Like if my 40yo me could write to my teenage self. Though even if possible it would probably end up sounding like some insincere drivel which I’m sure I sound like to my kids - “Sleep and nap as often as you can! You’ll miss it when you’re older 😭😭” 😆
One of the best ever journaling videos I have seen here. I was expecting to have a short explanation about dumping everything on paper and then have some conclusions as the title suggest( VOMIT) but this is a gem. I have some struggles with myself as my negative thoughts are getting in the way of me reaching the level I want to be and this is what I need. I was looking for a good journaling method and this video is full of the techniques I can't wait to apply to my day to day life. Thank you so much for this cool and entertaining video :)
My personal journaling questions: What is bringing you challenges and struggle? What has been fueling you and supporting you? - of those things that are hurting or helping you - what’s within your control? What role have you been playing in your situation and why? What role would you like to play in your situation? What would an ideal outcome look like for you? How much of that ideal outcome is in your control? What is a realistic action step you can take to reach a better outcome and play a more active role in your situation? Then I usually add a message from myself to encourage me to take that step
Thank you! I'v been keeping diary for years and years, but I mostly just list things that happened to me. It has started to feel pointless, even tho I get that too has some value. But I needed something that could challenge my thinking. So this is very helpful!
such a great method! some key elements i learned over the years is to let go of the constraint of “prose” all the time, sometimes your thoughts are everywhere and bullet points and charts or diagrams help explain a problem/experience best. no one has to understand it but you! i also let go of the guilt of not journaling every day, seeing it more as a coping mechanism when i’m upset or a documentation when i’m really happy more than anything. that way i never give up on it, because i know it’ll be there when i come back to it!
Saaaame! The constraint of prose or of documentation versus just venting - so relatable. I bought myself a blank journal (no lines) that has watercolor-style, abstract painting on it (adds beauty) just so that I can flex out of so many linear constraints. It's been so soothing so far.
Thank you so much for your videos Cam, they really are the best thing on youtube! You have such an amazing personality and your videos contain so much value while at the same time being very enternaining!
I very rarely comment but I have to say this: this is the first time in a veeeery long time that I've watched a whole video as is, no skipping no 2x speeding and fully engaged and learning. I actually thought I kinda lost the ability to do that but maybe I just hadn't found the right content for me. The dynamics of this video are perfection: minimalist enough to keep me focused but dynamic enough to not make me bored, loved all the scene changes, visual presentation is top notch with all the illustrations and notes, and verbal storytelling is dynamic and yet to the point, no unnecessary fuss. Extremely fascinating! If I journal later today I'll put you in my gratitude list 🥹♥️
Lmao, thanks for the ducks answer Journaling is a process for sure. For me, it's overwhelming to think all these points to take. Like, if I start writing, then I have to think what made my day this or did I manage that, and I'm already spiralling into the unknown, and I just.. don't
Maybe try picking ONE of these techniques and trying it out for, say, a week. At the end of the week, review and decide whether you might continue with it, and/or add another one. You're not trying to solve all your problems, or become super-you, just road-testing the techniques. Sound doable?
i always feel stupid when i try to journal. no matter what i write, it always ends up feeling like a whiny diary entry and then i just give up on it for weeks or even months at a time. it feels meaningless to write down anything other than to-do lists
Sounds like you think you’re not allowed to have negative thoughts and feelings, or else you’re “whiny.” Or at least, you have a certain set of ideas or rules of what you think a journal should contain in order to be a good journal. Maybe take some time to write out what your unspoken rules are and reflect on whether those rules are true or not, and what it would mean about you if you broke them. If you’re doing this exercise right, it’ll be uncomfortable, maybe even make you cringe if you’re being totally honest, but it’s a valuable tool that can be used in a variety of situations to help you figure out where your “inner critic” may be holding you back.
Someone once suggested to me to dotpoint rather than writing full sentences or paragraphs. That might help take out the whiny feel. For me it was that it always felt like it takes too long. Coz I write so much crap. But dotpointing it sounds more achievable. And by being forced to be concise, you kinda have to stick to the point and not whine for the sake of whining… 🤷🏻♀️
I love how you outlined everything to the bare bones. I've always been a journaler but recently I got stuck from decision paralysis from all the journal content online. Choosing which system to use, what type of journal, stationeries, feeling bound but wanting to do it 'right', wanting it to look beautiful but ending up feeling like it's not thorough of everything I have in mind, nor is it very authentic and most importantly, it doesn't feel personal to me. This gave me ideas on how I can use different sections of my journal & truly vomit everything
I’ve made the mistake of previously discrediting the advice / value you provide in your content (because I was only here for the laughs). But this is an incredibly practical way to get value out of journaling, not to mention the insightful way you’ve explained WHY it helps. Thsnk you.
UPDATE: Making this into a workbook as we speak !! Thanks for the suggestion
ALSO THIS - someone suggested a journaling card deck typa thing... any interest? Could be cool to have like 100 techniques, drawn + written properly etc...
☝️✨️let me know✨️👆
Just coz someone asked: this collection of techniques is very much a pick-and-choose situation, definitely not a "do all 30 every day" typa thing. It's more like "here’s 30 options (grouped into 5 reasons), if one makes sense for ya give it a shot"
Some of these i do twice a week, others twice a year. Different situations/days/problems call for different ways to talk to your brain, if ya get me. Take what works, leave what doesn't, chop and change, go bananas, really.
And also someone asked about format... notebooks, voice recorder, word doc, etc. To each their own, but I'm pretty format agnostic, personally. My rule: whatever's closest = the right format
Key is = if it works, it works.
Great video brother, I really needed this. 🤘 well done
I love your content, it is helpful and makes me smile! Personally, I think paper is the bomb, probably showing my age, but we are physical beings. The technological tools are too easy to delete or loose in the either. Paper is "concrete", and forces you to do something with it, i.e. deal. Thanks for your work!
Is it possible to get the VOMIT sheets as a PDF so that makes them printable? - I want to stick them on my wall and refer back to them when journalling!
Thanks for this. It was my next question! Have you found any particular style has been your most routinely used?
@@NeylenaI just watched the video for a second time specifically to take notes (some copying from the screen, some in my own words). For my (ADHD) brain it’s the only chance I have of remembering and applying the steps. I rarely remember what I print out, and if I post it, within a week it’s become invisible. Just part of the wall. However, If _I_ write it down and then post it above my desk I have a fighting chance of remembering. It might work for you, too?
Long time therapist here: Much of this is amazing and a great guide. One caveat: Please don't take deeply troubling or traumatic things and try to re-frame them into something positive. Not only will that not work because it's too much cognitive dissonance, but it's a bit dangerous of a paradigm to create for yourself. It's probably why it felt inappropriate when you did it. I would suggest acknowledging how terrible the thing is, allowing yourself to have that real human emotion, and then asking the question: "How can I grow from this?" I'm sure nobody will read this but just a suggestion from someone who has been working with traumatized people for a very long time.
I hear you, I wrote this next to my notes of this video. Thank you very much for saving me and probably others from the possibility of a severe mistake.
@@rivkat801 I'm glad my comment was helpful. It lacks some nuance but in general it's healthy to acknowledge that something is painful and traumatic and then sort of start the process of either how do I move forward even though this is in my past or how do I grow from it...admittedly, the growth part is generally a bit farther down the road from the living with it part and that's where the nuance comes in (ie. - how long has it been, how severe was it, etc.) This is were a good trauma therapist can be helpful though.
Thank you for saying this. I fell for this toxic positivity stuff early in my healing and think it's really important to let people know why it isn't helpful and can even be harmful. Sadly, I've even seen therapists who weren't very trauma informed push this idea. I get the temptation to avoid the feelings, but can attest from having tried the re-frame that it just stalled my healing for many years and made me feel worse about myself for still struggling with it. Feeling all the feels is uncomfortable, but it's a better discomfort than that which comes from trying to just bypass or cover up the trauma. Especially since when you feel it and process it, then things actually start improving.
Thanks for your advice
So he's done a whole video about this, and one of the things he's used it on is his childhood sexual abuse - he said it felt inappropriate in the "transgressive" way, but still radically helpful for him. It's the kind of thing you can never say to anyone else, but you can say to yourself, and it has the potential to be powerful. I don't think he's toxic about it, just being honest about what worked for him. It's helpful to have your warning, but I think also helpful not to take any techniques off the table if you feel ready to practice then safely
*VOMIT-system*
1. Vent
2. Obligations
3. Mindset
4. Ideate
5. Trajectory
1. Start with what makes you angry because that easily gets you going and takes the clutter out from your head onto your sheet
2. Get out everything that feels like an obligation, from actual to dos to things you want to do or think about, etc.
2.1 Collect obligations
2.2 Organise (put them into categories)
2.3 Prioritise (possible guiding question: What of these, if done, would make everything else easier?)
2.4 Write a to-do list (with sections "bare minimum" (to make tomorrow suck less) and "killing it" to be able to adapt according to your energy level)
3. Adjust your mindset in order to better be able to cope with things
3.1 Reframing (possible guiding questions: How is this the best thing, that ever happened to me? How can I grow from this?)
3.2 Possibility (Formulate affirmations as "I am … because…" in order to collect evidence and be able to believe them as well as be encouraged to create evidence in order to be right about the statement)
3.3 Inversion (ask yourself how to make the opposite of the actual solution work in order to more easily identify
3.4 Perspective (ask yourself what advice you would give if you were a well-meaning friend in order to get unstuck from details and encourage yourself to do what's good for yourself)
3.5 Discipline (keep journalling and make adjustments in order to be able to do so, e.g. create habits)
3.6 Gratitude (think about things that are good. Possible guiding questions: What was something mundane, something that happened by chance and something you yourself made happen you are grateful for?)
4. Generate ideas to cope with whatever is worrying you
4.1 Brainstorming (if you have a problem, challenge yourself to come up with 30 possible solutions within 5 minutes, something valuable will be among them. Don't edit within that time frame!)
4.2 What would … do? (What solution would someone smart, someone I admire come up with?)
4.3 Open the loop (write down the question in order to make your brain want to answer the question and close the loop again so that you passively keep thinking about it)
5. Get a sense of whether your life is headed in the direction you want and/ or what you can do to make it move that way
5.1 Direction (reflect on whether today moved you towards or away from the goal, collect evidence for that and think about what you can draw from that for your next moves)
5.2 Hidden metrics (figure out which hidden metrics you might overlook in your day-to-day hustle, achievements that are harder to measure but equally or even more meaningful to you. Possible guiding questions: What excited me today? What drained me of energy? What did I learn? At the latest after 30 days of doing this, trends should become notable)
Thank you🎉
Man, I just gotta say, that in a sea of male role models that promote toxicity and anti social behavior. Your idea of simply being venerable about your own struggles against yourself, and explaining how you have been able to make changes for the better is so powerful. The amount of care you exhibit towards yourself and others is really inspirational, and I hope that more men will start to think this way.
Bruh, the concept of journaling on a side-ways turned sketchbook has made me immediately more interested in journaling than any other journaling video/blog post ever
RIGHT??!
My favourite prompt is "What surprised you today?"
You'll end up noticing the coolest stuff (internally and externally) when you start expecting a surprise from life 💫
I did a 'whats something funny that happened today', some time back and I started noticing the most ridiculous things
Soon enough, Monet makes all the sense in the world. “Every day I discover more and more beautiful things. It's enough to drive one mad”
“What surprised you today?”
Thank you for this prompt. I love journaling and this will be a great edition to my evening pages.
Cam you gotta check out a book called 'A life discarded' by Alex Masters. A non fiction tale written by a guy who finds 50 years worth of a single persons journals thrown out into a garbage can, takes them home, and tries to construct a biography of the mystery person from only their diaries. Deeply moving, painfully relatable, and truly impactful.
Totally getting this book. Super interesting!
Thanks for the recommendation. I recently inherited my father's journals - over 60 years of books. I haven't brought myself to read them yet. The life of a man who left to find himself when I was 6, a loved but veritable stranger.
@@KlingonPrincesswow. That is a GIFT. My dad left at the same age for the same reason and, while I totally understand your hesitancy, god I would be grateful for that opportunity.
You will know when the time is right. PLEASE keep them though. I’m 35 now and the ups and downs ive had in wanting to know about my father are IMMENSE.
If you ever feel tempted to dump them, maybe just toss them in a garbage back in the back of a closet lol. I feel like there are aspects of myself that I don’t understand BECAUSE I never knew my father.
Lol sorry for the rant…just hoping to add some “perspective”😉
@@Shmyrk I have similar feelings as an adoptee - I never got to meet my birth mum and only had limited contact with my dad once I got hold of him as an adult. I don't really talk to my birth family much now, but finding more about my mum and other family members was immensely helpful and healing for me.
This is one of the only books I've read more than once, it's incredible and I wish I could have met the diarist herself, she seemed like an interesting person.
I love how you drew all the things just on paper, and I really like this video format, it makes it feel very sincere, honest and organic. Just like a friend that is explaining some techniques to you.
Yeah, I loved this format so much!
Me too!
I agree!
GenZ?
@@DR_1_1are you trying to make a point and is it worth making?
I'm 52 years old, this is the first time I've actually heard REAL, HELPFUL advice about journaling and list making! Thank you so much!!!! Going to listen again and maybe a third time if I need it!
I am 19 and I completely agree. Ive been searching for smth like this for over a year
I had a therapist once tell me to write down three positive physical experiences I had every single day. It could be something like "the moon is beautiful tonight," (seeing something beautiful in the physical world), or "the sound of the rain on the roof was soothing," or "the recipe I cooked today was super delicious." I have chronic pain, and this focus on the positive physical experiences I have on a daily basis helps remind me that pain isn't the only physical experience that exists, and gets me out of my head when I get hyper-focused on the pain. It's been really helpful.
Love this! Tyfs
It's like balancing the inevitable yin & yang of life.
That is great advice! I have found it helpful to keep something like a gratitude journal doing exactly that. It doesn't take away anything but it forces our brains to find something to be grateful for.
i also have chronic pain and this is an amazing idea, thank you
"There is a lot of hype, but there isn't that much instruction." Struthless, I can't tell you how much that quote applies to a LOT of life!!!
I used to keep a "fantasy self" journal. I had all sorts of adventures and traveled the world. It was really fun, I should start that up again. It helped give perspective on what I really wanted out of life and what makes me happy.
Wow, great idea! Giving this a try to help shift this creative block I've been experiencing. Thanks for sharing✨️
That sounds like an amazing way to figure out what you truly want!
I would love to hear more about this!
So so cool
@@andrew4635 I was trying to figure out the essence of what drives me & what makes me happy. I struggled with those questions. A fantasy, "other lives" journal helped me find answers because money (and reality) were removed from the equation. Aso helped define what I didn't want. It worked wonders for me. And it was a lot fun.
I have used the "how is this the best thing that ever happened to me" THIS MONTH. I was knocked out by an unexpected health problem. Asked myself the question. Rest without guilt! Audiobooks! Snuggle time with dogs! I asked friends to come up with wacky reasons, too, that amused me. I ended up grinning more than suffering. THANK YOU so much!
I had covid end of last year and it hit me hard yet, in some ways it was great. The illness was bad but the rest and freedom from the constant battle of juggling responsibilities was frankly amazing. It wasn't until reading this I realized why and how I had found something good in it all. Thank you and I hope are doing well.
Silver lining behind every cloud.
I honestly thought "the vomit system" was going to be about "just dump it all out, it doesn't have to make sense" because that's kinda what I've been needing to do for myself. But this was a very pleasant surprise. As someone who's been journaling for 26 years for life-documentation and for help navigating internal struggles - this system is very much for deep psyche expansion. I love it. Thank you so much for putting this together, and for your humor sprinkled in. Days later and I'm still laughing at your giggles over the word "vomit" 😆😆 Congrats on your sobriety and fatherhood!
I need to do that frequently, particularly if it's been a while since I've "gone deep" in journaling. It's like a bunch of dust and grime starts covering my head and I've got to just blow out the lines for a few thousand words or pages or whatever.
i thought the same actually
Yeah I thought it might have been along the lines of "the vomit pass" like that Judd Apatow video on writing scripts.
I've been just vomiting all my thoughts down messily. I remember when the person who got me into journalling compared diaries with mine, hers was very organised but mine had messy wording, typos and abbreviations all over the place. I like it this way.
I love the idea of “collecting data on yourself”. Often times, we don’t actually know who we are and what we like. This is a great way to understand ourselves better.
In case anyone else wants a helpful summary to keep as a reminder
Vent:
Example: Writing about what makes you angry or frustrated. This can be a way to start a journaling session and help clear your mind.
Obligations:
Obligation Dump: Writing down all obligations, big or small.
Organize: Categorizing these obligations into broader categories like family, finance, health, work.
Prioritize: Using guiding questions to identify the most important tasks. For example, "Does this make the boat go faster?" or Tim Ferris's question, "Which of these, if done, would make the rest easier or irrelevant?"
To-Do List Form: Creating a list with a 'bare minimum' and 'killing it' section to set realistic daily goals.
Mindset:
Reframing: Asking, "How is this the best thing that ever happened to me?" to change your perspective on challenging situations.
Possibility (Because Statements): Writing statements like "I am healthy because..." and then listing reasons that support this belief.
Inversion: Looking at problems from the opposite angle to find solutions.
Perspective: Writing advice you would give to a friend in your situation.
Discipline: Building discipline through the act of regular journaling.
Gratitude: Listing things you are grateful for, focusing on different aspects like mundane things, chance happenings, and things you made happen.
Ideate:
Rapid Ideation: Setting a timer for 5 minutes and trying to come up with 30 ideas or solutions.
How Would X Solve This?: Thinking about how someone else (like a famous brand or person) would solve your problem.
Open the Loop: Writing down a question before bed and letting your subconscious work on it.
Trajectory:
Direction: Regularly assessing whether your daily actions are moving you towards or away from your goals.
Day-to-Day Hidden Metrics: Asking yourself at the end of each day: "What excited me today? What drained me of energy? What did I learn?"
Thank you!!!
Appreciate this🙏🏻
Why I came to the comment😊 Cheers❤
Thank you for this summary of an excellent video!
Thank you!
Another promt: writing letters to something or someone more or less random. Like Dear 2024, Dear wedding ring, Dear 10yo me, Dear cellphone, Dear Spiderman, Dear joy, Dear Struthless. And of course Dear diary and Dear God, but expanding on this prompt can be so interesting, it often surprises me what comes out when I do this!
Bonus promt is to answer on its/their behalf. 😊 Kind of related to the perspective promt, just that you are something/someone other than a friend.
lol Spider-Man I love it!!
Sounds like Jimmy Fallon 's thank you notes.
Omg I love this! This is going on the notes I made from this video 😍.
I think “Dear taboo” is really interesting!
I enjoy the prompt, "What is being brought to my attention?" It helps me take a step back to see what's going on in a non-judgmental way
Good stuff man. Hit my 4 years sober last week and today is my 45th birthday. I think this will help , thanks.
Congratulations! You should be proud of yourself :) I haven't been journaling for long, but it has been so helpful. I never knew how much I was storing in my brain until I could let it out on paper. It brings lots of clarity and peace.
Sweet! Congrats man!
Good job! Proud of you buddy!
Bro .. way to go! 🤩
Congratulations!! That sobriety streak is all you, keep setting that high score!
I know this is an absurdly self-congratulatory comment....but when you asked how many ducks could fit in the Kia, my mind immediately thought 495. The answer you gave? 494.7. I love being accurate to within 0.3 ducks of anything!!!!!!!!
This was such a wonderful video, and beneficial even to those who don't really have an intention to journal regularly. I am working on time management and goal setting. I have found the "Which of these tasks would make the rest of these tasks easier to do?" a WONDERFUL organizing technique.
Thank you for this video!!!!
😅
A great journal prompt is “what terrible things haven’t happened to me today?”
This kind of forced gratitude practice is helpful I if you’re stuck in a rut.
I haven’t been diagnosed with a fatal illness.
I’m not suffering debilitating pain.
You get the idea. When you realise how many people in the world are suffering in these acute stages of painful experiences, it can make you feel a bit better about a seemingly minor inconvenience that your mind may have blown out of proportion.
We used to call that "counting your blessings"
Yup. "My kids are healthy and my car still runs" is my answer on really rough days when asked how I am.
Yesterday I wrote down all my intrusive thoughts uncontrollably and with some real ugly handwriting. It looked like crying but on paper. After that I wrote all the feelings and ways of being that I want out of my life. Tore up the paper and tossed it in the trash. Let's just say I feel better and lighter already. It's more than just venting, it was a much needed release. The amount of junk that was in my head, junk that wasn't mine. It was insane.
This is actually a journaling technique too. You write without needing to be legible. So you essentially just scribble at the speed of your thought rather than think at the speed of your handwriting.
I do this too when I'm venting about work and having issues with work itself or colleagues. I find writing down my angry thoughts stops me from thinking about it and the next day I'm not already starting the day resentful.
I used to do this as a way to control my temper. I would write every horrible thing I wanted to say or felt. Then I took great care in deliberately tearing the piece of paper to itty bitty pieces so no one would ever find the evidence. By the time I was done I felt much more calm and able to see that all my horrible thoughts were blown out of proportion. I haven’t done that in a long time, maybe I should start again whenever I feel overwhelmed
I turned 65 today and opened my TH-cam to see what's special about this day. Your video was the first thing I saw. Awesome topic for me ! You made my day! ❤
Happy Birthday!
Happy birthday!!
happy birthday !! i hope you have a wonderful day 🤍🍰
Happy belated Birthday!!!🎉
✨🎂🎊 have a wonderful day & a great year 👍
I'm 54 and have watched thousand of self improvement videos on TH-cam. This is the best one I've seen on improving an aspect of your life. Journaling is something I've wanted to start for several years, but I have never started. Because of this video, I am now a journaler and it is one of the best things I've ever added to my life.
Dude. This is EXACTLY how I naturally ended up journaling after doing it for decades. Truly, the vomit process is liberating. It's not about having brilliant thoughts to record. It's about swatting cobwebs out of your brain meat so you can use it to DO things, not ruminate on things.
PS: thank you for closing the duck loop! Ugh. Though you were gonna leave my brain hanging.
I know imposter syndrome is rampant among content creators but you have truly, truly, TRULY changed my life for the better and I hope you know the amazing work you’re doing is beyond appreciated ❤
I have also made my own houseboat and pasted it in the front of my journal :) it has cats all over the deck lol
I've never taken more notes while watching a youtube video in my life - I am not super young. I've never taken a single note while watching a youtube video - I watch A LOT of videos. And now, a WORKBOOK! Yay. Tada. Closing the loop. How satisfying =) ... Tripped over you yesterday. Wildly happy I did. Thank you youtube algorithm; you finally did something right.
Same! I filled a whole page. Finally some actionable stuff than the general hype. 🥰
Same here
I had a bad attitude coming into this video, like “you don’t need rules for journaling.” And…I walked away completely blown away. I feel excited to VOMIT now, lol! And…I am grateful for you and this helpful video. 🎉
Thank you, you lovely human.
The best part that goes in to Obsidian :)
- Prioritization:
1. Obligation dump
2. Does it make boat go faster?
3. ==What’s the one thing you can do, such that by doing it, everything else will be easier or unnecessary?==
4. Bare Minimum List + Killing List (If I feel like snowballing)
"How best to get started with Obsidian [or similar] with actual instructions or concrete tips" is definitely something that could warrant a straightforward, concise video. Do you have anything in mind?
Posting this after watching 80% of the video - it's already the best no-nonsense video on the topic I have seen here on TH-cam. Thank you for your work :)
At the end of each martial arts class I teach, I ask the students "What was easy today? What did you struggle with? What did you see someone else in the class doing well? What new or surprising thing did you learn today? What do you want to learn in a future class? " I just never thought about using these prompts in my daily life!
I'm 67 years old. I've been writing down my thoughts & ideas since 1978. I couldn't organize my deeper thoughts, and problems until I could get the mental storm on paper. Back then I just called it brain storming & mental exercises. Others would just call it thinking. As in "I gotta think about that". Most of the time it required paper. But I really like your organized methodologies; it's much better than my random notations.
You should make and sell journals in your format. There’s an abundance of guided journals out there but your system sounds productive.
Omg yes, that would be amazing :o
great idea!
Id buy it
I can't believe I both enjoyed this video and strongly considered journaling. Not sure why TH-cam thought I needed to watch this while I'm trying to figure out how to start a business, but it picked a winner. Great video, thanks for sharing!
So many self-improvement creators are not the real deal. They're trying to sell you a book or a course or something and they include maybe one really useful tidbit of information in between all the hype language and psychobabble. When I saw the title for this video, I was like great. Another one of those.
How happy I am to be so wrong. This video is so chock full of useful information that I've had to watch it several times in order to fully digest it. It's not just about "journaling," it's about concrete ways of reframing your mindset, creating accountability, and working WITH your brain instead of against it. This video and discovering this channel has legitimately changed my life. I started microjournaling and limiting my social media usage five days ago and I've already had some of the most productive, healthy days I've had in a very long time. I've bookmarked this video (and others) to come back to when I need to remember the specifics about these writing prompts. I'm so unbelievably grateful to have found you! Thank you for making your videos practical, fun, authentic, aesthetically pleasing, and FULL of useful, thought-provoking information. You're the real deal, Struthless!
Wow
Thank you for:
1. Grabbing my attention with the name of the system.
2. Breaking the categories up into actual individual concerns that collectively overwhelm a creative mind
3. Clarifying each category by organizing them into actionable steps.
I’ve been interested in journaling for many years and most of my journals have 2 pages complete due to my over active mind lacking the structure needed to focus. Many thanks for this creative approach to approaching the tool of journaling
Ideation is a skill that you can learn. I’m in school for Industrial Design/product design and it’s basically one of the most important part of our job. If I was asked to come up with ideas as fast as I do now in freshman year I wouldn’t have been able to. They teach you ways to ideate in the first major specific class you take. Idea generation is not just being creative, it is a learnable skill, and I hope more people feel comfortable to start getting better at it.
ok, so... any tips? books we should go read? it feels like a significant hole in my creativity and I hate it.
So timely! My 19yr old had been assigned to journal and is struggling with it. Totally sending this to her
One thing I noticed is that the guiding question for prioritizing actually prompts you to think what's best for YOU whereas when using other metrics (or in case of the ones which I used at least), I felt the compulsion to do what's "expected" of me, than what might actually serve me in reality.
I love this so much! I’m a therapist and plan to share this with clients. You do a great job breaking down so many aspects of journaling!
I always struggled with journalling because writing down words was always hard for me. Until I started incorporating drawing on how or what I was feeling! This way I was able to vent through art and journalling at the same time. This was a great video! Thanks for sharing your techniques with the world
Your high pitched laughter is always so contagious-instantly smiling 😊 ❤
Sharing is caring, it happens here: 0:56
❤❤❤@@katsweeterly2039
i feel like i’ve been in and out of journaling for YEARS because nothing ever really works or is sustainable, definitely will try these!
I get you. Been there too.
Now been journaling for 5 years every day, and just once in a while I realize how much I changed because of it. Even if you feel its not doing anything, keep writing me friend, it will add up to a lot more than you think🙏🏼💥
I'm having to learn journaling as part of a Mindset course I'm doing at the moment and this video has just unlocked EVERYTHING. What an insanely informative piece of content.
This is more of a one-time journaling prompt, but i really like, 'if everyone on earth was exactly like me, what would improve or get worse?' ...basically what would the world be like. I think it can shed some light into both your strengths and weaknesses.
🙂🙃 I need a different life, we would all die miserable.
@@sarahs.6377 maybe there is something you can think of to be grateful for? Good luck!
I read this question, immediately thought of an answer, and did NOT like it😅
@Dancingswan98 lol. It's funny that some people think the world would be terrible, and that other people think the world would be amazing. But I think the reality would be somewhere in the middle; there would be some very positive changes and some very negative changes. I mean the sky is the limit with this prompt. There are so many things to consider, if everybody had the exact same political and religious beliefs as you, the same outlook on life and society, views on family, kids, food, the same relationship problems, goals, hobbies, pet peeves... Would you regress back to the stone ages? Maybe you're good with kids and therefore every child would have an amazing upbringing. Would everybody live in a commune and collectively agree that money doesn't exist anymore? Would everyone be super healthy or unhealthy? Would we all be introverts or extroverts? Would we be too lazy to upkeep the cities or would everyone be workaholics? The more self awareness you have the more complex it can get.
😮
It's rare to find channels with content that I get excited to watch not only because these videos are fun and comforting and inspiring all in one, but also actually provide tools to help me grow as a person and even improve mental health. Struthless is the best!
Congrats on 1 million subrcibers! I started watching your videos four year ago when you were at 50k and it's been great seeing your journey. I've also been going through a lot of changes and I'm happy that I'm coming out the other side closer to your compassionate attitude that embraces the great things in life. Keep doing you, it helps a lot :)
Probably the most helpful journaling explanation I've ever heard (60 years of trying to journal).
Dooood, I've seen so much "self help"-related content from so many great content makers, but you sir are by far the realist. And I've been to therapy and been told I "should start journaling", but just as you said, I didn't know how to start or where to take it once I started. I guess I never truly understood the "why". I'm not even halfway through and I FINALLY GET IT! Thank you for the visuals, the analogies, the wisdom and your great sense of humour! 🙏 An instant subscribe!
I’ve been back-and-forth on journaling almost my entire life, and I’m 61 years old 🤦♀️
I’m going to grab myself a notebook and pen and watch this video again, taking notes this time. Thank you for some great tips!
15:19 As an ADHDer, I thrive when making everyday demands, motivations, reminders etc VISIBLE and physical. Things like setting a visual timer on my watch, using post-its and scheduled reminders, printing copies of motivating photos and important instructions. Without externalising these I have to rely on my poor executive functions. I'm not lacking in skills or knowledge when it comes to organising my home or appointments. If I am not aware of needing something at the point that I need it, it may as well not exist because it doesn't in my working memory. After my prompts are no longer useful, it's equally important for me to discard/reset them - with gratitude - so I'm not encumbered by growing clutter or mess.
You give the vibes of a very loving and nurturing dad! Praying your family stays the happiest forever and ever
this video is PURE GOLD!! Thank you so much from the bottom of my poor soul, struggling to improve my overall situation, and finding nothing concrete on the internet. Truly grateful!! thank you!
Thank you so much for this video! I'm currently a college student in my twenties, and everything feels so confusing in life. From being diagnosed with multiple disabilities in my teens to over a decade of mental health challenges, journaling was something that helped me stay sane. I've been journaling for a little over a year now, but I usually stuck to "venting" and "day-to-day" activities. I'm really looking forward to using this system to learn how to better understand myself, my feelings, and my path to success. Thank you!
On direction, I think it's also worth remembering that sometimes your pile of evidence showing that you're moving away from a goal might mean you're a failure, but probably it means your goal isn't a good fit. Like, my 2023 plan to be more like Steven Segal totally backfired, but that's a good thing because now I know more about myself and I can play to my strengths and leave comically lazy action movies to someone better suited to the task.
I'd love it if you made this into a book or even just a downloadable PDF. Great advice!
Same!!
I was about to comment the same thing!
I had the same thoughts that this is a good book material
Watch this space ;)
@@struthlessDude... you're gonna make my day, aren't you? You're the best!
❤journaling (kind of) since i was 9.
When my daughter was sick, hospitalized for almost 2 months.
I had my journal, and through each test, cancer, and everything, i was writing. I was writing all day long. All the worries, i couldnt deal with, was going on my paper. But that kept me going.
I never knew how to explain, the extend of the help it brings me, small or big concern. But you did!
Wow! If this can bring more people to discover this self-help we can bring to ourself, this is just great!
I usually, write my concerns on paper (if i have any), when i go to bed, and its like, my mind can rest, because its on paper, i can forget it, and anyway, usually i cant solve it at 11pm anyway. But it free my mind, at least to let me sleep better, and you know what, when i wake up, what i thought ,was a big deal, either i get the solution, or its 10 times less important than i thought it was.
You verbalized it better, than everything i've heard before.
Journaling for 40 years now.
And will do for another 40 ish years ;-))
New subs. And i will watch all your videos,
❤
At 73 I'm just starting to think about creating a journaling approach for myself. Thank you for sharing your approach through the illustrations. I also enjoyed the self-effacing humor and your giggles. All that you shared were challenging experiences that you created work arounds to solve issuess on your life's journey. Thank you again!
By far the most realistic and one of the best if not THE BEST video I watched about journaling. Thank you @struthless for this vid! ❤🎉
I truly did not know what to expect, but this is such a good method to remember that journaling can be a lot of things and you don't need to feel constricted to one single way of doing it. I've always intuitively known that, yet I mostly use it to vent, and always get frustrated when I find myself only ever journaling when I'm sad and upset... I want a future version of me to get to see other more neutral or positive sides of me, after all! And I've consumed many journaling videos along the years to try to expand my vision of how to approach it as a practice, but I always end up forgetting the tips I was given. Once again, I feel like one of the biggest strengths of your videos is that the advice in them is memorable, be it because of how clearly and straightforwardly you deliver the message in them, or because you find a way to help the viewer remember through visual or linguistic aid to do so. It's topically truly an art how you turn the most artistic and creative sides of you into useful systems!
You are seriously changing my life in the best way! The way you explain things and are so visual in your explanations resonate with how my brain comprehends things. I've started "The Wall" and my dream of being a motion designer doesn't feel as daunting when I watch your videos. As others have said a PDF would be wicked, and I agree that a deck of cards (kind of like those palm reading/angel cards) of 100 techniques etc printed/designed on your art style,... I would 10000% purchase it. Keep being the absolute legend you are!
A part of me was about to just take all of this advice and start the cycle of getting overwhelmed with beautiful advice I see online, but I noticed that I already use journaling to vent everything, instead of learning today to see how I can use it to affect trajectory, it makes more sense to learn to use it to free my mind of storing obligations.
All this to say, baby steps and we're all just blessed to have you Cam!
I think journaling is insalenly good for your health. Recently I really messed up and embarrassed myself and felt super stuck with that suffocating anxiety feeling I journaled and boom it’s gone. Once the hundreds of thoughts are on paper it’s much more easy to pick out ones that make zero sense and those that I don’t have to worry about l. It also helps my brain deal with it.
Hi! I would recommend writing down each step of the VOMIT system and each of the substeps in your journal, easily accessible and after summarizing and notating it, it will be come cemented in your mind, and you'll catch things you missed, plus you essentially will have the entire video on a few pages of your journal, making the whole process easier and alleviating the need to store the information in your brain!
This system has helped a ton in my life even though I was misusing it! I watched the video twice and kept vomiting, but I didn't pay attention to the sub-categories within each letter, because I hadn't really been paying attention. Writing down the steps and summarizing it has taken me some time but I cannot overstate how helpful it has been to slow down and pay attention, even though it has been a bit of work.
Wow! For me, a guy that just started journaling 30 days ago, this video was amazing! I’ve heard or seen some of the techniques before but not explained to me as simple as you just did. Thank you for this, feels like my journaling is going to evolve the following days, weeks, months and years. Keep it up dude, you are absolutely fantastic and inspiring!
Such a refreshing community here in the comments, thank you for the Journal Make Over !
So many wonderful applications and clear instructions in this video - you are a brilliant teacher !
2 situational prompts:
💡"Decision Journal". You make a promise / major new decision about yourself or a situation, capture it dream into the impact and reread frequently.
❣️ "Mistake Journal"
Capture the "mistake" as it happens, come back a week later and note what you learned, come back 6 months later and note the good that came from the mistake.
Thank you everyone for your great ideas 🎉
Mistake Journal: I don't keep a specific journal for Mistakes only. But when I make a mistake, I always analyze it, find solution, fix it, and note how to avoid same mistake in future. A 'present' to my 'future' self...
The doodles help so much. I literally screenshotted every page. Thanks so much for all the tips!! Will definitely e implementing in my journal routine.
That’s awesome. Did you happen to make a shareable compilation?
Dec'24:
I Loved the idea of Direction in Trajectory, it’s an excellent method to ensure that you’re not straying from your long-term goals.
Thank you so much!
This is the best journaling video I've ever watched. Thank you.
The idea prompts reminders me of art school. A regular exercise was to draw as many small boxes as you could on a page and fill them with really quick sketches. Usually there was some kind of restriction like "you have to draw still life" or "20 hands in different positions" or "20 different pottery shapes you cant make on a wheel". I even had some teachers set stop watches so you have to go as quickly as possible. It really helped with creative thinking and coming up with a direction for the art project.
These are so good! Thanks for sharing. Every once in a while, with certain problems I’m dealing with, I write it down in the form of a question, then pluck a random tarot card from a deck, and journal about what I observe from the card/how it relates to my question. I’m not a huge tarot person, but it helps me find a new perspective of my problem (or it pushes me to be honest about the answer!).
Hey struthless, just wanna say thanks for this video in particular and your channel as a whole. I've been going through some mental health issues combined with chronic migraines and this video has been a breath of fresh air in what has felt like a hopeless period.
Your prompts for *M* indset have been really helpful these last few days as I've put them into practice in my journalling. I've been struggling with feeling like my life is over and there is no end in sight for the pain, but for the first time in a while I've felt like I am in control again, and there is HOPE.
You'll probably never read this but thank you man. Your videos are appreciated by both me and my wife, keep on being you bro. Love you
same man. we are in the same boat 🤞🏾
One thing I always do is leave a "NFNT:" at the top of my next future journal entry. It's a Note For Next Time, a short phrase or sentence to remind me of what I want to do, how i've been feeling, or an affirmation. Leaving a short note helps jump back in.
I've never seen your channel before, and this was such a good video I had to drop a comment. I've been journaling on and off since 6/10/2022, but I never researched any guidelines or techniques, this video was really helpful, thank you for sharing your 15 years of journaling wisdom lol.
I appreciate your candor with talking about your sobriety. It’s cool and honest and empowering for me. Im glad you are turning it into a book so instead off writer the questions. I can fill the pages in the workbook. Please let us know when the book is ready. I live in New York so shipping. Thank you.
I've watched a memorable number of videos about journaling - both for healing/mindfulness/self care reasons and also for thinking/ideation/creativity reasons, and yours is BY FAR the most helpful and useful I have seen. I read your pinned comment and so I'm aware you're planning a workbook by popular demand, but I'm already going to turn this video into a document-flowchart-checklist situation to start implementing IMMEDIATELY!!! Thank you for this GOLD MINE of insight and keep up the hard work! You'll never know just how many people you're helping everyday with these types of videos, but just know the number is significant 💛
I appreciate you putting down the number of ducks that fit into a Kia so much! 😂 Thank you! I used to journal pretty much every day growing up but trying to get back to it has been like pulling teeth but even so life is so much easier when I do journal. Thank you so much for your videos.
These are amazing ideas, some of which I already do but you have a way of breaking them down and describing them that my brain understands. It makes journalling more enriching when you understand WHY it works for you, and it makes you more inclined to continue. I like recording 'glimmers' which are probably a cross between gratitude and what excited me today. Love your channel, congrats on 1 million!
I absolutely loved this video. It actually got me excited to start journaling. I got so much value out this little 15+ minute video. I will no doubt refer back to it again and again! I love that you keep things simple, straightforward, and to the point. Your content is always easy to understand and with clear, actionable steps. Never getting bogged down in superfluous details. Thanks man! 👍🏼😊
11:18 To "yes and" on gratitude, what you are grateful for can impact the benefits. Writing gratitude used to make me shitty (I have so many things to be thankful for and I am still sad). But then I learned that gratitude works best when you find gratitude in capacities (I am grateful for being able to do something) and living things (I am grateful for my friend/cat) than objects (I am grateful for having a working shower).
I like the journalling prompt: "How did help, help?" It is a really useful way to remind yourself of the improvements you've made and why you are making those improvements in the first place. I came up with it myself to help me stick to having a good routine (although I wouldn't be surprised if someone else has had a similar idea.)
Love the idea of that but somehow I don’t get the prompt „how did help, help?“ Could you explain that a bit?
@@k.h.8440yeah me too didn't get it!!😅
I'm guessing they mean when you get/receive help from someone or something, how did it benefit you?
Cheers for Brazil, thank you for all your help. You make people's lives better!
Switching a productivity focused app to the social media app location is such a good idea.
one of the best, effective and engaging journaling vids here!
and so much fun watching becaus eof the drawings! you make me write it down and actually do it on my own.
feels like a Dad and cool prep teacher explaining to me how it's done!
I turned to a random blank page in my journal to take some notes on this video...... But ⅓ way through, ive already finished the allotted page... This is such good info that even the familiar tips have a new interesting spin that makes them click for me in a novel way.
Great content!
One thing I do when gratitude journaling.....I list why I'm grateful.
Makes it a little more meaningful and helped me break out of the cliché.
Thank you so much for this🙏🏽
You can tell there’s aaaa lot of practice try and error and experience behind this.
I haven’t tried it yet, since I’ve just seen the video, but I love journaling. And lately I’ve been struggling with writing my thoughts as I haven’t been very honest with myself. It’s been like this for a while.
This said, I can’t wait to try this out, I think it can really help me to finally get out of darkness and into illumination☺️✨
I have been journaling since I was 12 (turning 32 in a month). It's a really personal journey. I learned what didn't work for me was venting; that just made me cranky and whenever I would think of journaling I automatically got stressed out because it became associated with anger.
I learned that I am a neurotic, obsessive person, and that people like me shouldn't do stream of consciousness, because it becomea a way to ruminate and it'll never end.
One day I realized I was writing stuff that wasn't worth looking back on ("I really want to read this book. I have a lot of errands to run. I wish I had this leather jacket I saw at the store"). I started reading 20th Century Boy which is Duncan Hannah's collected notebooks of the 70s, and I thought "wow! I want to journal like that." Then I read Sylvia Plath's journals with the hopes that it too would make me a better diarist.
They did. I started looking at my world differently, describing my day with more interesting sentences, and also journaling about any lessons I learned, anything I was pondering, anything I read in a novel that really stuck out to me, or a documentary or movie that inspired me and got me thinking.
I like this way of journaling a lot better. It works for me. If I come across a prompt that really gets me thinking, then I try that out too; I like my journal entries to be more focused on one topic/idea/concept rather than the stream of consciousness I had been doing for all of my 20s.
It took me 18 years to start journaling in a way that actually interests me to look back on. Journaling is very personal, so it is difficult to give advice on how to do it. There are so many ways.
Just wanted to share my story. I love your video - your ideas, and the format.
Oh my gosh how cringe is it to read back on some early journals right? For me the worst was my teenage years when I was like “I am in love with this boy…” and it gets so so much worse from there. Though it is cute to see how innocent we were when we were younger and how the things we are worried now just isn’t a thing back then. I kinda wish I could journal backwards, I wonder if that’s possible. Like if my 40yo me could write to my teenage self. Though even if possible it would probably end up sounding like some insincere drivel which I’m sure I sound like to my kids - “Sleep and nap as often as you can! You’ll miss it when you’re older 😭😭” 😆
@@Liliarthan You're so right. If my teen self heard my 31 year old self giving advice she would roll her eyes pretty hard!
One of the best ever journaling videos I have seen here. I was expecting to have a short explanation about dumping everything on paper and then have some conclusions as the title suggest( VOMIT) but this is a gem. I have some struggles with myself as my negative thoughts are getting in the way of me reaching the level I want to be and this is what I need. I was looking for a good journaling method and this video is full of the techniques I can't wait to apply to my day to day life. Thank you so much for this cool and entertaining video :)
This video sat with me for days and I had to come back and rewatch it a couple times. There's SOOOOO much awesome info in this! Thank you
Such a fun way to do a vid - always love seeing your art!
My personal journaling questions:
What is bringing you challenges and struggle? What has been fueling you and supporting you? - of those things that are hurting or helping you - what’s within your control? What role have you been playing in your situation and why? What role would you like to play in your situation? What would an ideal outcome look like for you? How much of that ideal outcome is in your control? What is a realistic action step you can take to reach a better outcome and play a more active role in your situation? Then I usually add a message from myself to encourage me to take that step
Thank you! I'v been keeping diary for years and years, but I mostly just list things that happened to me. It has started to feel pointless, even tho I get that too has some value. But I needed something that could challenge my thinking. So this is very helpful!
such a great method! some key elements i learned over the years is to let go of the constraint of “prose” all the time, sometimes your thoughts are everywhere and bullet points and charts or diagrams help explain a problem/experience best. no one has to understand it but you! i also let go of the guilt of not journaling every day, seeing it more as a coping mechanism when i’m upset or a documentation when i’m really happy more than anything. that way i never give up on it, because i know it’ll be there when i come back to it!
Saaaame! The constraint of prose or of documentation versus just venting - so relatable. I bought myself a blank journal (no lines) that has watercolor-style, abstract painting on it (adds beauty) just so that I can flex out of so many linear constraints. It's been so soothing so far.
@@garden.alchemi wait that’s such a great idea i will try that for my next journal! such a simple change but definitely encourages more creativity :)
❤Been a week doing this. It actually really helped me keep my mind clear and off survival mode
Thank you so much for your videos Cam, they really are the best thing on youtube! You have such an amazing personality and your videos contain so much value while at the same time being very enternaining!
I very rarely comment but I have to say this: this is the first time in a veeeery long time that I've watched a whole video as is, no skipping no 2x speeding and fully engaged and learning. I actually thought I kinda lost the ability to do that but maybe I just hadn't found the right content for me. The dynamics of this video are perfection: minimalist enough to keep me focused but dynamic enough to not make me bored, loved all the scene changes, visual presentation is top notch with all the illustrations and notes, and verbal storytelling is dynamic and yet to the point, no unnecessary fuss. Extremely fascinating! If I journal later today I'll put you in my gratitude list 🥹♥️
Lmao, thanks for the ducks answer
Journaling is a process for sure. For me, it's overwhelming to think all these points to take. Like, if I start writing, then I have to think what made my day this or did I manage that, and I'm already spiralling into the unknown, and I just.. don't
Maybe try picking ONE of these techniques and trying it out for, say, a week. At the end of the week, review and decide whether you might continue with it, and/or add another one. You're not trying to solve all your problems, or become super-you, just road-testing the techniques. Sound doable?
i always feel stupid when i try to journal. no matter what i write, it always ends up feeling like a whiny diary entry and then i just give up on it for weeks or even months at a time. it feels meaningless to write down anything other than to-do lists
Sounds like you think you’re not allowed to have negative thoughts and feelings, or else you’re “whiny.” Or at least, you have a certain set of ideas or rules of what you think a journal should contain in order to be a good journal. Maybe take some time to write out what your unspoken rules are and reflect on whether those rules are true or not, and what it would mean about you if you broke them. If you’re doing this exercise right, it’ll be uncomfortable, maybe even make you cringe if you’re being totally honest, but it’s a valuable tool that can be used in a variety of situations to help you figure out where your “inner critic” may be holding you back.
Someone once suggested to me to dotpoint rather than writing full sentences or paragraphs. That might help take out the whiny feel. For me it was that it always felt like it takes too long. Coz I write so much crap. But dotpointing it sounds more achievable. And by being forced to be concise, you kinda have to stick to the point and not whine for the sake of whining… 🤷🏻♀️
@@PudgyMcWudgygood point!
I love how you outlined everything to the bare bones. I've always been a journaler but recently I got stuck from decision paralysis from all the journal content online.
Choosing which system to use, what type of journal, stationeries, feeling bound but wanting to do it 'right', wanting it to look beautiful but ending up feeling like it's not thorough of everything I have in mind, nor is it very authentic and most importantly, it doesn't feel personal to me.
This gave me ideas on how I can use different sections of my journal & truly vomit everything
I’ve made the mistake of previously discrediting the advice / value you provide in your content (because I was only here for the laughs). But this is an incredibly practical way to get value out of journaling, not to mention the insightful way you’ve explained WHY it helps. Thsnk you.