I know that everyone isn’t a writer, but writing can benefit everyone. I love to write, so it pulls me. The more I write, the more I need to.
You may not feel that writing is your thing, but even if you start out with jotting down bullet points it will make a difference.
Here is why writing daily will help you in your business:
- If you don’t have a business partner you need some outlet to process the day, issues, opportunities.
- It is better to get your frustration out on paper than on a person.
- It is easier to problem solve if you write it down. The act (art) of writing creates structure and focus. Write down the issue of the day, possible solutions, and pros and cons of each.
- Writing opens up the right side of your brain. That is the creative side. We need this to create great products, services, solutions, processes, and anything else we create when building a business.
- It is a more reliable memory tool. We are limited in our capacity to self-report, a log or record, is much more reliable.
- We learn more about ourselves through writing. When I write about the same nagging issue over and over again, I get sick of myself and redirect.
- Writing daily improves your communication skills. As a business owner, we all know how valuable communication is to our effectiveness.
- For me, I journal everything to God. It helps me connect to God. It helps me record my prayers and I can look back at how He is working in my life and my work.
- As an add on to #8, I can also focus my thoughts by writing what I think God would tell me in the situation I am writing about. It brings truth to my world.
- You may discover you are a writer after all, and it gives you a way to share yourself, and your gifts and talents, with the world!
And I can add as a bonus:
It is cheaper than therapy….a definite cathartic release.
Try it for a week. You can just commit 15 minutes a day to start. That may be all you ever need, or you may be like me and have to pull yourself away.
Paper and pen have always been my favorite, but it is hard to index my 50 bound journals in my trunk. Recently, I purchased a Mac App called Day 1 to try out. It has excellent tagging and indexing options.
What is your favorite way to journal? What other benefits do you find from it?
[optin]
“The issue of the day” — I like that. My word this year is “focus” and that would go right along. It is all too easy to get caught up in a bunch of little “non-issues”, you might say, but by focusing on something that really deserves a bit of thought, we might just get somewhere!
I really enjoy journaling. I am the needs-to-be-pulled-away type, too… but that leads me to be inconsistent, too. Nevertheless, I enjoy the process. 🙂
I think my word every year is “focus” Sheila! It is hard when there are so many cool things to think on and work on….writing is a good coping mechanism for ADD!