The most important journal prompt I use.
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A spin-off of the diary entry is a journaling exercise author and storytelling champion Mathew Dicks calls Homework for Life. Instead of recording your entire day as a series of events, you’re simply looking for the most storyworthy moment of the day. The original purpose of this exercise is to build a library of stories to use as material for speeches, presentations, and content. But it has the added benefit of training yourself to notice the magic in the mundane. For instance, on the 23rd of June, I wrote: To you, that might sound like a pointless statement, but that sentence carries an entire movie in my mind. That morning, I was anxious thinking about my mortality after reading the book 4000 Weeks by Oliver Burkeman. I went out for a walk with my dog to try to get out of my head, but I still felt this immense existential dread looming over me. In the distance, I saw this old woman with legs bowed at the knee so badly I couldn’t believe she was able to stand. But there she was, walking toward me using what looked like two ski poles to inch her forward. As we crossed paths, she looked me in the eyes and said, Her smile was so big and genuine, I couldn’t help but stop feeling sorry for myself. She would probably give anything to be my age again, with legs that could take her for a brisk walk, and yet here I was, in my head worrying about a death she’s much closer to, not appreciating the youth that I do have. If she could have a great morning while struggling with old age and all the pains that come with it, then I can too. Thanks to Homework for Life, that seemingly mundane moment got recorded, and it reminds me to be grateful that I even get to live this life at all. At the end of each day, take 1–5 minutes to reflect and write down the most storyworthy moment of the day. What was the one moment that made today different, or special, or caused some sort of internal epiphany? I try to keep mine to one or two sentences, just enough details to prompt the movie to replay in my mind. Something I started doing in May is writing my homework for life on the monthly spread of my Bullet Journal. If you want to learn more about Bullet Journaling check out this video where I shared my experiences from the first 30 days. Prompt: What's one moment from today that was different than your typical day? |
The Creator Cycle
Self-mastery with pen-and-paper systems.
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