March 07, 2022

What are Journal Prompts?! - Examples INSIDE

What are Journal Prompts?

Journal prompts are written questions, topics, or themes to write on to help you get started.

Using journal prompts gives you a clearer direction of where to go before you get started, or it can help those who find a blank page intimidating. This can support those who want to make writing in their journal a habit but often find they never know what they should be writing about.

This article is going to talk about why journal prompts are helpful and the different types of prompts that are out there to help support your writing.

Why are journal prompts helpful?

There are a couple of reasons why using journal prompts can help you.

Journal Prompts can focus your thoughts

Writing in your journal can bring your mind in a lot of different directions. You can begin talking about your day, and suddenly veer off to your life goals and aspirations. Using a journal prompt can help you stay focused on the topics you want to explore & give your mind something to focus on. Especially for those who have difficulty sustaining attention for long periods, using journal prompts can help you stay on track.

Journal Prompts can support personal exploration

If you’d like to explore certain topics about yourself, like your childhood, happiness, gratitude, or finding your path, then journal prompts can help you get there. Sometimes on your own, it is a challenge to know what questions to ask yourself, but prompts can help here. It takes away all the guesswork and can help you focus on what is important; personal exploration.

Journal Prompts can remind you of what is most important

Sometimes when we journal, it can be easy to focus on the negative only. Everything that went wrong in our day, or all the people we don’t like. That is why it can be supportive to use a prompt to guide you. Journal prompts can support you on zoning in on what is meaningful to you instead. There are many prompts for gratitude especially those that would be beneficial for you to explore.

Journal prompts can give you new ideas

If you are someone who can’t think of what to write about, prompts are perfect for you. It removes any uncertainty and helps you focus on the answer, instead of the questions themselves. There are prompts out there that are related to theme, outcome, mental health, body positivity & so much more! Check out these journal prompts for anxiety on our website to get you started.

Girl writing in 16 month Agenda surrounded by books

So what are the different types of journal prompts?

Gratitude Prompts

As mentioned previously, journal prompts for gratitude are a great way to remind yourself of what is important to you in life. These prompts help you take stock of the things that bring you joy, what you are grateful for, and also the people and things that give you love.

Here are some gratitude prompts to get you started:

Name 3 things that always put a smile on your face.
What 5 things are you grateful for this week?
What is something nice another person did for you today or this week?

Self-Compassion Prompts

If you are someone who finds it challenging to be compassionate to yourself, using self-compassion journal prompts can be a great way to practice. One of our missions is to promote self-compassion because of its numerous benefits including increasing motivation, boosting happiness, and improving self-image.

Here are some journal prompts for self-compassion:

How can you show yourself kindness during difficult times?
What are some things you can do for yourself that bring you Joy?
What does self-care look like for you?

Self-Growth Prompts

If you're looking to grow as a person, using journal prompts can be a great way to explore and expand on your personal growth. There are journal prompts that can support you in letting go of things in your past, setting goals for the future, or simply figuring out what brings you joy and fulfilment. Try these prompts below to get started:

In what ways did I grow as a person this year?
What/who influenced me most? What did I learn?
What skills/practices do I want to learn or master in the new year?

Prompts for your Mental Health

There are journal prompts that can be supportive to individual mental health issues, but more broadly journaling regularly can be supportive to all who struggle with their mental health. Using a journal can be a great way to understand your moods, track your ups and downs, and also just express and ground yourself. Here are some prompts to begin with:

Write down all your coping mechanisms. Evaluate the ones that are most helpful and the ones that are the most detrimental.
Describe a place where you feel most relaxed and peaceful.
Which parts of your daily life cause the most stress or frustration? How can you ease that even a bit?

Prompts for Creativity

Getting creative can sometimes feel like a chore. That is why I Journal prompts to can support this goal. Journal prompts for creativity can be as open or as specific as you like. It really is whatever makes you feel the most creative and excited. Below are some fun Journal prompts to get your creative juices flowing:

Write about an animal you wish existed.
Jot down the first five words that come to your mind and write a story around that.
Brainstorm some characters that your younger self would find incredible. Feel free to doodle, make a list, or start writing from their point of view.

Daily Reflection Prompts

If you're looking for prompts to help you reflect or let go of your day before a restful sleep, daily reflection prompts can be helpful. The purpose of Daily Reflection prompts is to help you understand and digest things that occurred during your day and be able to either release them or accept them as they are. Here are some examples of ones you could use daily:

What did you value most about today?
Was there anything that happened that you want to leave on the page?
Are you living in a way that reflects the person you want to be?

As you can see there are truly limitless ideas of what you can write about in your Journal. I hope this gave you some insight and some ideas into some of the questions you can ask yourself that might prompt you to give fuller and more reflective answers. If you'd like even more Journal prompts you can always look further into our blog, follow our Instagram page, or find us on YouTube.

Girl in floral shirt journalling