30 journaling ideas: one question a day, starting tonight

You sat down to write, then asked yourself: what do I write today? That is the hardest part of journaling, and here are thirty journaling ideas ready to go. Begin with any of them, even in the middle of the month. There is no need for order or long pages; one honest sentence is enough to open the door. And if you are at the very start, read how to start writing a journal first.

In the first days we stay close to ourselves, asking what we feel and see.

• Day 1: Write three things you are grateful for today.
• Day 2: Describe your day in only five words.
• Day 3: What drained your energy today? What gave you some?
• Day 4: What does your body need now: rest, movement, or a friend's voice?
• Day 5: Write about the best meal you ate this week and where you were.
• Day 6: Which sentence did you hear today that stayed with you?
• Day 7: What do you want to do next week that keeps being postponed?

Memory holds plenty of material, and some of it you have not touched for years.

• Day 8: The first notebook you ever wrote in. What was it like?
• Day 9: Your grandmother's house. What did it smell like? What was on her table?
• Day 10: Write about a friend whose presence changed your life.
• Day 11: A moment you laughed until you cried.
• Day 12: A hard decision you made and later found was right.
• Day 13: What did you want to be when you were ten?
• Day 14: A song that takes you back to a place. Where?

When we write about what we love, we find what we want to grow in our lives.

• Day 15: Ten small things that make you happy, from a cup of coffee to light rain.
• Day 16: What does your ideal day look like, from dawn to sleep?
• Day 17: A book or film that changed something in you. What did it change?
• Day 18: Where do you feel safe? Describe it.
• Day 19: A skill you wish to master. What is the first step?
• Day 20: Write a thank-you note to someone you never thanked as they deserved.
• Day 21: What are you good at that you do not give yourself credit for?

The end of the month is a good time to look ahead a little.

• Day 22: Write a dream you have not told anyone yet.
• Day 23: If there were no fear, what would you do this year?
• Day 24: Three small goals for this month you can really finish.
• Day 25: A letter to yourself five years from now. What do you tell her?
• Day 26: What do you want to leave behind?
• Day 27: Describe the home you dream of, room by room.
• Day 28: Who do you want to spend more time with? When will you begin?
• Day 29: What was the best thing that happened to you this month?
• Day 30: What did you learn about yourself during these days?

Do not turn them into an exam. If a day's question does not appeal, skip to another. You can also come back to the same question six months later and see how your answer changed; it is one of the nicest parts of keeping a journal. If you want gratitude alone, write three lines each night in a gratitude journal; simplicity keeps a habit alive.

Each idea has its own mood: memories like dotted or plain pages with room for drawings and stickers, goals like ruled pages. In a Studio by Toth journal you choose the paper when you design it: ruled, dotted or plain. Keep one of its inner notebooks for ideas alone, and another for the diary.

One idea can be written in many shapes, and changing the shape changes what comes out of you. Try one of these:

• The list: ten short lines, no explanation. It works when you are tired or in a hurry.
• The letter: write the answer as if talking to a friend you trust, and it comes out warmer and truer.
• The scene: describe one moment in detail: what you saw, heard, smelled. That way the memory keeps its details.

And if you write nothing one day, do not make up for it with two pages tomorrow. The idea you missed will wait, or be replaced by a better one.

Thirty days of questions deserve a journal you long to open. Design your journal in your favourite colour and add a charm with your initial. And if you want it as a gift, read our gift ideas for a leather journal.