Writing is a great tool for business success – it generates sales, improves productivity, and builds our brands. But can it help us develop a sense of inner wellbeing? Whether you choose to practice journaling or simply use writing as a way to clear your mind, here are three ways you can use writing to improve your wellness.
Writing Clarifies Our Thoughts
“I don’t know what I think until I write it down,” wrote novelist Joan Didion. When our thoughts and feelings are bouncing around inside our heads, it’s often hard to make sense of our experience. Letting our thoughts find their place on a page or computer screen brings clarity out of confusion. Granted, our thoughts might seem chaotic when they first escape from our heads. But if we keep writing, our inner truth emerges.
I have experienced the magic of writing many times. In fact, it helped me create this article. I have known for a while that I wanted to compose a piece about how writing can contribute to wellness, but I could never focus on what I wanted to say. Finally, I sat down, opened a new computer file, and wrote the title at the top. I was still stuck about the contents, so I wrote, “Thoughts to include.” Immediately, three ideas popped out of my head. Once the structure was clear, it was easy to write the prose. But if I hadn’t committed myself to start writing, I would still be wondering what I wanted to say.
Writing Releases Emotional Pressure
Writing lets off emotional steam without the dangers of venting to someone who might be upset by our words. In fact, journaling has often prevented me from exacerbating tense situations. My mind may be cluttered with extraneous thoughts when I sit down to write in my journal. Perhaps I think I’m angry with my husband over something he said.
Within a few minutes of writing, I realize that my feelings bear little relationship to the real-life event. Perhaps I am upset about a different situation altogether and the situation with my husband was merely a signpost.
If I had succumbed to the urge to spew my negative feelings into my husband’s ears, I would have created more negativity and missed the opportunity to learn something important about myself. I discover my true thoughts and feelings as I write.
Writing Calms the Mind
Writing regularly is likely to produce observable benefits in your mental health. A recent article in Harvard Business Review cites research which showed that people who wrote about negative experiences for 15 minutes a day for three or four days ended up visiting doctors less frequently for health concerns and reporting greater psychological wellbeing. Other research indicates that people who journal regularly experience reduced symptoms of depression. So, in addition to clarifying our thoughts and preventing us from wrecking our relationships with verbal venting, writing actually assists us in regulating our emotions.
How to Get Started
Try it: Either set up a journal file on your computer or phone or, better yet, buy a paper journal that pleases you. Writing by hand confers benefits by stimulating our brains and connecting our hands with our hearts. But no matter: Just write, no matter what medium you choose.
Take a few minutes before you go to sleep or first thing in the morning to write. Either jot down whatever comes to mind or write about a situation or issue with which you are struggling. Do not censor yourself. Unexpected insights and thoughts may flow from your core and surprise you with their wisdom.
You never need to show your journal to another person: It is your private, sacred space for self-discovery.
Let Me Know!
I am excited to hear the results of your experiment! After you’ve practiced writing down your thoughts or feelings for a few days, drop me a line to let me know how it went. You can reach me – yes, in writing – at lizd@worktalk.com.
Here’s wishing you a pleasant prose experience!