Writing a little bit in English every day is a great way to:
Practice your English
Express your ideas, feelings, and experiences
Reflect on life in a meaningful way
Here are some good questions to reflect on every day. You can answer with one or two sentences, or you can expand and write as much as you’d like. You may actually be surprised what you learn as you write, reflect, and process your day.
1. What are three things you are grateful for today? Example: I’m grateful for cooler weather, a good job, and morning coffee.
2. What was the best moment of your day? Why?
Example: The best moment of my day was when I had lunch with my coworkers because we laughed a lot and I felt connected.
3. What was the worst moment of your day? Why?
Example: The worst moment of my day was when I felt rushed and stressed at the end of work because I had to finish everything on time. Actually, this often happens with deadlines so maybe I should plan my schedule better so that I can enjoy my work more.
4. What is something meaningful you did today?
Example: I finished a report that I worked hard on. I felt like I did a really good job.
5. What did you learn today?
Example: I learned about some current events happening in South America from a podcast. It reminded me that the world is bigger than just my life here in Yokohama.
6. Based on today, what do you want to do differently tomorrow?
Example: Based on today, I want to plan my schedule better so that I don’t rush my work at the end of the day. This way I will probably enjoy my work more and make fewer mistakes. But it’s also hard to not be rushed because of my workload. Maybe I need to be more forceful about saying "no" to projects that I don’t have time or energy for. But it’s hard to say
“no” to my manager.
7. What attitude or intention do you want to have for tomorrow?
Example: I want to be more mindful about how I spend my time and energy.
Other intentions/attitudes could include things like:
Be more patient Work harder Smile more Relax more Be more caring toward my spouse Be more generous Be more helpful to coworkers Be more present to people Breathe more deeply Spend less time using technology Be more positive
As you can see, you can write a little bit or a lot for each question. Sometimes certain questions will help you discover emotions or ideas that you hadn’t really thought about before. When this happens, you can learn new things about yourself and use it to take steps to be more aware and improve your life.
My advice is to try doing this journaling every day (10 minutes) for two weeks and see how it feels. It will be best to choose a specific time each day so that you build a routine. If you want, you can print out the questions. Or, you can just copy the questions into your phone, computer, or notebook. In general, I recommend a notebook or paper so that you avoid getting distracted by technology when you write and reflect.
If you journal every day and keep expressing your ideas, feelings, and experiences, I promise it will help your English communication skills. Don't believe me? Try it for two weeks!
Want to connect with the changing world in English?
online or in Yokohama-Motomachi
to expand your:
creative thinking
global awareness
cross-cultural communication
(Advanced and intermediate only)