Do you ever have a conversation so interesting that you wish you could go back and listen to it again? Or do you wish you had recorded it from the start? I did, and as specific as this situation might sound, it’s exactly what led me to write this post today.
Last month, I met up with our small book club to discuss our book of the month. It quickly became a very profound discussion, as we all had different perspectives on these topics and questions that elevated it further. We wrapped up by gathering our opinions and identifying a few key takeaways. By the end of the meeting, I was almost sad that I was going to forget most of it. That’s when I said we should bring notebooks next time, and we collectively agreed.
Of course, there are many more reasons why I think keeping a notebook or a journal, or in other words, creating a personal archive, is important.
the importance of keeping a notebook
preserving important information
Last month, I read a book that was an interview with Turkish historian İlber Ortaylı.1 When asked about which book he’d save in a house fire, he said he would rather save his notebooks. He stated that protecting your memories and thoughts on what you read was more important. Those can’t be recovered, but you can always repurchase the book itself.
Our brain has long-term and short-term memory. We don’t get to choose what we remember; therefore, we can’t rely on our brains to store everything the way we’d like it to. Some of us tend to forget easily; some of us don’t. However, I don’t think anyone could say that they’re capable of remembering things entirely, down to all details.
Keeping a notebook (or a journal) means you’ll be able to retain information over years and years. Reading through your most cherished days, tracking your progress, navigating your life efficiently, etc., are only a few of the qualities that come with it.
a contribution
You can think of your personal archive as a contribution, if nothing else.
Above all, it’s going to have a sentimental value – whether it’s a diary or not. What you decided to write down is going to say something about you or who you used to be at the time. It’s going to become a trip down memory lane for your older self, a reminder of what you valued most and your accomplishments. This way, even your future children could have a glimpse of what the inside of your mind looked like. Others could benefit from its content. Who knows, maybe your writing will be passed on for generations.
On a more rational note, it’ll be a reference for anything you’re planning on creating in the future, whether that be conducting research, making a discovery, or creating a piece of art. Advancing is easier when you have a track record of your progress.
how to start
building your own ecosystem
Everyone has their individual journal ecosystem. It can be a great starting point to know what kind of journal(s) you want to keep, but your ecosystem is something that will become clearer to you as you write and get to know your habits, so don’t worry about it too much. Mine, personally, has changed a lot over time and I’m sure it will continue to do so.
There’s not much you need to do to create your ecosystem. Ask yourself what topics you want to write about, how consistent you plan to be with it, then look up a bunch of different notebooks/planners online and pick what seems best for you.
You can also click here to read about how some famous people used their journals, if you’re in need of inspiration or unfamiliar with journal formats. YouTube videos and Substack posts are helpful as well. But remember, your ecosystem should respond to your needs and wants, not someone else’s, so it will probably look different.
finding inspiration
What happens when you don’t know what to write about anymore? You start looking around more. There’s inspiration in every corner of life. You just haven’t scratched the surface enough. If you like to research, you might as well try looking more into global events and news. Pinterest is a lifesaver for many, because you can search for ideas for any kind of journal. I would also recommend brain dumps, which can help you put your thoughts out there.
my tips
avoid digital tools
The new generation tends to reach for digital ways of archiving/journaling, and while it’s better than nothing, it can’t compare to a physical journal. This doesn’t mean I’m against digital sources (except for AI, but it’s not even a source in the first place); I find them very helpful and use them for almost everything. But if you ask me, even those sources are better kept in a physical format. Not just saved somewhere on your device until you run out of storage.
A digital archive is never going to be just yours. No matter how promising a platform might make its policies sound, it simply isn’t. In my opinion, it’s important you have control over the privacy of your archive.
You can’t trust a device that might stop working the next day. You also can’t go forever without paying for a cloud or flash drive at some point. Of course, it’s for you to decide, but I just think nothing can beat a great journal entry with your own handwriting on paper.
don’t try to make it perfect
I did say Pinterest is a great place to look for inspiration, but there you’ll often find images of pages that look simply perfect. While some of us enjoy journaling with precision, others may find it frustrating. Journaling should be fun and practical, not something that requires too much effort or drains your energy. Messy pages are perfectly fine; I have dozens of them. So keep in mind that your journal isn’t meant to please anyone, and you don’t need any artistic skills at all.
That’s a wrap on today’s post. I hope you enjoyed reading it. Did this post inspire you to start a journal / pick up where you left off? Why or why not is journaling/archiving important to you? Do you have any tips to share? Leave a comment!
Let me know if you’d like me to write more about journaling in the future. See you on the next one <3
cover image credit: https://pin.it/6Uom5KWFB
references:
- İnsan Kendi Geleceğini Nasıl Kurar? – Yenal Bilgici (2022) (p. 231-232) ↩︎