I am forever grateful to my best friend in college. Carol taught me to keep a journal. I’d never done it before and it seemed like a really cool thing to do.

Keeping a journal started out unevenly. I’d keep it for a few days a week and then drop it for a few days or weeks.

Eventually, I realized that when I kept it up, I felt better. Keeping a journal has helped me maintain a more balanced outlook on life and has kept me focused on my goals.

I’ve used several different kinds of journals over the years. The most important criteria for me is that they be blank. No lines please! This allows me to have space to sketch in them as well as write.

Ten years ago, I learned a valuable add-on tool to keeping a journal from coach Christine Kane — that of doing a Weekly Summit.

In addition to writing in my journal six to seven days a week (three pages minimum per Julia Cameron’s “The Artists Way”), I take 15-20 minutes once a week to annotate the previous week.

I record my “Ta-Dah’s” (accomplishments), my “Not-Done’s”, my “AHA’s”, and my “To-Do’s” for the week ahead.

Jotting down my “AHA’s” is by far my favorite part.

You’d think that the fact that I’ve had “AHA’s” every week would be excitement enough that I’d remember them. Alas, no, they’re easily lost in the week’s haste to move on.

Lately, I’ve started to note the date of my “AHA” in case I want to revisit that date in my journal. Maybe there’s more there to be mined.

Please try these tools. They aren’t technically magical, and the results can be magical!

Life goes by SO quickly.

Reviewing my weeks helps me to become a slightly better person, artist, human being, one-little-word-at-a-time.

This morning I received an even better idea, one I haven’t quite fleshed out yet. I will keep an “Imagination or Vision Journal”. It will hold all my wishes, hopes, and dreams.

This feels WAY more fun than my regular journal.
And I suspect both are important to keep.

Do you have any rituals to help you “keep yourself on track”? If so, please share them with me!

I believe in life-long learning and in living a good, long life! Together we can keep this party going and headed toward better and better lives for all of u