Journaling as the Gateway to Our True Self
Through journaling, we are getting to Know Ourselves. As we transfer our inner world into writing, we are creating a distance and are able to see ourselves with new eyes.
The separation that is created between the experience and the thoughts when they are placed on paper — outside — allows new perspectives to emerge.
This dynamic evolves the relationship between me as a person, the thoughts, and the thinking. And what was once seen as “my thoughts” is shifting into “just thoughts”.
This is a presentation based on personal experience and current level of consciousness.
This is what I am seeing in this moment, and by opening this conversation, I am enabling new thoughts (opinions, perspectives, and beliefs) to arrive — both from ME and from YOU.
What Are Thoughts?
We are so accustomed to referring to them as “my thoughts”, and in a way, you can say that they are, but only to the degree that we make them so.
The more we pay attention to our so-called thoughts and their connection to our emotional state and reality, the more we realize they are not truly ours.
We can — and are — making them ours through belief and conditioning. But when we are ready and willing, we can begin to step outside of our current experience and ask daring and challenging questions that put everything in perspective:
Is this really true?
Where do these thoughts and ideas come from?
How do these thoughts affect my state of being and my experience of reality?
These simple prompts might seem innocent and small, but when we ask them with courage and honesty, they can open doors to unknown parts of ourselves.
This can be both exhilarating and terrifying, depending on who we are and where we are in life. And if it is, it is a good indicator that there is something of value there.
The Transformative Power of Journaling
You Are Not Your Thoughts
Through writing, by placing words on paper, we externalize the thoughts and separate ourselves from them. We are stepping out from the bubble of thinking, removing ourselves from their influence, and can see with more clarity.
When we no longer confuse ourselves with our thoughts, we’re less invested in their outcome — in being right or wrong. Because when we are not our thoughts, they do not define our worth.
In the act of placing our thoughts outside, we are detaching from them and separating the emotional bond that keeps us trapped in rigid thinking.
As such, it becomes a process of disidentification. Disconnecting emotionally from the narratives of limited potential and self-worth.
From this distance, of not being involved, we do not automatically believe every word of the inner critic. We are enabled to question and “think for ourselves”.
When we become conscious of the ongoing internal dialogue, we are no longer mindless victims to every assumption that arises.
And with this, we are moving closer to our true nature and the potential of our life.
As before, I was caught in the bubble, in the confusion, not able to see.
Caught in the wind of distractions, a victim of something unreal.
Now, outside from a distance, seeing from a different light.
The wind continues its movement, but I’m no longer a leaf that’s inside.
Through this process of placing attention — the thoughts they transform and evolve.
What once was so real and defining, fading by conscious intent.
The distance from illusion is growing — the force returns to its source.
The power of conscious creation, aligns with the power of choice.
The Process of Detachment and Solidification
By the power of the written and spoken word, thoughts gain form and come alive.
In this process of materialization, thoughts evolve from hidden to seen, from air into earth, from mind into matter.
When thoughts are merely floating around in the elusive field of mind, they are working in the back– and–underground. More difficult to see, making their case silently in the periphery.
But now, on record and placed into conscious light, there they are. The stories, ideas, assumptions, and beliefs can’t be denied. Served on the plate, right in front of our eyes, there is simply no place to hide.
Know Thyself — See Thyself
In this sense, we enable ourselves to see our reflection in the paper and pen. We are becoming aware of how the repetitive narrative in our minds creates our experience of life — or to be more precise; how we are co-creating our reality based on what thoughts we entertain, believe, and repeat.
It is beginning to become a cliché, but it is powerfully true how the saying goes, “Words cast spells. That is why it is called spelling”.
Thus, the narratives we permit to play throughout our days define our lives. What we continuously repeat affects our state of being and co-creates our reality.
Now, by placing thoughts onto paper and allowing the words to unfold, we enable ourselves to see. And what we see, what we know, we have the power to affect.
Just as it is easier to see our own “unflattering faults” in others, by externalizing our inner dialogue, we are seeing ourselves in a different light.
The narrative that was consuming us begins to lose its influence.
By the power of journaling, our unconscious beliefs are becoming conscious, and essential truths have the potential to emerge.
Take a Seat – Let’s Be Real
Entering the space of self-reflection. Sitting down in our chair. Away from the motion and commotion of life. We create a moment of silence and peace, enabling ourselves to see.
There they are, raw and real. The stories might not be true; oftentimes, they are not kind, but at least in this moment, this is what is going on.
There is no use denying. Denying doesn’t benefit us in any way; it only serves to postpone a problem that is already there, regardless of whether we like it or not.
And the best we can do is to address it before it grows too much.
Just like the dirt on the floor doesn’t go away merely by us looking away and pretending, so do our unconscious beliefs and limiting stories remain until we address them.
When we dare to see and turn our sight, we can clean the stench and live in a clean, colorful, and flowery house.
This is one of the grand benefits of journaling: taking it all out in plain sight, unfiltered and without makeup.
With honesty and transparency, we are creating clarity and liberating ourselves from what no longer serves.
The Power of Journaling in Action
Through journaling, by moving the subtle thoughts from the back corners of our minds, they become clear, solid, and undeniable.
When we distance ourselves from thoughts (ideas, beliefs, assumptions), we are also removing some of the emotional charge that is contained within them.
This is critical because when the emotional bond lessens, we can see the thoughts for what they are and realize their actual effect on our lives.
Discharged from the charge, our system calms. Unattached and uninvolved — we may calmly observe.
At first, we may not know whether they are our own thoughts or where they come from. At this stage, it doesn’t matter if they are true, false, or somewhere in between.
They are here — some of them making a big mess in the back corners of our minds — and by bringing them out in the light, we can choose what to keep and what to discard.
By cleaning out our closet, we can question the assumptions we have blindly agreed to without a second thought.
IS THIS REALLY TRUE…?
Is this my belief, or someone else’s?
And more importantly,
Do these beliefs and assumptions serve my desired state and wellbeing?
Are they helping me to create the life that I want to live?
Do they work for me, or do they work against me?
This is a continuation of Know Thyself — The Transformative Power of Journaling (You Are Not Your Thoughts!), which is a series where we explore the power of our language and how we are constantly co-creating our reality — with or without our conscious participation.
