11 Ideas for Setting Meaningful Intentions for Your Journals
After sharing my giant tower of journals (see this article), it might seem as though I may be using each of these books as interchangeable variations on a single theme: journaling. But, like my planners, which each serve a different function, my journals each have their own purpose.
Admittedly, I will use some journals primarily for writing and others mainly for artwork, but when I came to own each journal, I decided each would have a dedicated role in my writing and creative endeavors. To better define and focus on each journal’s assigned purpose, I am setting an intention for every one of my writing and art journals this year.
In this article I will explore the notion of setting an intention. I also have some ideas you can use to determine what intentions you might set for your journals. A few are questions you can ask yourself to explore the possibility of each journal, and the rest are categories of intentions you can consider when embarking on this exercise. My hope is that it will help you get the most out of your written and art journaling time.
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What it Means to “Set an Intention” for a Journal
Depending on which website you find discussing this concept, you can find information on setting intentions to manifest certain desires, to help provide focusing during a meditation session, or at the beginning of a yoga class.
In its simplest form, setting an intention is just identifying what we desire from our choice to engage in some particular activity or experience. We go into the experience, not so much with a carefully planned expectation of what will happen, but with a commitment within ourselves to engage in the process for a particular purpose.
I have found that the concept of setting intentions is usually applied in goal-setting. However, I believe that we can find more meaning and direction if we set intentions for the tools we use to plan or achieve those goals.
Setting an intention for a journal is a way to define your relationship with a book that will hopefully be serving as an outlet for something you need to express in your life. Below are some ways to determine how to use the books that we have set aside for journaling.
How to Identify Intentions for Journals
We can imagine many ways to use the blank pages in a journal or sketchbook. I find blank pages to be a daunting prospect. There is so much possibility and so many options. I can easily become overwhelmed by the myriad ways there exist to full up a book.
Beyond that, looking up journals or journaling on social media will reveal eve more unique and creative ways to fill a journal, which can add to the feeling of overwhelm we experience when encountering a blank book.
To narrow down what you intend for your journal, ask yourself the following questions:
- How did this book come to be in my possession? Was it a gift? Did I find it in a store or online and purchase it for myself? Did I make it from scratch?
- When I bought, received, or personally created the journal, how did it inspire me? What kinds of writing or art projects come to mind? What possibilities do I see in it?
- What are the ways I can use this book? See what is on the page- is it blank, lined, dot or square grid? How faint or dark are the markings in the book?
- What kind of paper does the book contain and what media can it withstand? Can it hold up to wet art media like watercolor or other paint? Is it thick enough to handle fountain pen? Is it delicate? What color paper is in the book? Just one or many and what do the colors make you think of?
- Is the journal better suited for artwork or writing? What was it designed for and is there a way to use it more creatively?
- Are there any forms of expression I’ve been meaning to try? For a book that will contain mostly writing, perhaps poetry, gratitude journaling, faith journaling, or life scripting? If it is an art journal, am I considering collage, mixed media, or gaining skills with a particular medium like gouache?
Types of Intentions You Can Set in a Journal
Once you have narrowed down the kind of work you’d like to do in your journal (writing, painting, collage, etc.), it’s time to set your intention for the journal. Here are some general categories based on journals I will be keeping this year:
Mental Health and Wellbeing. A journal can help you honor your commitment to care for your mental health though venting feelings, writing out gratitude lists, or consider insights gained through self-help books or therapy sessions. An intention might be to keep the journal as a safe space in which you are free to vent your struggles and reflect on progress you are making in your mental health journey.
Creative Expression. Setting an intention for creativity might involve giving yourself permission to be bold and adventurous in your creative pages. Sketchbooks and journals with hefty paper lend themselves to projects with art media, mixed media, and paper crafting. Declare the journal as a place that is free from judgment and preconceived notions of what is often considered aesthetic by others. Your intention could be a declaration of creative independence (for more on personal declarations, see this article).
Spiritual Growth. Your intention for a journal may be to cultivate a stronger spiritual foundation for your life or a deeper connection with God, your Higher Self, or whatever you consider to be your spiritual life force. You may wish to dedicate your journal to studying scripture, taking notes on a religious book, or participating in a group study. Your intention can set out the reasons for using the journal to embark on a spiritual path. Feel free to write out what you hope to gain from the experience or the kind of commitment you are making to the process.
Memory-Keeping. Whether chronicling your travels, savoring memories of your ever-growing babies, or just jotting down daily happenings, you can set an intention for your journal that reminds you of why you set out to preserve these moments on paper. Perhaps you are looking forward to re-reading these pages with a sense of nostalgia in the future. It may be you wish to share the book with someone you care about and who makes up the memories you are preserving.
To Use What You Have. Some journals can help us with listing out and tracking the journaling and art supplies that are cluttering up our creative spaces. They can also help us track and remember the creative projects we had in mind when we bought those supplies in the first place. For journaling and art supplies, you might set aside a journal and set the intention to inventory your supplies and brainstorm ideas for putting those supplies to good use. For a journal about creative projects, your intention may be to get creative and use your supplies to create certain types of writings or creations.
Self-Care. A journal can also provide the space to care for ourselves. Writing can be a form of self- care. Whether it is exploring feelings, jotting down affirmations, writing out mantras or quotes, or simply writing out lists of things that you bring joy, keeping a book for this purpose may be its own form of self-care. Art can be a form of therapy and self-care, so consider dedicating a sketchbook to the kind of creativity that relieves stress and makes you happy. An intention for a self-care journal may set out the importance of making time to do things that lead to your feeling content and satisfied with the time spent working in the book.
Some of My Favorite Journals
For fountain pen writing and light washes of watercolor, Stalogy 365 notebooks are perfect! (#Ad)
If you want a light dot grid pattern and paper strong enough for watercolor and gouache (as well as collage and other media), for a quarter of the price of other brands, try this one by Primrosia (#Ad):
Or if you want one that has a vintage feel and can handle writing and art media, try this one that I have on my wish list (#Ad)
There are just a few ways that you can consider setting an intention for a journal, whether it be for writing or artwork. Setting the intention for your book may just keep you motivated to keep journaling even when it seems there is no time for such a luxury.
Do you set intentions for your journals? Have additional ideas for setting intentions in your books? I’d love to hear about them in the comments below.
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**Image credits-images on graphics are from Canva. Remaining photos are courtesy of Pixabay.
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