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How journaling can help you find (and live by) your personal philosophy
For many men, it is all easy to fall into a reactive state of being. We are constantly being fed opinions and belief systems – some subtly and some more overtly – that influence and shape our belief systems, and we very rarely get the opportunity to stop and question, which beliefs are ours? What…
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Journaling prompt: The warrior myth
As a society, we’re saturated with the myth of the warrior: the man locked in constant conflict. He battles his body, his environment, his rivals. It’s in gym culture, boardroom talk, locker room banter. Grind harder. Crush the competition. Attack your goals. Toughen up. Be a man. For some, this warrior archetype resonates. It becomes…
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Journaling to improve self-esteem for men
Self-esteem refers to how you see yourself and the extent to which you believe in your own worth. Through a combination of nature and nurture, some men naturally have greater self-esteem and other men struggle with it. It’s an important thing to nurture however, because self-esteem is the confidence to believe that you are capable,…
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Journaling prompt: The protean man
“First he shifted into a great bearded lion and then a serpent – a panther – a ramping wild boar – a torrent of water – a tree with soaring branchtops” – Homer Proteus, the old man of the sea, could take on any form; beast, river, flame, tree. If you could hold him through…
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How to start a 5-minute morning journaling habit
A mistake I made when I first started journaling was believing that journal entries were meant to be long, prosaic pieces of literature that tackled (and found solutions for) all the biggest problems in life. Okay, that might be an exaggeration, but I genuinely did think they were meant to be long. I’d write pages…
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Journaling prompt: Seeking otium
Rest should be more than simply not working. The Roman philosopher Cicero spoke of ‘otium‘, a kind of leisure devoted to reflection, study, art, and the cultivation of the soul. Aristotle saw it as a necessary condition for the good life. For the Stoics, it wasn’t laziness, it was liberty in its most meaningful form:…
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The difference between a journal and a diary – and why it matters
You’d be forgiven if you weren’t sure what the difference was between a journal and a diary, in fact many people think they are the same thing and use the terms interchangeably. There’s certainly crossover, and your journal can include diary style entries, but the key difference is that a journal is a practical tool…
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Journaling prompt: A man is a success if…
A man is a success if he gets up in the morning and gets to bed at night, and in between he does what he wants to do – Bob Dylan I find myself thinking and writing more and more about freedom. Not the loud, dramatic kind, but the quiet, day-to-day kind. The ability to…
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Unlocking creative potential
If you’re looking to unlock and develop your creativity, then journaling can be an the perfect thing to help you achieve your goals. By allowing us to gather and compile our creative thoughts, find links between seemingly unrelated ideas and get into a state of flow in a space free from judgement. Today I share…
