Begin Your Journaling Practice On Vacation

3 reasons to do that

If you’re a leader in today’s world, chances are you’re aware of the benefits of journaling. You know it’s a key practice for many of the most successful entrepreneurs and business leaders, and you know it’s something you should do. Getting started, however, can sometimes feel like a daunting task that just adds to your to-do list. That’s why the best time to begin your journaling practice is on vacation, where you have more mental space and unscheduled time than usual. Beginning your journal practice during vacation will help you maximize your clarity, identify opportunities and weaknesses, and create momentum so that the habit sticks upon returning home to the office and stress. Read below for three reasons to journal on your next vacation. 
 

For busy leaders who are used to constantly working, turning work “off” and unplugging can be difficult. Many business owners don’t feel the need to take a vacation because they love what they do; they are fuelled by their work and have nothing to escape from. Julie Cole, founder of Mabel’s Labels, echoes this, saying, “It is definitely difficult for entrepreneurs to ‘check out’ for holidays, and mostly it’s because we don’t want to.” Taking a break, however, is crucial to maintaining effectiveness and leading well. Journaling can help make the transition from work to vacation happen more quickly. Taking the time to get all of your to-dos, ideas and plans out on paper will help your mind relax so you can truly be present during your time off. Journaling will create mental space while also giving you the bridge to your business - it will allow you to get all your new ideas and creativity out on paper so that you can then relax. Often leaders don’t fully relax until it’s almost the end of the trip, and then it’s time to ramp back up again! Unplug more quickly by using your journal to help you transition your brain both to vacation mode and back to work-mode as your time off comes to an end.

Many of us experience our best clarity when we’re away from work and our brains can have a break. You’ll have creative ideas, get a bigger-picture view of your business and identify opportunities you didn’t see when your head was focused on the day-to-day. Take advantage of this clarity and write it all down. Taking just 10-15 minutes to get the ideas out of your head will relieve you of the task of remembering them once you get back to the office (which is unlikely), and also help you capture everything on paper so you don’t need to think about it the rest of the trip. Take advice from the best, Sir Richard Branson, founder of the Virgin Group. He shares, "I make sure that I disconnect by leaving my smartphone at home or in the hotel room for as long as possible — days, if I can — and bringing a notepad and pen with me instead. Freed from the daily stresses of my working life, I find that I am more likely to have new insights into old problems and other flashes of inspiration. When this happens, it's important that I jot everything down on a piece of paper.” Writing down the thoughts that come up during your mental clarity will help you maximize your ideas upon returning to the office. 

Any habit takes time to build and doing so when you have more time than usual will increase your chances of staying consistent. There’s no better time to begin your journaling habit than when you’re on vacation; write while gazing at the beach or ocean, or perhaps journal at the top of a mountain peak after you’ve hiked. Journaling is also easier on vacation because you’re naturally more reflective. Whether you’re writing about the personal clarity you’ve found or simply marvelling at the beauty and peace around you, there will be no shortage of things to write about. Habits are also easier to start when you’re removed from your usual cues and triggers. "Changing a habit on a vacation is one of the proven most-successful ways to do it," shares New York Times business writer Charles Duhigg. “You're in an environment that's totally different than the one you have at home, so you have this ability to form a new pattern and hopefully be able to carry it over into your life.” Having a few days or weeks of journaling under your belt will also help you continue the practice once you return to work. Things are always most difficult at the beginning, so get your first writings out of the way while you’re unencumbered with the demands of your usual life.

Vacation is a natural break between work and life. It’s like a comma in between the two; a pause and a way to see what’s ahead of you differently. Time away rejuvenates you and helps you come back to work with clarity and a new way of seeing things. Take advantage of this time away by beginning your journal practice during vacation. You’ll unplug faster, find it easier to start, and keep record of the insights and clarity you have. Continuing your journal practice upon your return will make you even more effective and mitigate stress as you enter back to the demands of daily life. So, book your vacation now; the benefits are waiting!