A leader I used to work with amazed me once when he showed me his personal leadership journal. His journaling wasn't what amazed me--many leaders try this simple, yet powerful development activity--but that the journal itself was so thick and well-worn. He'd been writing in it at least once a week, he told me, for six years.

Many leaders start journaling with the best of intentions. They get into it for a while, at least until "real work gets in the way and their journal is relegated to a desk drawer, mostly blank and completely forgotten. But my old co-worker would never dream of burying his notebook, which he considers one of his leadership treasures. In fact, he even takes it with him when he travels, for work and pleasure. I asked him recently how he explains his commitment. "The act of writing helps, he says simply. "It allows me to act upon things swiftly and appropriately when I take the time to really sit down and think about a situation. I've surprised myself many times with the different perspective I take when writing my journal compared to just thinking through something.

Indeed, journaling helps leaders become more self-aware, and self-aware leaders are better able to adapt their behaviour to changes in the organizational environment, which
ultimately makes them more effective. All that from a little writing. Why then do so many leaders give up on journaling? Why does one notebook collect insights while another
collects dust?



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