"Live Long and Prosper " - The Value in Journaling

That Vulcan Salute, made famous by Spock (Leonard Nimoy) in Star Trek, is something I have been thinking about lately. The concept of “living long” as an objective by itself doesn’t interest me too much because as we all know quality is preferred over quantity. I think that is why these two concepts of living long and being prosperous belong together. I am sure "prosperity" means something different for everyone...

My view? While my earning years were strong and I was well compensated for my efforts, prosperity seemed to be related to living good, doing and buying what we wanted, and not having to say “no” very often. As I look back on those years, I think we somewhat missed the point. Not that that was a bad way to live, but I think it could have been better in some ways. Now having passed those high earning years, adjusting to a new life as a “reluctantly retired person” in my mid-sixties with a vastly different income stream, and wishing all my children were geographically closer, I would love to have a “do over” knowing what I know now.

 Unfortunately, we do not get do-overs in life. We have to do the best with what we have at any point in time, so reflecting on the past and then planning a different course for the future has real value.

 I have found that journaling is an excellent way to evaluate past experiences and decisions, providing an opportunity to reflect on what is or has been working and not working, and then leveraging those thoughts to design a different path forward. The act of taking time to reflect on one’s own performance, honestly critiquing it, spending introspective time alone with a journal to document those thoughts helps to crystallize life’s lessons, as I have proven to myself over and over again now for my 8 years of consistent journaling.

Maybe this line of thinking will lead me to more “intentional living’…I am going to give that more thought and I suppose I will write about it in my personal journal later today....

Why not give journaling a try? It certainly can help maintain a positive perspective on the changes we experience as we grow older, especially if we think about and then journal about all that we are grateful for.

While I use a digital journal that is with me all the time, I do see the value in having a more traditional journal that that allows you to capture key thoughts during those introspective quiet moments and one that enables the true physical sensation of journaling. I had used a quality bound journal several years ago and remember it fondly, and so I researched one that I would use if I was not so digitally-oriented these days. 

This LeatherJournal looks so elegant it should make journaling more rewarding and also would be a great gift for someone special in your life (consider it for those hard-to-buy-for-people, or maybe a new graduate for whom you would like to encourage self-reflection and introspective thinking) - you don't even have to leave your home to shop for it...just click the link.