“Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes, including you.”
– Anne Lamott
Have you ever heard the saying “You can’t pour from an empty cup”? Everyone is so busy these days and with to-do lists getting longer and longer, it can be difficult to find time to pause and refill that cup.
With World Thinking Day tomorrow, it got us thinking about all the great ways journalling can help you to stay on track with your overall wellness. Instagram is full of inspiring posts with colourful and creative ways to track your daily habits – it’s never been so easy to ensure you’re drinking enough water, getting enough sleep and, of course, taking time for yourself.
Read on for a few tips for keeping track of your self-care and wellness goals.
Self-care Cheat Sheet
A great place to start is to think about what self-care and wellness means to you. What “me-time” activities do you really enjoy and always feel refreshed after? Brainstorm some ideas with a list of activities you can always refer back to in your bullet journal. Self-care directly relates to three main areas – mind, body and soul – which is a useful way to categorize your habits. Taking care of your mind could mean allocating time for some meditation or gratitude journalling. Making sure you get to your exercise classes or morning run can ensure you are taking care of your body while being creative and practicing your hobbies, and anything that makes you feel inspired will help to give your soul some self-care too.
Make Time For It in Your Schedule
From here you can start formulating a routine and begin plugging these activities into your schedule throughout the week. Perhaps you could assign activities to different days, with Mondays focusing on your mind and Fridays on inspirational activities or a pamper session. Each routine will be different for everyone, and as you go you will learn what you need more or less of. The key is to ensure that your self-care activities are regular and in your day-to-day routine – try attaching them to a habit you already have in your schedule.
Track Your Self-Care
Tracking and bullet journalling go hand in hand and will serve as a great motivator to keep you focused. Alongside your mind, body and soul activities, a water log can be a perfect self-care goal to start tracking. Seeing a visual representation of your progress will help you be more mindful of how much you’re drinking, or how often you’re exercising or eating a homecooked meal. Not only will this count as journalling but it will keep you accountable and motivated to see your progress.
What’s on your self-care and wellness list?
