Your life only gets better when you do. Work on yourself and the rest will follow. – Unknown

Welcome back to Renew Inspiration! Believe in yourself. Be brave and take risks. After all, nothing can substitute an experience, whether it is positive or negative. In today’s session, I want to talk about Journaling to Excel. Let’s take a moment and think about the following questions.

• Why do I write in my journal?
• What do I want to learn about myself?
• What am I exceptionally good at?
• How do I shine from day to day?
• Do I have any talents or special skills?
• How do I stand out in a crowd?

Well, I hope you have your journal and something to write with. I love to write in my journal because it is a safe place for me to put my feelings and emotions into words, then put my words into action. Journal writing is a form of personal expression. Journal writing can be whatever you want it to be. Remember, journal writing is your very own personal journey throughout life, your ups and downs, your successes and failures.

So, when you first read the title Journaling to Excel, what were you thinking? What does the title Journaling to Excel mean to you and your current situation? Whenever you make the decision to excel at something, you must put in some hard work and dedication. Let’s face it, most of us did not just wake up one day and have a successful career, a beautiful home, respectful children, a healthy fitness routine, etc. You had to first decide what you wanted to work on, then you had to plan, then you had to execute your plan into action. In reality, most people fail many times before they succeed so never give up on your dreams.

You have the power to heal yourself, and you need to know that. We think so often that we are helpless, but we’re not. We always have the power of our minds. Claim and consciously use your power. – Louise Hay

To take yourself to the next level, let’s look at the following concepts:

Goal Setting
Goal setting is important in every aspect of your life. To pursue new ideas or strive to reach your dreams, you must have a plan to do so. Here’s some steps to follow when goal setting:
• Identify what you want and name your specific goal(s). You can brainstorm each area of your life and identify one or two things you want most and set these as your beginning goals, such as weight loss, exercising more, building stronger relationships, being a better person, etc.
• Write your goal(s) down and write the steps needed to facilitate the goal(s). Make sure to include changes in habits and lifestyle that must take place.
• Take each of the steps you wrote down and incorporate them into your current lifestyle. You may need to rearrange your work schedule, ask for help around the house from family or friends, etc.
• Begin to visualize yourself after your goals are achieved. Take a moment and ask yourself what life looks like after the goals are reached, then spend a few minutes every day picturing yourself in that very same life.
• Evaluate your progress as you move through the steps you’ve identified as necessary to reach your goals and adjust your efforts as needed.

Self-Confidence
Self-confidence is extremely important in almost every aspect of our lives, but if we are honest with ourselves, we sometimes struggle to find it throughout our every day lives. Did you know that gaining the confidence of others is one of the key ways in which a self-confident person finds success in life? Unfortunately, people who lack self-confidence find it difficult to become successful. There are two main things that contribute to self-confidence: self-efficacy (when we see ourselves and others mastering skills and achieving goals) and self-esteem (we cope with what’s going on in our lives and know that we have a right to be happy). Here’s some ways for you to build self-confidence:
• Prepare for your journey. Look at what you’ve already achieved, think about your strengths, think about what’s important to you, and where you want to go in life.
• Set out on your journey. Build the knowledge you need to succeed, focus on the basics, set small goals and achieve them.
• Accelerate towards success. By this point, you should feel your self-confidence building from within. Keep yourself grounded and always aware of how you feel throughout this process.

Self-Reflection
Self-reflection is a process of examining one’s own thoughts, feelings, and sensations to gain better insight of one’s life. Self-reflection allows you to:
• Notice negative patterns in your life.
• Keeps you focused on the bigger picture.
• Prevents you from worrying about things out of your control.
• Helps you face your fears.
• Allows you to clearly define happiness on your own terms.
• Allows you to make decisions based on your conscience.

Self-Care
Prioritizing everyone else in your life may seem honorable, but the reality is, totally neglecting yourself isn’t good for anyone. In order to take care of others, you first need to take care of yourself. Here’s some great ways to practice self-care:
• Make time for exercise or yoga.
• Read an inspirational book or read positive affirmations.
• Listen to soothing music with your eyes closed.
• Create a relaxing routine (warm bath, meditation, reading, writing in your journal).
• Get out in nature (go for a walk, run, or hike).

Spiritual Foundation
Without a strong spiritual foundation, you cannot withstand the storms of life that you may be facing, whether they are financial, emotional, or relational. Although society and culture may offer many solutions to help you brace against the struggles of daily living, here’s the three essentials needed in your spiritual life to weather any storm you might be dealt:
• Praise and Worship
• The Word of God
• Prayer
These spiritual essentials will help you build strength (your spiritual foundation) and begin to experience a powerful new sense of God’s presence and purpose in your life.

My mind is focused, my body is healthy, and my spirit is calm. – Unknown

Mind – Your mind will always believe everything you tell it. Feed it faith. Feed it truth. Feed it with love.

Body – Your body is healthy and beautiful.

Spirit – Everything you need is within you.

Journal Prompts – Journaling to Excel
• Name at least five things that you love about yourself.
• What are my short-term goals and long-term goals?
• What are my strengths and weaknesses?
• What is my proudest accomplishment and my biggest failure?
• What matters most to me right now in this very moment?
• What am I ashamed of and/or what do I fear?
• What brings me the most joy and how can I make time for it?
• As of today, what is my vision for my life in one year, two years, three years?
• What stresses me out? What can I do to reduce the stress?
• What is overwhelming in my life right now? How can I reduce this overwhelming feeling?

In addition, here’s some suggestions of things you can do to help you connect deeper (www.simplystepping.com). This process will help you stay grounded and become more comfortable with yourself while doing various activities, then writing about them throughout your journaling process.

• Walk a long distance or hike. Realize what you’ve accomplished in the end.

• Stand in the rain and let it wash you clean. Feel grounded in the Earth.

• Plant a tree or start a garden. Place labels where you planted, with words that encourage you to move forward.

• Imagine what a new beginning would look like or how it would feel. Create a vision board with images and words capturing what you what.

• Wear new, special, comfortable shoes that represent your bravery and willingness for simply stepping one step at a time forward in life!

Believe in yourself today, tomorrow and forever!

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