The idea of journaling is something that has always been so glorified in the media. From bullet journals that influencers have to movies like "Bridget Jones' Diary," the concept of writing daily thoughts down to keep forever has been made enticing.

For a long time I tried journaling, and along with most others who tried to start journaling, I failed many times. I was always journaling for the wrong reasons. Rather than writing down my thoughts with the purpose of understanding them, I would write down the daily anecdotes that I felt like I was supposed to write down. I wanted my journal entries to look and sound how they "should be."

Then finally, quarantine came around. I wasn't with my friends who I would always talk to. I didn't have people always around me to spout out my random thoughts. My schedule was no longer the same daily routine that I had always kept. The first week or so I felt like my life was aimless. I had all of these thoughts building up within me and no one to share them with. I realized that my answer came from my notebook.

I began to write to-do lists of the most mundane things for myself. I wrote down funny stories from movies that I watched. I would write down what foods I ate or what I did in my workout on a certain day. My journal was no longer me forcing myself to write what I thought I was supposed to, it was now a place for me to get all of the random thoughts out of my head that had been lingering.

For the past few months, there hasn't been a day that I haven't written in it. There is no format or color scheme I have to follow. The rules are all my own. I write down what I want to and have no obligations to write anything else. Doing this has given me a sort of freedom over my own brain. It makes my headspace feel much less cluttered and actually helps me function more consistently on a daily basis.

Forget all of your preconceived notions about what journaling should be and start writing for yourself. Even if it is just a daily to-do list, it may just help you find the mental clarity that you have been searching for. I know it did for me.