Confession Time

I have to confess something to you... I've been journaling on my laptop!!!

Ever since I started to journal, the act of putting pen to paper and letting my heart do the talking, has felt very therapeutic. But, in the interest of research, I thought I'd try journaling on my laptop. And I have to say... I like it.

Now, I think of myself as a bit of a journaling purist (as opposed to a snob). I love that feeling of laying the ink down on to the paper. I believe you feel more connected to the words as they leave the pen.

Now, as wishy-washy as that sounds, I truly believe that to be the case. So, bearing all that in mind, why the hell would I think that tapping a keyboard with my fingers, would come anywhere close to matching it?

Well, I'm here to tell you that it does... as long as you can type reasonably fast though. You see, the reason I think it works for me personally, is that I'm a fairly competent typer/typist. I'm not sure what my WPM (words-per-minute) rate is, but I can type faster than I can write.

I'm busy. I run 2 organisations and have a radio show to present in the afternoons too, so getting my daily journaling fix, although hugely important, has to be done efficiently. If I attempt to write faster, it just becomes ineligible and overly-messy, and reading it back can prove tricky, even though I'm the author.

So, I gave digital journaling a go and it worked. Don't get me wrong, the purist in me doesn't feel quite as connected to the words as I did when I wrote them in my physical journal. But, needs must.

What I'm trying to say here is that it's OK to journal on your laptop, phone, tablet... whatever, just as long as you're still journaling.

I have a holiday coming up, and I have a couple of nights away in an Air B&B. Do you know what I'm looking forward to the most? Getting up early, brewing a fresh pot of coffee, finding a comfortable spot to sit in and to start journaling in my leather-bound notepad again!

I will have the extra time I need to make it neat and to satisfy my own OCD. I won't be rushed, I won't need the efficiency that the laptop affords me, so I will return to my purist ways. However, when I start back at work the following Monday, I'll likely return to my laptop.

So, if you struggle to keep a physical journal, please take this blog post as the permission you need, to write one on your laptop instead.

The other positive to take from journaling on your laptop, is that you don't have to find anywhere to keep your journal private from other members of your household... if that is an issue.

Try it. It may work for you, it may not... but you never know until you try.