Why Day One and journaling is my other 20x app
In the last two weeks, I wrote about how OmniFocus is one of my most used apps and how it’s easily made my life 20x better, as well as the five things I’ve learned from using productivity apps. Today, I want to tell you about another 20x app of mine, though it’s not what the app does per se, but what it helps enable that really provides the 20x value.
I’ve been keeping a journal of some sort since I was a kid. I’ve found it a real help to write down my thoughts, and quite revealing to look back over time and reflect on how I used to think.
I’m not the only one to feel this way. Research has found that keeping a journal and writing your thoughts down can help to relieve stress and make you happier. I know that whenever I’m stressed out, taking a few minutes to just pen my feelings out makes me feel better afterwards.
These days though, I hardly write in a physical journal. Although I’d love to keep handwritten journals, my handwriting has gone from bad to incomprehensible in the last few years. Instead, I use the Day One journaling app for Mac and iOS.
I type faster than I can write, so I like how I can get my words down as quickly as I can think them with a digital app. I also like how I can include photographs and locations in Day One, something that’s more difficult to do with a physical journal. And of course, it’s great that I can look at my writing and read it, without having to puzzle over my chicken scratchings.
The best thing about Day One is that, since it’s on my iPhone, it’s always with me. I used to have to carry my journal everywhere, even overseas. It’s a lot easier with Day One; I can jot down quick thoughts whenever they come to me, and I’ve written in Day One on the train, in cafes, and even on the plane.
If you’d like to get the same health benefits from keeping a journal but feel like writing takes too much time, there’s another app that I occasionally use. It’s called the 5 Minute Journal, and that’s essentially the amount of time it takes for you to write one entry.
The app asks you to answer a series of questions for every entry, but these aren’t random questions. Instead, the 5 Minute Journal is designed to help you become happier and more productive with its prompts. For example, the app asks you in the morning to write down three things you’re grateful for; research has found that keeping a daily gratitude journal like this boosts overall happiness.
To be sure, you don’t even need a journaling app. You can do just as easily with a note-writing app, but I like how Day One keeps all my entries in a central location. There’s also optional password protection, so you can keep your diary locked from prying eyes.
I know that journaling has definitely helped me to feel better and gain clarity through the years. I hope you give journaling a go, as there seems to be some good research backing up its health benefits.
Alvin Soon / Former Deputy Editor
I like coffee and cameras, but not together.