Why write a book? This was the title and topic of my last post (click here to check it out). In the post, I shared how my decision to write a book wasn’t driven by a desire to write a book but the need to share something with others. In others, writing a book was a byproduct of a belief that a lesson I had learned would be beneficial to others as well. Not surprisingly, I learned a lot through the writing process as well. This really speaks to the topic of this post: Why write?

Have you ever had someone tell you to journal? I have many times in my life. For example, at the start of my journey with anxiety, my counselor wisely suggested that I begin writing down how I was feeling. There have also been many other less memorable moments in my life when journaling was encouraged as a beneficial practice. I would love to say I jumped right on it and began a life-long discipline of journaling, but that would be a lie. The truth is I typically filed the thought away as something “nice”, never to think about it again until it was brought up by another speaker, teacher, or friend. The practice of writing down what I was thinking and feeling sounded great in concept but seemed foreign to me in reality. I wasn’t the “journaling type of person”, or so I thought.

Maybe this is where you find yourself when it comes to writing. You write when you have to, but you are not the journaling or writing kind of person. This is a very common perception when it comes to writing and journaling. The truth is you are not a journaling or writing kind of person if you aren’t currently doing it. I wasn’t either. Yes, I would write down a few thoughts here and there when I would go on a trip, but that was about it.

I started writing regularly out of necessity. I had created a blog to share my journey in Nicaragua and committed to writing every week. When I started, I didn’t necessarily look forward to writing each week. However, this began to change. As I continued to show up in front of a blank page with a blinking cursor, I realized I was beginning to anticipate it. Slowly, it was becoming more of an opportunity than a chore. I was becoming a journaling and writing kind of person.

So, what was it that changed? Have you ever taken a first bite of something and hated it only to have it become a favorite food? I have. Writing was a little like that for me. At first, I didn’t enjoy it, but my tastes began to change as I experiences the benefits of writing.

When I wrote, I had the opportunity to extract some of the jumbled thoughts I had rolling around in my head. This was something I didn’t know I needed. As we go through life, we accumulate a lot of thoughts and feelings. Without an outlet, they can feel overwhelming at times. Counseling can be a great tool for decluttering the mind but so can writing. By taking the time to write, I was able to organize the mess in my head. No longer swirling, I could see my thoughts and feelings on a page in front of me. This was a stress reliever.

This also led to another benefit. Once my thoughts were written down, I was in a position to process them. Being able to read what has been running through your head puts in you a better position to make sense of it. This was very important when I was living in Nicaragua. Much of what I was experiencing was new to me. By writing it down, I could process it and have more clarity moving forward. I have found the same to be true in day-to-day life. “Normal life” is full of circumstances that need to be processed. When you choose to write them down, you are allowing your mind to take a step back and gain clarity on the thoughts and feelings you are experiencing. This has been incredibly helpful for me.

After writing down my thoughts and feelings, allowing them to be processed, I was in a much better position articulate them to others. No longer a cluttered mess, I could clearly express what I was experiencing and what these experiences were teaching me. This was true in Nicaragua and continues to be true today. I am able to have deeper conversations when I take the time to write and journal.

Being able to share the lessons life has been teaching me with others allows me to better internalize them for my own benefit. If you have ever taught something you know this is true. In taking the time to learn something well enough to teach it, you gain a greater understanding of the topic. This happens when you write. As you consider how to express something in a way someone else could understand, or you will be able to understand in the future, you are better able to apply what you learned. I have found I can make better decisions when I take the time to process life through the practice of writing.

These are just a few of the benefits of writing that I have discovered. They come from my personal experience. There are many great books that discuss the science behind the benefits of writing such as The Power of Writing It Down by Allison Fallon. In the end, the best way to learn about it is to give it a try.

That is my encouragement to you. Why write? Find out for yourself. Commit to begin writing and journaling. Start small and see where it takes you. You might just become a journaling and writing kind of person.

James Belt

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