Finding the Perfect Journal for Your Needs

Journaling can be done with traditional pen and paper or you can capture your thoughts digitally by using an app. But one method isn’t necessarily better or worse than the other. It’s just a matter of preference. Still, if you’d like to know the pros and cons, here are a few ideas…

Advantages of Handwritten Journals

Handwriting can boost creativity, so you can make connections faster and easier. It also gives you space to leave the digital world behind, which can help you see your problems in a new light.

Another pro of handwriting your journal entries is that there are fewer distractions. If you’re typing on a laptop or smart device, you may be tempted to stop and check your email, read the news, or do other tasks that keep you from completing your entry.

Some people prefer handwritten journals because the writing is often more emotional and raw. With typing in a digital journal, you can erase and rephrase your sentence as many times as you want, which can sometimes result in more sterile writing.

Journal Options

You can find a variety of journals available in stores and online. But before you buy, think about the type of journal you’ll want. If you’re going for a bullet journal, then you’ll need to shop for one with a bullet grid like this BulletJournal/Notebook with Pen Loop - Elegant Black Leather Notebook with PremiumThick Paper.

If you’ll be doodling or creating artwork beside your journal entries, you may not want any annoying lines to get in your way. That makes this Spiral Daily Notepad a good choice. Not only are there no lines, the paper is refillable so you can keep re-using the journal cover as many times as you wish.

If you need your journal to lie flat and hate spirals, then Studio Oh has some beautiful journals you might want to consider. This cute Follow Your DreamsSloth Journal is as inspiring as he is chill.

Pros of Digital Journals

Digital journals can be more secure, especially when protected by hard-to-crack passwords. With a handwritten journal, anyone can read your entries if they have access to your notebook.

Another advantage is that digital journals can be tagged and searched. This means if you have a journal entry from two years ago, it’s much easier to find a digital copy than to sift through years of notebooks.

Plus, digital journals allow you to include other media. For example, you can write a post about that day at the water park and include videos of yourself going down the tallest slide.

Journal Software

There are several options if you prefer to journal digitally. The Day One Journal is one of the most well-known and popular journal apps. It can be used on both Android and Apple products and it’s free.

If Day One isn’t what you’re looking for, the Journey app is a good alternative. It’s free and has a desktop version that works on both Windows and Mac. It syncs seamlessly between the different locations so you always have access to your latest entries.

Although EverNote is a productivity app, you can use it as a journal if you wish. Just start a new notebook and name it “Journal” or “Thoughts”. Then create a note within the notebook. Each note can be treated like a journal entry. You can add tags, format text, and include images in your entries.

So, Which Should You Choose?

Try both journal options! Spend a week or two writing daily entries in a physical journal. Then switch and spend a week or two writing daily entries in a digital journal. At the end of your experiment, choose the one that felt most enjoyable to you.