Try Emma Watson's Viral Daily Journaling Practice For A Simple, Effective Mindfulness Habit

If you have yet to start journaling, it might be time. As our culture becomes more invested in ways we can practice self-care and be more mindful in this complicated world, journaling is becoming more common. Journaling not only allows for necessary self-reflection, but according to a 2019 study published in Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice, just six weeks of journaling can relieve stress and anxiety, decrease depression, improve sleep, and even help people work through trauma. For the 35% of the study's participants who started the six weeks with symptoms of clinical depression, after the program ended, so did the depression-related symptoms.

The benefits of journaling are so powerful that even celebrities like Oprah Winfrey and Lady Gaga journal. In a 2023 episode of British Vogue's "In the Bag," Emma Watson talked about how and why she journals. "This is my ritual, this is my daily, every single day I write in this," Watson said in the video. "If I had to choose one thing that I went on the plane with, with my passport, it would probably be this because [journaling] has been really important."

Because knowing where to begin is half the battle, using Watson's daily journaling practice is a good way to get started. As Watson explained, every day she writes down three joyful things from the day before, three acts of kindness she was a part of, and three things she thought she did well. Now, with these prompts in mind, it's your turn.

Although it might seem difficult to find joy lately — after all, the world is literally on fire and the political atmosphere across the globe is terrifying — it's still important to try to find fun in things, no matter how small. "We get a lot wrong about what will make us happy," psychiatrist Dr. Samantha Boardman told Forbes. "All too often we choose mind-numbing, effort-sparing options like scrolling through our phones or binge-watching shows instead of engaging in meaningful, revitalizing activities."

As Dr. Boardman explained, these are "uplift imposters" and are the "emotional equivalent of junk food." Because of this, when trying to find what brought you joy the day before, put your phone away and don't give it another thought. Instead, think of your day in chronological order and the moments that made you smile or laugh. Did you see a cute puppy on the subway? Did a coworker make a comment that gave you a reason to laugh? In between all the hecticness of one day, there have to be three things in there that gave you joy, even if it was fleeting.

As Emma Watson explained in the British Vogue video, every day she makes sure to highlight something kind she did for someone or something kind someone did for her. While being kind, especially lately, may seem futile, the truth is that we need kindness more than ever. We need to show people we're still capable of caring, no matter how much the world and its negativity try to tackle us to the ground.

Unlike finding joy the day before to journal about in the present, acts of kindness are going to require some effort on your part if you want to be able to put anything in your journal under this subtitle. A simple and easy act could be paying for the person's coffee behind you in the morning, helping out a friend or family member before they ask you to, or just telling a stranger that you hope they have a good day. You'll find that the more kindness you show, the more kindness will come back to you.

According to a 2019 study published in The Journal of Social Psychology, both engaging in and witnessing acts of kindness make us happy, and the more kind acts involved, the happier we can be. We can thank oxytocin for those emotions.

No one ever said that practicing positive self-talk was easy, but if you're going to journal like Emma Watson, then you better figure out how to love yourself and tell yourself you do. But, so as not to stress yourself out, start small. For example, be proud of yourself for only hitting the snooze button once, metaphorically pat yourself on the back for not eye-rolling at a coworker's bad joke, or give yourself a shout-out for staying within your daily budget for a change.

What you did well and like yourself about from the day before doesn't have to be huge and extravagant like getting a promotion or finishing the novel you've been working on for the past five years. It can be as simple as making it through the day. For some people, that's a difficult task and if they were able to pull it off, then they deserve all the accolades. So when writing about this part in your journal, lower your expectations and see where your struggles are and what things you can do that will result in giving yourself a high-five.