Electronic Journals

I am kind of a notebook junkie.  See my blog post on notebooks.
I have been keeping a notebook-based journal for many years, but recently I listened to a pod cast that suggested some ideas for an electronic journal.  While I'm not ready to make the switch completely, I do believe there are some benefits to journaling electronically.

Initially I came up with some ideas that might help make an electronic journal successful.

• Create a template that you can replicate on each day.
• Choose a method that will allow you to add to your journal with your phone, tablet, and desktop computer. 
• Have brief journal sessions throughout the day.  Do it as inspiration strikes you.   

I did a search for some ideas on how to do an electronic journal and there are dozens of ideas out there.  My paper journal was turning into basically a daily log, Occasionally I would put down some thoughts and ideas, but mostly is was a list of the things I did.  I thought that my electronic journal should be something more. I wanted to take it up a level.

Here here is what I came up with for the headings on my journal template.

• I am thankful for . . .
• First be grateful.  Write down at least one thing you are feeling gratitude for. 
• I am praying for . . .
• A former bishop of mine told me he makes a list of things he needs to pray for so that when he kneels down at night he can review the list and not forget something.  I thought it was a good idea.  Having a short list of specific things to pray for helps keep my prayers from being repetitious. 
• I got some exercise . . .
• Get some exercise each day.  This is were I track it.  
• What I am reading/listening to . . .
• I read quite a lot of books every year.  Taking the time to think/write about what I am reading and what it meant to me helps to retain the information.  
• Today's lesson learned . . .
• You should learn something every day.  Sometimes I have to put some thought into it, but it is worth thinking through my day and finding those important learning moments in my life.  
• My biggest win was . . .
• Celebrate a success or two.  
• Today's Big Idea/Question . . . 
• There should always be a question in your mind, or a new idea.  Write it down so you don't lose it.  
• Tomorrow . . . 
• Ask yourself, what does tomorrow bring?  What do I need to be ready for?  If I capture it, then I don't have to think about it all night and it helps me sleep better.
• Notes, thoughts, experiences, photos:
• This is where I capture some of the more traditional journal-type entries.  I don't just put down a log of what I did, but I try to write down how I felt or what I experienced today that someone, someday may want to read.  

So, now let's get down to the application level.  What do I do?  I use Evernote.  I have created a journal notebook stack.  Each year is a notebook.  To keep things organized I use the naming convention of Y-M-D (2017-11-08) and sort the note list by title in reverse sort order.  That way, "today" is always at the top of the list.  In that same folder I also keep my template.  Each day I duplicate the template and rename it to the appropriate date.

There are other journal programs out there that are much more targeted at the task, but since I am an Evernote premium user it make sense to use the tools I already have.