135 Good Journal Prompts for Beginners

135 journaling ideas for beginners that you’re going to like

Keep reading if you’re interested in good journal prompts for beginners.

So, you’re just starting your journaling journey. I still remember my first journal entry to this very day.

The first time is always scary, but once you establish a proper journaling routine, you’ll realize there was nothing to be afraid of in the first place.

For me, it’s still my favorite creative outlet that I turn to, even with my very busy schedule.

Life today is stressful, and mental health is frequently overlooked in addition to daily tasks.

If you’re stressed out and your emotions are raging, try keeping a journal—writing things down can become a very liberating habit.

Yes, it’s good news. For beginners, journaling is a wonderful way to express their inner thoughts and feelings. It can be an excellent tool for self-reflection and determining what’s important to you.

So, if you’re stuck for easy topics to write about and are looking for some bullet points, keep reading because I’m going to share some simple journal prompts for beginners with you.

This post may contain affiliate links. That means that if you click on a link and purchase something I recommend, I will receive a small commission at no extra cost to you.

135 easy journal ideas for beginners

45 shadow work prompts for beginners

1. Create a poem.
2. How could I possibly…?
3. What excuses do I make?
4. Write yourself a letter.
5. What do I already excel at?
6. Create a desired future vision.
7. What do I appreciate in my life?
8. When do I feel the most confident?
9. What am I excited about right now?
10. What do I obsess over or worry about?
11. What’s a goal I want to achieve soon?
12. What are some of my favorite memories?
13. What makes me feel loved and cared for?
14. When do I feel most relaxed or peaceful?
15. When do I feel most connected to nature?
16. Are my job and income satisfactory to me?
17. Describe an adventure you’d like to go on.
18. What are my most important personal values?
19. What is something I feel grateful for today?
20. What’s a dream or goal I have for the future?
21. What have I been attempting to avoid recently?
22. Is it possible for me to notice opportunities?

23. What’s a book, movie, or TV show that I enjoy?
24. What’s a place I’d love to visit with my family?
25. Come up with a to-do list for the upcoming week.
26. Make a list of all the people that make you happy.
27. What is something that brings me peace and comfort?
28. What’s a recent act of kindness that made me happy?
29. Describe what you like and appreciate about your life.
30. What’s something I can do to reduce stress in my life?
31. Is there someone I want to forgive or make amends with?
32. Describe the most beautiful place you have ever visited.
33. What is a flaw in me that everyone who knows me notices?
34. What is a small act of kindness I can do for someone today?
35. If I could talk to my adolescent self, one thing I would tell them is…
36. Make a bucket list of 30 ways to make yourself happy for less than $10.
37. What does the word “happiness” mean to me? What activities make me happy?
38. What would I do if I could do one thing every day for the rest of my life?
39. Write in free form, that is, write down whatever comes to mind at the time.
40. Make a gratitude list of your amazing experiences, skills, and accomplishments.
41. Describe what you would miss about your current home country if you had to relocate.
42. What would you call your autobiography if you wrote it? What would the titles of its chapters be?
43. Make a list of people you’re glad you met. Choose a few to elaborate on what they have brought to your life.
44. What exciting things would I like to do and try this year? Here’s a list of fun things you can do on your own.
45. Choose one of your abilities (for example, seeing or hearing…) and write down what you can do with it and why you are grateful for it.

40 beginner journal prompts

1. What if…?
2. Is my mind open?
3. How do I feel today?
4. Who would I like to meet?
5. It always makes me cry when…
6. What have I abandoned?
7. What am I most pleased with?
8. Who is my role model, and why?
9. When do I feel the most creative?
10. What’s a fear I’d like to overcome?
11. What do I like to do when I’m alone?
12. What is a new skill I’d like to learn?
13. Do I express my true desires to others?
14. What would it look like if it were easy?
15. What do I want people to remember me for?
16. What is the majority of my money spent on?
17. What is my favorite memory from this week?
18. What would I do if I had a million dollars?
19. What does my ideal living situation entail?
20. What is my favorite way to spend a weekend?

21. How can I brighten someone else’s day today?
22. What’s something I appreciate about my home?
23. What am I capable of doing better than others?
24. What activities or hobbies make me really happy?
25. What am I looking forward to in the coming weeks?
26. What is the most important thing to me right now?
27. What has my inner monologue been telling me lately?
28. What is something that I want to do that scares me?
29. What is the biggest challenge I’m facing currently?
30. What is the best thing about being with my friends?
31. How can I make myself feel happier and more content?
32. Take a selfie of yourself every day and write about how you feel.
33. When was the last time I didn’t say something when I should have?
34. Do I take enough time to truly listen to what others have to say?
35. What can I do right now to make the most significant change in my life?
36. Make a list of everything that went well today, even the minor details.
37. Have I felt as if the universe is sending me signs? Can I decipher them?
38. Think about how you were when you were younger, and start a conversation with your younger self.
39. What am I aiming for the most right now? Here’s a list of over 150 personal goals you can set for yourself.
40. Why am I important? This is one of my favorite journal prompts for beginners because it makes me appreciate myself more.

You might also like: A fun 21-day journaling challenge that you will love

50 creative journal prompts for beginners

1. How do I practice self-care?
2. How do I practice self-love?
3. Am I taking calculated risks?
4. What can I do to help others?
5. Am I being too hard on myself?
6. Am I doing what makes me happy?
7. I want people to know about me…
8. Am I being too harsh on others?
9. Who are some of my role models?
10. The words I want to live by are…
11. Are my beliefs beneficial to me?
12. What would I prefer not to know?
13. In what ways am I my worst enemy?
14. Do I follow through on my promises?
15. What do I do when others dislike me?
16. Do I have a long-term financial plan?
17. Do I take advantage of opportunities?
18. What is my actual monthly income goal?
19. The 20 things that make me happy are…
20. What childhood memories did I overlook?
21. Do I offer genuine compliments to others?
22. Write about your happiest memory in life.
23. Who are the people who mean the most to me?
24. How can I make a difficult decision easier?
25. What is my best feature that I haven’t used yet?

26. Are there higher powers (if so, which ones)?
27. What have I done that I’m dissatisfied with?
28. Do I give myself permission to make mistakes?
29. What’s an activity that helps me unwind and relax?
30. Is it possible for me to be kind, helpful, and good?
31. Is my living and working environment well organized?
32. What else has my current job given me besides money?
33. What kind of imprint do I want to leave on the world?
34. Take a walk outside and write about your observations.
35. Is it true that I am a positive, life-affirming person?
36. Should I alter my attitude toward my boss or coworkers?
37. Who are the people in my life who bring me the most joy?
38. If I had one day to do anything I wanted, what would I do?
39. If I had to pick one superpower, what would it be and why?
40. What is something I achieved recently that makes me proud?
41. How many of my friends would I put my life in the hands of?
42. How do I know when it’s time to hang on or when it’s time to let go?
43. Should I devote more or less time to my work? What about assignments?
44. What is a positive quality about myself that everyone around me notices?
45. Try writing in the third person about what bothers and concerns you (They were very upset because…).
46. If life is so short, why do we do so many things we don’t want to do and so few things we do want to do?
47. What is the biggest fear that is holding me back? Here’s how you can finally be fearless and start taking charge of your life.
48. Do I allow the negativity of others to affect me? Here’s how you can stop negative thoughts by being positive in a negative situation.
49. Write about your favorites. You can write about your favorite color, favorite memory, favorite movie, and favorite thing in your house. Whatever comes to mind.
50. What are your feelings about your mother? What about your father? What about a family member? What about your best friend? What about your colleagues? What about your children?

You might also like: 50 daily habits to adopt today (journaling is one of them)

FAQ: Why is journaling for personal development beneficial?

Let’s talk a little more about the benefits of journaling before we get your creative juices flowing.

It benefits both your mind and your body

Journaling has been shown in studies to have a therapeutic effect. It allows you to express your thoughts and feelings, cope with anxiety and depression, and reduce stress.

Writing down your stressful thoughts allows you to make room in your mind for more positive thoughts.

It teaches you how to notice beautiful, good things

Keeping a journal allows you to notice the positive aspects of your day and teaches you to appreciate what you have.

Even on the most difficult and exhausting days, try to find something instructive and good. Happiness can be found in the smallest of things.

It’s a great way to get to know yourself better

You can discover completely new sides of yourself by allowing the words to flow freely on paper and revealing your deepest fears, thoughts, and feelings.

Journaling is an excellent method of self-examination.

If you’re stressed, writing can help you figure out what’s causing your stress or anxiety. This, in turn, helps you avoid stressors, negative feelings, and behaviors.

It provides a fresh perspective

Reliving feelings and events through writing allows you to see situations from a different angle.

That’s why I came up with this blog post about some very simple journaling prompts for beginners—to give you journaling ideas to help you understand yourself better.

If you think about it calmly, you may discover that a situation that initially appeared completely tragic is not so frightening.

You’ll also learn to distinguish between what is important and what is not.

It’s a perfect way to deal with difficult situations

Writing down your worries and fears before a big event can help you mentally prepare for it and reduce your anxiety.

It’s a powerful way to assess what you’ve accomplished and set new goals

Journaling can help you track your progress, set and achieve goals, and clarify your thoughts.

Journaling is a fantastic time machine. When you have all of your life’s chapters in front of you, you can look back and see how far you’ve really come. It also helps develop new, ambitious goals.

It allows you to store your ideas

Do you recall what you fantasized about when you were seven years old? Perhaps you’ve forgotten about something else that was once important to you.

When you have a brilliant idea, write it down as soon as possible in your journal so you don’t forget it. Who knows when you’ll need it?

You might also like: 160 empowering journal prompts to try for self-discovery

FAQ: How do I keep a personal growth journal and use these writing prompts for journals?

I will give you some journaling tips before you start your brain dump.

Get ready

Before you start the habit of journaling, it’s important to get ready for the process. Buy yourself a beautiful notebook.

There are different types of journals, so if you prefer, you can also use a bullet journal like this. Grab your favorite pens, and you’re basically ready.

And let’s be honest, in the end, it doesn’t even matter what type of journal you use. The most important thing is to choose specific topics and just write, write, and write.

I personally love this one-minute gratitude journal, as it’s an easy way to incorporate more gratitude into your daily life.

Don’t censor your thoughts

Instead, let them flow freely. You only write for yourself, so you can write down whatever is on your mind, whether it’s fears, secrets, or happy moments.

You don’t have to be concerned about what others think of you because your personal journal won’t judge you or reveal your secrets.

You don’t even have to be in a good mood to do some journal writing.

Make writing simple

The most important thing is to make writing simple to make your journaling journey easier. Always keep a pen and paper nearby so that you can jot down your thoughts whenever you want.

However, if you feel like something isn’t working, don’t be afraid to try new things.

Be consistent

The key to beginner journaling is consistency, not good writing skills. Try to write at least one page on a daily basis. You can use the beginner’s journal prompts I shared with you before.

It’s really important to write on a regular basis to cultivate a regular journaling habit.

It may appear to be an annoying duty among all the others at first, but once you get used to it, you’ll realize how effective daily writing can be.

Read previous writings if you want to analyze yourself

Journaling is a powerful tool. Reading the written word, according to some professionals, is beneficial because it helps detect recurring patterns in thought or behavior.

However, if your daily journal is simply a place for you to express yourself and you want the writing to remain in the past, you’ll never have to read it again.

Express yourself

Your journal is a safe space. There’s no wrong way when it comes to your journal practice. The goal of journaling is to understand negative emotions and value positive ones.

This won’t be accomplished by simply listing events in chronological order. So instead of suppressing your emotions, let them flow during your journaling sessions.

Don’t be concerned with spelling, grammar, or text fluency

Your journal doesn’t have to be a difficult literary genre, but it does provide an opportunity to write freely about whatever you want.

The main thing is that you are sincere, even if your diary looks like a fully scribbled draft. You don’t even have to use complete sentences if you don’t want to.

Just open a blank page and start writing using my list of easy and unique journal prompts. It’s all about expressing your creative side.

Choose a time and location for writing where you won’t be interrupted

You could do it in the evening, when the memories of the day are still fresh.

Consider your writing time to be a relaxing and calming activity for yourself. Remember that you’re benefiting your mind and body.

FAQ: What should I write about in my beginner’s journal?

My best piece of advice is to write about whatever you want. You can simply describe or analyze daily events and life situations, as well as the feelings that accompany them.

You could also write about what makes you happy or what is going well in your daily life. The possibilities are limitless.

Journaling releases spontaneity, honesty, and optimism. This helps ensure that this exercise doesn’t become an annoying daily routine but rather an inspiring ritual.

Even if it was a difficult day, write about how this experience was beneficial for you.

As a beginner, I also find this 5-minute journal perfect for me as I’m learning the ropes of journaling.

You might also like: Creative and useful things you can do with a notebook

These are some of the best journal prompts for beginners

Do you journal? What’s your favorite way to journal? What does your traditional journaling process look like? I’d love to hear your thoughts. Happy journaling!