If you spend time in the self-development world, you have heard people talk about the benefits of journaling. At 4 Corners CFO, we believe that the practice of journaling can be beneficial to working on money mindset issues that may be sabotaging your business success. Today we want to share a bit about journaling, how to do it, and some handy journal prompts to get you started. 

What is Journaling?

Journaling involves keeping a written record of your thoughts and feelings. If you have never been in the

practice of journaling, it can be a tough thing to start. It does not always feel natural to spend a bunch of time putting your feelings on paper. In fact, it can feel like the least productive use of time. But once you are in the routine, you will start to see the transformation. Even if you do not write daily, the benefits of creating a journaling practice can be seen and felt over time. I like to think of journaling as creating space for my thoughts while also getting them out of my head so I can create space for the work I’m doing that day.

Journaling is beneficial for all areas of life, but I want to focus on money mindset because it is such a prevalent issue for business owners. No matter what you think about money and your business, we all deal with anxiety and worry. Journaling can be a powerful tool to work through those thoughts and feelings and reframe them into something more useful. Writing things down creates awareness and allows you to acknowledge and even normalize your feelings. Even after doing this for years, I still get surprised by what is swirling around in my mind sometimes. When we journal, we get to recognize our thoughts and work on changing them to something more useful. 

How to Journal

There are two significant hurdles people face when starting a journaling practice. The first is figuring out what to write, and the second is finding the time to actually do it! We have some easy tips to get you started! 

• Set aside a few minutes every day to write. It does not have to be a huge amount of time; start with five minutes a day to get into the habit. If you’re worried you won’t be able to stop once you get started, limit the blank space to just one page or a sticky note. Use something that allows you to jot down those most pressing thoughts without jumping down a 30-minute rabbit hole. 
• Keep a pen and paper handy to make it as easy as possible. If you get the urge to write, you have all the supplies. You do not need a fancy book to journal. You can use the notes app on your phone or just a single sheet of paper. Keep it simple! 
• Write whatever feels right. This is your journal, and it does not have to follow any specific formula. Let your words and ideas flow freely. Don’t worry about spelling mistakes or what other people might think. 
• If you are not sure what to write, use a journal prompt. A prompt is a question or statement you can respond to with your thoughts. You can google journal prompts on Pinterest or Google and find thousands of options. Or check out our favorites below. 

How Journaling Can Help with Money Mindset

So, how does journaling help with your money mindset? 

Our money mindset often results from the stories we have told ourselves about money for our entire lives. Our experiences, what we witnessed, and what we have been told all contribute to how we feel about money. By starting a journaling practice, you can unravel your thoughts around money that you might not even realize are causing stress. 

Some of the reasons why having a money mindset journal is important:

1. Create an understanding of your feelings around money and wealth. You can’t change your thoughts until you know what they are and how they affect you. 
2. Repetitive journaling can help you shift from a scarcity mindset to an abundance mindset. 
3. You can evaluate what’s working in your money life and what’s not because you are creating awareness of your thoughts, feelings, and practices. 
4. Rewire your brain with new thoughts and feelings by practicing your thoughts and showing your brain what to focus on. 
5. Journaling helps you stay more motivated to reach your goals instead of being distracted by the world’s noise. 
6. You get to make better business decisions because you are aware of your own potential bias, like an aversion to debt, and can choose if that’s what serves you and your business today.

Journal Prompts

If you are having trouble getting started, a journal prompt can be the perfect place to start. These are some of our favorite prompts to work through money mindset issues. 

• My earliest memory of money is when…
• When people brought up money at my house, it would be/feel like…
• Were my parents on the same page about money? How did their words and actions differ from each other? What did that tell me?
• What was the first time I bought something with money? What did it feel like to spend my hard-earned cash on that item?
• When I got older and started earning my own income, what were some of my early financial decisions around paychecks/bills/etc.? Did I make good decisions, or what did I learn from them?
• How would I describe my relationship with debt? What examples did I have growing up that influence that perspective?
• How do people in your life now talk about or handle money? Are my friends spenders, savers, avoiders?
• How do you want to handle money with your significant other? Any changes from how your parents did things or how you do something now?
• What and how do you want to teach your children about money?

• Do I consider myself to be a spender/saver/avoider? 
• Write a letter to money, as if they were a person, telling them what kind of relationship you want.
• What are four money manifestations (or financial achievements) that you’re grateful for right now?
• Where do you see your relationship with money in 6 months? One year? Five years? Ten years?
• What do you most enjoy about your current financial situation?
• Is there anything in life that you need help with regarding your money? What do you need? Who could you ask?
• When’s the last time you encountered a new opportunity to manifest more money?
• What do you need more of in your life?
• What do you need less of in your life?
• Pick five words to describe your attitude toward money.
• What is the best piece of advice you’ve ever received regarding money?
• What’s the best piece of money advice you’ve ever received – that you didn’t take?
• Describe one of your most memorable experiences surrounding money.
• Do you compare your financial situation to anyone else’s? Are you jealous? Why?

Money mindset is the biggest obstacle we see with our clients, and it can be the thing standing between you and the success you envision for your business. If you would like to chat more about your business finances, book your complimentary discovery call today! We would love to talk with you about the challenges you are facing from money mindset!