How to transform your life with 144 thought provoking journal prompts

Can journal prompts really change your life? I mean, really change it?

Well, yes I believe they can.

You probably already know that journaling is a great way to help change your life. If you are journaling regularly you will probably regard your journal as your best friend. You are able to write thoughts in there that you wouldn’t confide to anyone else. So you might already be using techniques like thought provoking journal prompts to examine your thoughts and your life.

And you might know about manifesting and positive thinking and self-improvement.

And you might also know that sometimes the brain can’t tell the difference between reality and dreams, so you might as well believe in your dreams.

Journal prompts encourage all this kind of thinking. So they really will help you to change your life. The best thing is that it’s a win-win situation if you regard it positively. Because being in a positive rather than a negative state is always going to help you in your life.

And even if you only changed your life 50% rather than 100%, wouldn’t you think that for just believing positively, using journal prompts to create inspirational thoughts and giving your brain something positive to think about was a good exchange for your life changing 50% for the better!

Just believe!

The problem sometimes is that we just don’t believe.

And coupled with not believing we think negatively.

And along with thinking negatively we assume it’s going to be hard work.

But what would happen if we really did believe? Henry Ford said, “Whether you think you can, or think you can’t, you’re right.” I would guess from his statement that he had probably thought some of these thoughts himself. He probably realised that thinking that he could do something was the deciding factor in his success. He might have looked around and searched for someone who had achieved something great all the while not believing that she would ever do so.

If it’s really that easy, I want in

Which brings us back to thought provoking journal prompts that will change your life. Are you ready for your life to be changed? And what is the best way to go about creating and practicing the journal writing prompts.

Let’s start with some of the areas we have already mentioned above. Find a comfortable, safe space to be alone. By safe I mean free from distractions and you are unlikely to be disturbed

Take a new blank page in your journal, with lines all ready to be filled and let’s get going.

A word about you and your life

If you are here, on this page, looking at thought provoking journal prompts that could potentially change your life, you probably are serious about making the changes necessary to live the life you want to lead.

Consider other ways that you could help make this change that you could do at the same time as you undertake the practice of journaling. Can you take a break from social media. I am currently taking a break from podcasts in order to hear my own voice more clearly.

Creating a journaling practice

Alongside using these journaling prompts listed below consider journaling as a regular practice in your daily life. Change, even positive change, brings up difficult emotions and challenging thoughts. If you can journal your way through those it will help you establish permanent change in your life. You could also keep your favorite journal prompts in a list and return to them on a regular basis. It’s interesting what happens when you ask yourself the same question repeatedly.

Great journal prompts can inspire you to change your life, and with a regular journaling practice you can make those changes part of your new reality. Journaling prompts should include thought-provoking questions. When you reach a prompt that makes you think, pause and take a while. What are you really thinking? Try and go beneath the surface.

Thought provoking journal prompts for the power of journaling to change your life

1. How could I speed my life up by getting everything I had planned to get done in a year in three months, and everything I had planned to get done in five years in one year.
2. How can I make what I’m doing right now easier?
3. When was the last time I was happy? What is missing from my life today that was present in that past time for my younger self?
4. What do I want? Why can’t I have it now?
5. If my future self could see me know what advice would she give?
6. What am I avoiding doing that needs to be done?
7. Who do I actually want to be?
8. Where do I feel stuck? How could I resolve it if I only had eight hours to do so?
9. How do you want to think about myself?
10. What words do I want to use to describe myself?
11. What can I change today to change my life? Ask yourself this question every day for a month and journal about it.

Journal prompts for manifesting

The brain does not necessarily distinguish between real life and imagine life. Manifesting your desires is all about creating a state in your mind that envisages that desire as a reality. Of course you have to do the work as well. If you want to find your dream job the first thing you need to do is envisage it and the second action you need to take is work on your resume/CV and go and find that job! (or it may fall into your lap, but don’t take that chance!)

1. Write out something I want to achieve as if I’ve already achieved it.
2. What three beliefs instantly change my frame of mind?
3. I achieve [your goal] easily.
4. I succeed at [your goal] because I [what you are doing to achieve your goal]
5. I am grateful for [what you have in your life but want more of] and welcome the [ditto) that is on its way.
6. Reverse all negative thoughts and say them/write them in your journal eg I am lonely becomes I embrace and enjoy life on my own
7. Write down limiting beliefs that are hindering you in any way. Cross them out and replace them with new, positive affirmations in their place
8. Think of the person you will be when you achieve whatever it is that you want. Now, write out statements about yourself from the perspective of that future you.
9. Write an intention down repeatedly for 30 days. You could do the 369 method: 3 times in the morning, 6 times in the afternoon and 9 times in the evening, or you could write it down 5×55, 55 times a day for 5 days. Try it for yourself!
10. For people who you are in conflict with write down at least 10 things you appreciate about them every day for several days.
11. Daily intentions: Set your intentions for the day, how you want to feel; what you want to achieve; how you are going to appreciate life around you.
12. Create your own daily mantras. Write them down in your journal. Repeat them to yourself during the day.

Journal prompts for positive thinking

1. What story am I telling myself, about myself, that is a lie?
2. How can I change the negative story I am telling myself about myself?
3. What three things an I thankful for right now?
4. What small things am I looking forward to today?
5. What is my favorite song?
6. Something that always puts me in a good mood is…..
7. Who can I cheer up today
8. Think of a friend. What are their best qualities. Write them down. How can you embody those qualities too?
9. What does the phrase ‘Every cloud has a silver lining’ mean to you?
10. Write out ‘I am’ statements about yourself, all in the positive of course
11. What are my three biggest successes? How can I use those examples in my life now?
12. If I only think positively about my life and my relationships, this is what I would write

Journal prompts for self improvement

1. What am I ready to commit to?
2. How do I know I will keep to my commitments?
3. If you could only work for two hours each day on income producing work, what would it be?
4. Who would be most upset if I did X/tried X/ stopped doing X?
5. If my life were a movie, what scene would I add? And what scene would I take away?
6. When did I learn a lesson the hard way?
7. What is something that I lost that I will never get back? How can I accept that?
8. I am enough as I am and what I would like to improve about myself is ……
9. List three greatest accomplishments in your life. How can you go and create some more of those?
10. What do I think are the seven character traits of a successful person? How can I embody those?
11. One habit that I started in the past but did not continue but which would really help me now is ………..
12. What is one thing I would like to do for no other reason than I would like to do it?

Journal prompts for your dreams

1. Imagine you were granted one year to do anything you wanted. What would you do, or become?
2. What does ‘influence’ mean to me?
3. What do I absolutely and completely want to do in the next 12 months, that when I look back to today, I’m disappointed that I wouldn’t achieve.
4. If today were my last day on earth what are the most important things I would have wanted to do?
5. What if my dreams would appear if I started removing things from my life. What would I remove?
6. What are you wedded to in your every day life that isn’t serving you?
7. How can I live out my dreams today?
8. When I sit for five minutes and think about myself I know I really want to ………….
9. The reason I want to achieve my dreams is …………..
10. If it takes ten years to achieve my dreams that’s ok, I will turn up each day and …………..
11. The person/people who will most benefit from me achieving my dreams is/are …………………….
12. When I achieve my dreams I will celebrate by ………………

Journal prompts to think big

1. If I had no fear today what would I do?
2. A personal favorite: What is my perceived weakness and how can I turn it into a strength?
3. What dream did I give up? Do I want it back?
4. Is there one good reason why I should not think big? What is holding me back?
5. What am I spending the most time thinking about? Is it my big goal? How can I change what I am thinking about?
6. Make a life bucket list. Can I do those in a year? In two years? In six months?
7. What is the best version of me I can imagine?
8. I think the coolest job in the world is …….. What have you just learned about yourself?
9. Five ways in which I can get out of my comfort zone are …….
10. What five little things cause me to play a small game?
11. Write out your goals, than times them by 10. Does that seem too big? What about 100. Does that seem to big? Write about how you feel when you blow up your goals to a massive size
12. What things can I replace in my life today that are bigger/better? What can I stop doing in my business and replace it with bigger/better?

Journal prompts to believe in your own power

1. Who do you think you are? How do you see yourself? There is a you out there who is like you but she is all the things you want to be and maybe aren’t right now. What is this person like?
2. If someone else were looking at me what would they see that they like?
3. What is my idea of massive impact?
4. Am I making massive impact now?
5. What is the most important lesson I learnt last year?
6. If today were your last day on earth what would you do?
7. What am I doing now and why am I doing it? Ask your why five times. Why? Why? Why? Why? Why?
8. Would myself ten years ago look at me today and be proud? If yes, why? and if no, why?
9. When was I in a difficult situation that I got myself out of?
10. What is the most important lesson I learned recently?
11. Write the phrase, ‘I take full responsibility for my life’. How does that make you feel?
12. Do everything today from the perspective that you want to do it. I want to go to work. I want to get a coffee. I want to do a grocery shop. Then write about how you feel about your life.

Journal prompts for positivity

1. What kind of thoughts am I thinking on a daily basis. Would I like to change the script? What would I like to think instead?
2. Make today count, don’t waste it. How can you make today count?
3. What is the best thing that has happened to me in the last week?
4. Where is your safe place? Real or imaginary? Can you spend more time there? Can you imagine yourself there right now?
5. List out five things that make you excited about the future
6. Who is my favourite family member? How can I spend more time with them?
7. What is the best advice someone has given me?
8. What is the worst advice someone has given me?
9. Pay two people compliments today. Write about how this makes you feel. Try and keep this up for thirty days. Write about how you feel then after the thirty days.
10. Positivity is important to me in my life because ……
11. Three ways in which I know I am positive are
12. Three ways in which I know I am negative are …..
13. Three ways in which I can turn the negatives into positives are …

Journal prompts to make things and life easy

1. What tasks do I keep scheduling/rescheduling and never get done? Can someone else do it/them for me?
2. What three things are you procrastinating about? Can you do them now?
3. When do I rush in the day? How can I slow down?
4. Write out your routine for one day. Don’t overthink it after you’ve written it. Just do it.
5. What 3 things would help you in the house if you did them now?
6. What 3 things would help you at work if you do them today?
7. What are you going to stop doing because you are only doing it because you think people think you should?
8. What would you like to do that you are not doing right now? don’t overthink this one
9. What 3 simple pleasures do you love that you want to make part of your everyday life?
10. What do I love doing that I’d like to do regularly but don’t?
11. What do I need to forgive myself for?
12. 3 ways I could be more spontaneous / 3 ways I could plan more
13. What one step will take me forward on a big project?

Journal prompts for good mental health

1. Do I enjoy what I am going to do today? If not, how long has the answer been no? What would I like to do instead?
2. When was the last time I played and did something fun?
3. What is my favorite thing to do to relax? When am I next going to do that?
4. What is something I can do for the first time?
5. What two things improve my emotional health daily? Can I think of four things that do that?
6. There is no wrong way, there are no mistakes. How does that make me feel?
7. How am I feeling? What do I need? (thank you Byron Katie)
8. Five ways that I am going to be calm when I feel anxious are ….
9. Keep a fitness journal and make sure you exercise each day and get out into the open light and sunshine
10. Create an evening routine that nourishes you. Put it into your journal and turn it into a practice. Include things like: reading, playing a musical instrument, taking a bath, eating a meal, journaling, thinking, meditation, gentle exercises, lighting a candle, burning essential oils
11. Set morning intentions for your day. Decide how you want to feel, anticipate obstacles. Write down obstacles and challenges. After you have written each one, write affirming words that you can cope: I can do this, I can see me completing this task well, After I have done this I will reward myself with x.
12. Love yourself. Write three things a day that encourage you and demonstrate your self appreciation and self love.

Journal prompts for allowing me to be me

1. What is my favorite book and why?
2. What is my favorite quote and why? You can write down more than one but you have to choose one.
3. Who is a good friend to me?
4. Who am I a good friend to?
5. What fictional character would I love to be?
6. What relationships have you let slip that you really appreciate and would like to get back?
7. What has become more important to me in the last year? And what has become less important?
8. It’s a rainy day and you have to stay inside. What do you do to enjoy being you?
9. What is your favorite memory? How can you recreate that in your every day life?
10. Write out a daily routine I want to keep, not one I think other people believe to be the best.

Journal prompts for looking your best

1. What did I wear yesterday? Did I like it?
2. What is in my wardrobe/closet? What do I think about my clothes there?
3. If money were no object I would wear …?
4. If money were no object I would look like ….?
5. How do I feel about my clothes today? How do they make me feel?
6. How do I want to feel when I am wearing my clothes? What clothes will help me feel that way?
7. If I were going to buy seven new items what would they be?
8. What is stopping me from looking my best?
9. Do I think looking my best is a form of vanity?
10. What am I resigned to about myself?
11. Imagine my perfect wardrobe/closet. What does it look like? What is in it? What is not in it?
12. If I were to stop wearing one garment in my wardrobe today what would it be?
13. What is one item of clothing I would love to have in my wardrobe right now?
14. If I were to wear two outfits for the entire month which would I choose?

I hope you enjoyed this blog post. If you liked it, you may also like:

Quote journal ideas to inspire and empower you
17 reflection journal prompts to get to know yourself better
How to inspire your life: 18 journal notebook ideas

Finally, let me tell you a little bit about Wardrobe Journaling. It is the process I have created that helps you understand yourself better through journaling and through thinking about the clothes you wear and your own unique personality. There are lots of Wardrobe Journaling blog posts available on this site. There is also the entirely unique Wardrobe Journaling course. If you want to take a step further into your own self development and self care this is a great, gentle but powerful course to take.

Have a great day!

Sarah