Almost every sentence I’ve ever published anywhere was first written in my journal. And that accounts for only 8% of all my jottings. The rest is for keeping me sane, day-to-day.
What exactly is my “journal”?
It’s a messy graph of analog and digital tools interlinked by a weird, organically-evolving process that apparently makes sense only to me.
Analog tools – for capturing and expressing thoughts
- I love the immediacy and distraction-free nature of loose sheets, envelopes, napkins, sticky notes, diaries, notebooks, whiteboards, and vandalised printouts, clippings, bookmarks.
Digital tools – for organising knowledge and distilling insights
- I lean on the memory, search, cross-linking, and AI of Obsidian, Github, and Google Workspace (esp. Keep, Drive, and NotebookLM).
What’s in my journal?
Quick Captures
- Fresh observations
- Light-bulb moments
- Short-hand anecdotes
- Distracting thoughts and to-dos
- Notes and Quotes – from books, articles, newsletters, blogs, videos, research reports, white papers, and private chats.
Mind Cleansers
- Dear Diary – free flow rants and gushings
- Morning pages – a la Julia Cameron
- Zeroth drafts – stories that go nowhere
Daily Trackers
- Moods
- Reading
- Habits
- Expenses
- Fitness
- Highlights
- Learnings
- Meetings
- Dreams
Weekly Trackers
- Investments – direct stocks, mutual funds,
- AI prompts library
Monthly Trackers
- Personal Finance dashboard
- Pennebaker’s expressive writing exercise
Mind Maps for Work
- Project maps
- Strategic plans
- Problem breakdowns
- Idea brainstorms
- Project workflows
Mind Maps for Writing
- Storyboards
- Plot threads
- Character profiles
- What-ifs
Minakhi Misra 