This is the first of a six-week series I’ll be writing, called “Learn to Journal Like Ralph Waldo Emerson.”
I know, it’s a catchy title.😂
Here’s a quick breakdown of what you can expect.
- Week 1 (today) – A journal is a savings bank of your ideas.
- Week 2 (September 3) – You must be in constant contact with your journals.
- Week 3 (September 10) – Emerson and the John Locke indexing system of journals.
- Week 4 (September 17) – Emerson’s improved index of journals and the 400-page master index.
- Week 5 (September 24) – Topic-specific journals and how to use them.
- Week 6 (October 1) – How I’m applying these ideas in my own journals.
A Journal is a Savings Bank of Your Ideas
First, let’s get some semantics out of the way. I prefer the term “notebook,” which to me sounds like a working tool for thinking. However, Emerson referred to them as “journals,” so we’ll stick with his terminology throughout this series–even though “journal” reminds me of my grandmother, who wrote about the weather in her “journal” every day for over thirty years. (We have a lot of weather reports.)
I don’t use these things to write about my adventures to the grocery store or what time I picked the kids up from school. I use them to clarify my thinking.
The Problem with Journals
Here’s the question I’ve been trying to answer my entire life: How do I find the “good stuff” in my journals, and how do I use that stuff to make better stuff?
I’ve got a STUFF problem.
Ralph Waldo Emerson is a great model for anyone interested in solving the STUFF problem. “The mature Emerson would look back on his voluminous journals as his savings bank” (Richardson, First We Read 19).
That’s the key phrase this week -> “Savings Bank.”🏦
I’m going to argue that, in order to get the most from our journals, we first need to change HOW we see them.
🦄 For many, a journal is a sacred thing–too pretty to write in. It’s leatherbound, costs $47 at Barnes and Noble, and deserves a high place on the shelf. This kind of journal could never be a savings bank for your ideas — it’s too freaking gorgeous!
👩🏽🎨 For others, a journal is an art project—each page filled with beautiful handwriting, surrounded by floral designs and colored in with Posca markers. The idea is that the more visually appealing your journal is, the more likely you’ll want to spend time in it.
I’ve found the opposite for me–but that’s just me. If I have to worry about style, visual appeal, and color-blending, I’m never going to find the energy to use the damn thing.
Every entry would morph into a 4-hour project, and for me, thoughts come quickly. I don’t have time for “pretty” because the next idea, quote, theory, etc., is out there, waiting to be captured and used. I don’t want to miss the good stuff.
Remember our “stuff” problem?
That’s where Emerson comes in. His journals are an organized mess.
And he filled hundreds of them. In fact, he created “Two enormous 400-page indexes, one built on the other…” (Richardson, Mind on Fire 437).
Can you imagine needing two massive indices just to keep track of all the ideas? We’ll get into indexing starting in week 3. I love me a good index, and I think you will too. 🥳
This Week’s Journaling Homework
For this week, begin to see your journal, not as a sacred thing or an art project that will be passed on to your grandkids, but as a savings bank where you pour forth your soul.
Let it come out in ALL its messy glory. Don’t worry about getting it right, making it pretty, or scuffing the leather.
📝HOMEWORK: Your only Emersonian job this week is to open a savings bank and start making deposits.
👋 Until next week, read slowly – take notes – apply the ideas.
-Eddy
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Works Cited:
Richardson, Robert D. First We Read, Then We Write: Emerson on the Creative Process. University of Iowa Press, 2009.
Richardson, Robert D. Emerson: The Mind on Fire. University of California Press, 1995.
