11 Journal prompts to start your week right
One thing that I love to do is to find some time (usually on Sunday) to do a weekly journaling session. I like to think of it as a weekly reset: it’s an opportunity to reflect on the past week and decide what I want to focus on for the upcoming week.
What I love about this kind of journaling session is that I can learn from any experiences that I had over the last week (i.e. what went well and what didn’t) and I can focus on the things that I can actually control in the upcoming week. It’s easy to feel like there’s not much that you have control over, especially if you’re in a very demanding season of your life. But the journal prompts that I’ll share below are specifically chosen to highlight the areas that you do have control over (such as your priorities, your mindset, your habits, etc.)
A weekly journaling session doesn’t have to take long, and you don’t have to use all of the journal prompts that I use—feel free to make it work for you by picking and choosing from the prompts, or adding your own! What you’ll find if you do this practice consistently, is that you become more mindful of the choices you make throughout the week. You learn more from your experiences and you’re better able to apply what you’ve learned in the future.
The other big benefit of using these journal prompts comes from the very last question: What would make the upcoming week a success?
The reason this question is so powerful is because you can determine what will make you feel good at the end of the week. Often any challenges we experience will cloud our memory as we look back on the week. Most of us are so critical of ourselves that we focus on all the areas that didn’t go well, or the things we wish we would have done differently.
By asking yourself this question every week, you’ll have clear markers to look back on to see if your week was a success. For example, you might decide that your week will be a success if you spend an hour working on a personal project, make that appointment you’ve been putting off, and go for a walk three times. The following week when you sit down to do your weekly reset, you can look over your list to see if you did accomplish those goals. Even if the week was challenging, it can still be considered a success!
Of course, it’s important to be both realistic and compassionate with yourself as you do this exercise and determine your priorities and success markers. Ask yourself whether you would place these kind of expectations on a friend or your partner.
Ultimately, a weekly journaling session is an opportunity to get to know yourself better, to better understand what matters to you and of course, to grow as a person.
Journal Prompts for a Weekly Reset
- How do you feel about the past week?
- What are you most grateful for?
- What are the highlights of the week for you? Was there anything specific that you did that made these moments better?
- What was challenging for you this week? How did you approach the challenges? What did you learn from the experience?
- What’s something you want to take into next week? (It could be a thought, a mindset, a habit, an affirmation…anything!)
- What’s something you want to let go of or leave behind as you move into the new week?
- What are your priorities for the upcoming week?
- What habits do you want to work on this week?
- What’s something you’d like to do just for yourself? (This can be for fun, entertainment, wellness, self-care…whatever will make you feel good!)
- What kind of support do you need this week? How can you get that support?
- What would make the upcoming week a success?
I hope you find these prompts helpful for your weekly journaling session! Feel free to let me know any insights you’ve gained!
