I’m a big fan of journaling and been doing it for quite some time now. We have come a long way in this regard. From the times of writing thoughts and feelings and experiences down in personal diary, we now have various apps and portals that help journaling. Old fashioned way – do the journaling in a personal diary. New way – get an app, pay for subscription, and have your notes available on all your mobile devices. I like to keep things simple, for the most parts, so my journaling is handwritten letter on paper, scan that and keep a soft copy on my personal laptop. Hey, I love writing! Point is, go with what works for you the best.
Very recently, I read a post on Tim Ferriss’ blog here that talked about a dialogue with the three version of yourself – past, present and future. (We now live in a world full of disclaimers so here goes mine. Disclaimer: I do not know Tim personally and follow his posts socially only.) Although the post is now several months old at the time of this writing, it is still relevant no matter when you read it. On similar lines to the article, I’ve thought about this several times over the last few years on what I would communicate to my past, to my future and although I keep calming my inner being, what would I say to myself.
Let me give you a context. Very often, my wife and I have these random discussions about past and would I have done things differently if I were to start all over again. And almost always, my response has always been the same – “Nope, I’m glad of whatever transpired, whenever they happened, in whichever shape or form that they did, and that I’ve made my peace with my past. No regrets. No guilt. Of course I have made mistakes, in some occasions, they have been blunders but whatever happened, taught me something new. Each experience had a lesson for me, which has shaped me to a being now.” To this my wife response and expression usually is in the range of rolling her eyes or smiling.
One of the outcomes of me writing a letter to the three versions of myself taught me something very important. It made me recognize myself. It is not any less than a profound experience. I would strongly urge you to do this exercise. You will be surprised at what you discover within. And if you do decide to do so, let me help you. Here is what I covered in the three letters. Read more...
