The journey of self discovery

It may seem like an obvious truth that we know ourselves, and to a certain degree, this is inevitably true. After all, you’ve spent your entire life as you! Yet, we have all had life experiences - no matter how mundane those experiences may have been - that we simply don’t consciously remember. Sometimes we’re surprised by our reaction to a situation, or we forget that a particular activity makes us happy. It’s easy to lose touch with parts of ourselves or to lose ourselves in relationships, work, people pleasing, busy schedules, or simply the ebb and flow of daily living. Our relationship with ourselves is the most important relationship in our lives. And all of our other relationships are deeply impacted by our relationship with ourselves. We would never expect to maintain a great relationship with another person without conversation and quality time; likewise, maintaining a healthy relationship with ourselves in a busy and sometimes difficult world also requires intentional engagement. Taking a few moments to mindfully reflect on who you are is a fun journaling exercise for self discovery. I invite you to explore - and journal about - who you are. If it feels helpful, use the journal questions below to start.

Journal prompts for self discovery

Photo of woman laying on ground writing in journal. — *Photo Felix/peopleimages.com/stock.adobe.com*

What activities that take 5 minutes or less help you feel calm, relaxed, happy, and/or connected to yourself and the world around you? How often do you do these activities?
What regular activity do you engage in that causes you the most stress?
What is something that a lot of other people seem to do that doesn’t make any sense to you?
What relationships in your life make you feel the most safe?
When was the last time a work of art (photo, painting, film, television show, book, poem, etc.) moved you? Why do you think this work of art impacted you the way it did?

When you get good news, who do you want to tell first? Why?
When you get bad news, who do you want to tell first? Why?
How do you feel when you are outside in nature? What is your favorite outdoor location? Are you happy with the amount of time you spend outside and in nature?
When you were a child, what did you want to be when you grew up? Do you still have some level of interest in similar or associated activities?
What do you want to learn more about?
How would you describe your fashion sense or personal style? Why do you think you gravitated to this particular style? Does this style feel reflective of who you are? Does having a particular fashion sense or style matter to you? Why or why not?
What are you most passionate about?
When do you feel most relaxed?
What dreams do you have for your future?
Does your life feel out of balance anywhere?
What activities make you feel the happiest?
What activities zap your energy?
Are you happy with the amount of time you spending working versus relaxing?
What’s something new that you would like to try?
When is the last time you changed your opinion about something? Do you give yourself permission to change your mind?
If the world ended tomorrow, what would you regret not having done?
If you could easily move somewhere else would you? If you would move, where would you move to? If you would stay where you are, why would you stay?
What was your favorite movie as a child? Why did you like this movie so much? What do you remember about the first time you saw this movie? Reflecting on the reasons you liked this movie as a child, do you see any similarities with movies and other media and art that you like today?
Where would you most like to travel to?
What makes like feel meaningful to you?

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When do you feel most like yourself? What are you doing? Who are you with?
How connected do you feel to your emotional experiences on a daily basis? How often throughout the day do you notice the physical sensation of emotions in your body? What emotion(s) do you experience the most? What emotions do you experience the least?
What are you hard on yourself about? Why do you think you are hard on yourself about this?
What’s your favorite food? What do you like about this food?
What do you wish you were better at?
Do you think you’re a good listener? Why or why not?
What makes you feel loved?
What was your favorite book as a child? Why did you like this book so much? What do you remember about the first time you read this book? Reflecting on the reasons you liked this book as a child, do you see any similarities with books and other media and art that you like today?
What does your ideal day look like?
What scares you the most?
How have you grown and changed in the last year?

These journal prompts are available as a free journal jar printable!