This post focuses on concrete tips and tools to help you feel more organized, confident, and in-the-moment in THIS moment.
Let’s spend a moment reflecting on what we are collectively going through right now, and also what you are going through personally. Inequities and discrimination on a societal level and perhaps also a personal level. Uncertainty about what lies ahead on so many levels.
What are some of the big things for you right now?
How are you doing with all of this?
Of course, many right now are going back to “school”, though there is no certainty about exactly what that means this year. We’ve also been reflecting on what going back to school means and how that feels right now.
We’ve been talking to students about what this feels like for them. In fact, we’ve taken to Zoom to meet with students and talk to them directly about how things are feeling for them and how journaling can help guide them through the feelings of overwhelm and uncertainty. We’ve enjoyed this so much and we would love to continue this throughout the school year!
I’ll briefly highlight two workshops that we ran this summer, one with middle school-aged girls taking part in an online leadership-focused camp and one with undergraduates at Cornell University illustrating how impactful sharing an hour with a group of young people on top-of-mind topics can be.
Journaling Workshops for Youth
What we’ve seen is that, even while on a Zoom call, taking the time to reflect on directed prompts makes a notable difference in terms of self-awareness and achieving clarity. Creating and running these workshops has been a huge positive for us this summer. We (intern Nicholas and myself) felt satisfied that we could provide concrete tools, and these tools and discussions were appreciated.
So much so that we hope to do this again soon.
If your organization or group, whether for adults or youth, is interested in a journaling workshop customized to your needs and interests, please reach out directly.
Organizational tools, masks, and swag
Another experience we have had this summer that has felt positive:
time at home = time to create.
Yes, that has meant some journaling and writing, and several passion projects are still works-in-progress. We’ve dabbled into other types of creating as well. While we anticipate that there will be more creating to come, for now we proudly introduce digital art… for your journals (and for yourselves!). We have created tools for organization and for flair. Our stickers are accessories for your journals! Follow WRGJournaling on Redbubble to see what else will be coming soon!
For example, we’ve just designed and released some new products to support the transition to “back-to-school” (wherever school is). These include organizational products and just-for-fun swag, such as canvas pencil bags, blank notebooks, masks, and stickers for laptops, notebooks, etc.
We’re especially excited about our “pencil & notebook” pattern (created by our graphic design junior intern). This pattern has inspired a range of products perfect for all the students (and journalers) in your life. Regardless of where school is happening this year, you'll be organized! The products below are available our new Redbubble store (you can also search for WRGJournaling, and you can also “follow” us there and “like” what you like).
All of this started because of an idea to create stickers, and to write about this story is tangential. So we’ll save this for our next blog post, coming soon!
If what you’ve read about here compels you to want to learn more or to share this post with others…. you know what to do- be in the moment and reach out!
Marni Amsellem, Ph.D.
Founder,
Writereflectgrow.com