31 Journal Prompts for Self Discovery

I’m not going to lie, I used to HATE journaling. My therapist has been recommending it for years now as a healthy coping mechanism in order to help manage my bipolar disorder. Being an Enneagram 8, I decided that I didn’t need to take her advice and that journaling just wasn’t going to help me. Thankfully, at age 25 I came to realize that I, in fact, don’t know everything and that maybe taking the advice from others (especially from trained professionals) might actually be beneficial…

So, I grabbed an empty notebook and decided to give it a try! Except… I had absolutely no idea where to start. I stared down at the empty page and racked my brain for a few moments before giving up and moving on to something else. At least I tried, right?

Nope, not good enough! Especially not for someone like myself, who holds themselves to high standards. So I did what most people do when they don’t know what to do – RESEARCH! Good ole Pinterest came in and saved the day, of course. I went through multiple articles and spent some time reading over some prompts as well as actually trying them out for myself.

All of which led me to this… 31 Journal Prompts for Self Discovery for you to give a try! So, grab an empty notebook, a pen and get started learning more about yourself and what makes you, you. 🙂 The key here is to be as detailed as possible when answering each prompt. Also, some of these might be a little hard – which is good!! If things “aren’t challenging you, they’re not changing you”. Keep that in mind when the time comes to dig deep into your thoughts on the prompts whose answers don’t come so easily to you.

Feel free to go in whatever order your heart desires! Also, leave a comment letting me know which ones you found brought you the most joy or excitement while racking your brain for your answers.

1. List 10 things that instantly put a smile on your face.

2. Name the top 3 emotions you’ve felt today and why you’ve felt that way.

3. Describe in detail what your dream life would look like.

4. What’s the last thing that you laughed about?

5. What does success meant to you?

6. What are your top 5 goals in life?

7. What does happiness mean to you?

8. List your top 3 fears and your reasons behind them.

9. List your most cherished childhood memories in as much detail as possible.

10. Do you care about what others think of you? If so, why?

11. Describe any future plans you have that you’re unbelievably excited about.

12. Who is your biggest role model in life and why?

13. What does the most perfect day ever look like to you?

14. What are you passionate about in life?

15. What can you do to make tomorrow absolutely amazing?

16. What is your favorite holiday of the year and why?

17. What are you most proud of in regards to your own life?

18. What is your favorite season of the year and why?

19. Describe what you think is your most attractive physical feature and why.

20. What or who drains your energy the most? What can you do to improve this draining?

21. List 10 places that you would visit in a heartbeat if you could.

22. What is something that you’ll never forget?

23. What do you need to accept about yourself in order to love yourself better?

24. Are you pushing yourself to your fullest potential? Why or why not?

25. Who or what keeps you the most motivated?

26. Do you use a lot of negative or positive self-talk throughout your day? Elaborate.

27. What do you value most in your life?

28. What is one thing you look forward to every day?

29. What do you love most about your life? Go into detail.

30. What is your greatest weakness and why?

31. What is your greatest strength and why?