In preparation for the new year, discover creative ways to document your life in order to track your growth and reflect on your experiences.
As this year is quickly coming to a close, it’s time to start getting ready for 2024! Yes, write your goals out and create those vision boards. But also think about how you’re going to document the new year and track your progress and growth for different areas of your life.
Especially as I am in an uncertain yet exciting time in my life, I have been thinking more and more about how I can live a bit more intentionally and reflect on my experiences. There are so many possibilities in your 20s – you have a taste of more freedom, you’re probably starting a career, moving to a new place, making new friends, or figuring out yourself. And of course, this may be relevant for those beyond their 20s!
Thus, as we go into the new year, consider putting a little more effort into documenting all your big and small life affairs, in order to look back and reflect on these moments. Not only will you be able to reminisce for years to come, but you’ll also be able to see how you’ve grown and evolved over the years, in various aspects of your life.
13 WAYS TO DOCUMENT YOUR LIFE
- Scrapbook/Collage
- Jar Of…
- Instagram Page
- Podcast/Voice Recordings
- One BIG Goal Journey
- Recipe Book/Log
- Music/Playlists
- Doodles
- Note With Quotes
- Camera Roll Memories
- Book of Ideas
- Outfit of the Day
- Planner/Calendar
0. JOURNAL
Journaling seems like an obvious idea, so I put it as “#0” because many of the following ideas can be put into a journal or made into a journal. In your journal, you may write entries or reflections, track things like sleep or mood, or make the pages super pretty with doodles, stickers, and graphics. You can find countless different types of journals online, or you can use a blank book or bullet journal to get your thoughts down.
I have personally used a journal for everything from writing goals down to listing my favorite shows at the moment to brainstorming business ideas – you can truly be creative and use your journal for anything. Whether you have separate journals for different purposes, or put everything into one, this is a great way to document your life and reflect on your experiences. Here are some common types of journals and prompt categories:
- Gratitude
- Travel
- Health/Fitness
- Dream/Goals
- Personal Life/Relationships
- Food
- Art
- Diary
1. SCRAPBOOK/COLLAGE
Although this idea may take a bit more time and effort, this is perhaps my favorite idea for documenting your life. I’m a visual person who like graphics and pictures, so if you’re like me, this is the perfect way to record your year. Use any kind of journal or book you prefer, and print pictures, cut out images and texts, find stickers and other memorabilia, and fill your pages. Or, do this digitally on a laptop or tablet if you prefer a cleaner process with a bit more flexibility. You can fill in pages weekly, monthly, or when inspiration strikes! But I recommend doing it consistently so you have a good amount of entries to look back on for the year.
2. JAR OF…
For this method of reflecting on your year and life, create a jar to fill with themed inputs. For instance, make a “jar of memories”: everyday on a piece of paper, write a moment or event, big or small, that happened to you that day and put it in the jar. Or, create a “jar of accomplishments”: whether it’s as simple as “woke up early to workout” or as big as “passed the bar exam”, write it on a paper and place it in the jar. Be sure to date these events! When the year is over, you can look back on all your entries and reflect and reminisce.
3. INSTAGRAM PAGE
Make a personal instagram that documents your life! Oftentimes on social media, people are very selective about what they choose to post, and there is somewhat of an unspoken rule that you shouldn’t constantly post or spam your followers. But for this documentation idea, you can basically post your camera roll! Have followers if you want, or don’t – this page is for YOU. Every candid, selfie, or random pictures of places and objects, you can post on this account with captions reminding you of these moments. Every year, you can scroll through your feed to reminisce.
4. PODCAST/VOICE RECORDINGS
Instead of a written journal or video log, consider making a podcast or voice diary. Of course you can make a legitimate podcast that you plan and produce, but you can also simply use your voice recording app on your smartphone and make entries daily or weekly. Talk about life, fun events, school/work, relationships, goals, and anything else you desire – and these can be long rants or stories, or a quick check-in. Label each entry with a title and date to stay organized. Something about hearing your own voice can be really impactful – you get a peak into your emotions and environment from that moment in time. If you aren’t big into writing or crafting, or you’re just looking for a unique way to document your life, this is a great idea for recording everything and anything!
5. ONE BIG GOAL JOURNEY
If you have one big goal for the new year, say a business goal, fitness goal, or financial goal, track or document this. In a journal, your notes app, or wherever you prefer, right down one thing each day you did to reach that goal (and accomplishments towards your goal). Say your goal is to finally start your business – these entries can be as simple as thinking of a name for the company and talking through your ideas with a partner, or as big as finding a manufacturer and launching a website. Doing this will not only keep you accountable, but it’s a great way to look back on all your progress and the big and little things you did/are doing to attain your goal.
6. RECIPE BOOK/LOG
I am a foodie at heart! My next meal is always at the forefront of my mind and I am one to plan trips and days around food. I also love trying out recipes out; my social media feeds are flooded with food videos and I am always eager to test something different. If this sounds like you, keeping a recipe book/log throughout the year may be the perfect way to document this foodie part of your life. You can find a physical recipe book to write in, type them up yourself, or find a template online. Along with the recipe, you can write the occasion, rating, notes, and any other memories to go along with it. At the end of the year, you can reflect on all the recipes you tried that year and have an organized space to find the ones you want to make again!
7. MUSIC/PLAYLISTS
Music can truly define a moment, an era, and a year. If you’re always finding new music or listening to music constantly, consider making monthly playlists and/or playlists for certain “eras” or “occasions” in your life. For instance, maybe you’re in your “homebody era” or “girl-boss era”; if you have songs that define this era or you’ve been listening to during this era, put it in a playlist. Or, make a new playlist every month and add new songs you find or listen to on repeat. At the end of the year, you can look back on all these playlists and relive those times in your life through music.
8. DOODLES
For the artsy folks, document your life in doodles! Grab a journal, your favorite doodling utensils, and get creative! Every day or every week, reflect on your experiences and pick a few things to doodle. Add a blurb or caption if you want, or feel free to keep it doodle-pure. Whether it’s your avocado toast from breakfast, walking your dog in the park, or a tree you saw on your commute home from work, these doodles can truly be anything. This documentation idea is great if you need a little creative outlet, and you’ll be able to see all your big and little memories in fun illustrations.
9. NOTE WITH QUOTES
This is a super unique way to document your life! Do you ever have a conversation with someone and they say something super funny, wise, endearing, or simply noteworthy? Keep track of these quotes by writing them in an ongoing note on your phone and/or in a journal. You can categorize these quotes by people, context, month, or however you see fit! These quotes may be funny things your friends have said, lovely things your partner has told you, or even a line you heard in a speech or film. Be sure to date these quotes, as well! At the end of the year, you can look back at all the interesting things you’ve heard and have been a part of.
10. CAMERA ROLL MEMORIES
If you’re constantly taking pictures like I am, this is a great way to document your year and memories. Take at least one photo a day and in the notes of the picture, write a little blurb about it and that moment. This can include what the picture is about, what you were feeling, who you were with, or any other fun details you want to add. Of course if you take lots of pictures every day you don’t have to do this for every single one, but do it for one or two of your favorites. Then, you can create an album every month or for the year to compile all these pictures and notes.
11. BOOK OF IDEAS
Do you have an entrepreneurial mind or are creative ideas and thoughts constantly flowing through your head? Consider keeping a book of ideas or running note to document this aspect of your year! Perhaps you think of ideas related to anything from business ventures and inventions to fashion and hobbies – this is the perfect way to compile all these thoughts, refer back to them, and make sure you don’t forget them. Even if you don’t act on them right away, you’ll have them in writing to look back on and inspire you later.
12. OUTFIT OF THE DAY
If you’re a fashion girly, or perhaps you’re in the process of changing or elevating your style, keeping a photo journal of your outfits throughout the year is a great way to document your evolving style. Take an outfit of the day pic and save it to an album. Feel free to also add a little background behind the fit (where the pieces are from, what you did that day, etc.) and rate your outfit based on factors such as comfort, creativity, or overall love.
You can even go a step further with this idea and create collages, boards, or any other kind of graphic on Canva or other platforms to see your outfits/style in a more aesthetic setting. Not only will you be able to look back on some of your favorite fits and see how your style changed over time and what trends were in, but you’ll also have a record of outfits associated with different memories.
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13. PLANNER/CALENDAR
Although planners are often thought of as organizational tools, they can also provide great insight into day-to-day life in terms of how you spend your time and with who. Chances are you have some sort of planning tool that you use, but people use them to different degrees and for different purposes. Maybe you use yours strictly for work, or maybe you write down how almost every hour of your day is spent. I personally lean more towards the latter. The benefit I see in this is not only attempting to stay on top of things, but also the ability to look back and see exactly how I spent certain days and weeks. If you’re trying to better understand how you prioritize your time, or perhaps are working on prioritizing certain aspects of your life, being intentional with using your planner/calendar is a great visual way to see this.
LIVE & REFLECT
From various journal types to making music playlists and taking pictures of your outfits, there are countless creative ways to document your life. Think about your interests and what aspects of your life you are wanting to track and reflect on, then go from there! The beginning of a new year is the perfect time to reset, begin documenting, and start thinking about various areas of your life with a bit more intention.
