Overachiever’s Toolkit

Using a
Journal

This is filler text.  This is filler text.  This is filler text.  This… Journaling is one of my most tried and true achievement tools.  It’s not always fun.  But it is usually effective.  I never thought I’d use one.  Yet I’m so grateful that a younger me bit the bullet and got started on the habit.

Tier

What Is Journaling?

Journaling is the practice of putting your thoughts to pen and paper.  Journals are commonly used for planning, productivity, reflection, and catharsis.  It’s a versatile tool that can be used to benefits multiple areas of your life. 

Why Journaling?

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I don’t claim to be an expert on anything I write about.

Hell, I hardly claim to be an expert on myself.  😂😂😂

These breakdowns are largely for me.  I use them to record and reference.  Unlike most others on this site though, this goal setting page might actually be useful to the outside observer.

No promises.  You can tell me.

Power of the Pen

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There’s a lot that goes into [achieving/learning this favorite].  Here’s a quick look at what the [this favorite] journey has been like for me.

There are many ways journaling can help improve your life.  Ultimately though, you’re the only one who can find what works for you.

Learn with Me

Hi, I’m Zach.

I’ve been journaling for nearly a decade now.

I was never one for a diary growing up.  But as I began working for myself, I started to need a place for to-do lists.  That’s really all my original journals were.

Sometimes I’d brainstorm a little or write a few Affirmations.  But at first, 99 pages out of 100 were just to-dos.

Over time, it became much more.

Now, I track a number of things in my journal.  I have layouts for Life Goals, Yearly Goals, Business Plans, my Credit Score, and more.  Journaling is a crucial part of my Morning Routine and my overall Goal Setting process.

You could say my journals are my life, followed closely by This Site.

 

 

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My Experience

I’m just below the level of master.

I still have a few things to add to my repertoire.

However, I already have a very sophisticated system.  It can be a pain to maintain.  But I’m not quite sure I could have built what I have without it.

After all, pages like this get scheduled in my journal.

It continues to evolve as I go.  But the impact journaling has had on my life is undeniable. 

I use journaling to develop my character and design my future.  Beyond a doubt, it is one of my most important Habits.  I use it to create a more intentional life.

It has served me well and I’m sure it will continue to.

  • Importance – 88%
  • Passion – 80%
  • Mastery – 90%
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Journey Started: ≈2008

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Good Life Foundation

Goals are fundamental.  They are an essential pillar of a good life.  Without them, it’s easy to get blown to and fro by the winds of the world.

Where Goal Setting Fits in a Good Life

Goals are one of the most important pieces of the Achievement puzzle.

For me, they’re a “Tier 2” concept, on the same level as Mindset, Habits, Growth, and High Performance.

It is also closely tied to practices like Journaling.

1. Achievement
‣ 2. Goal Setting
3. Frameworks
3. Scheduling
4. Yearly
4. Monthly
4. Daily Planning
3. Business Plans

Success Habit Rank

Videos Watched

Mentions on My Site

Books Read

Pulling Threads: A Lion Chasing Rabbits

Pulling Threads: A Lion Chasing Rabbits

What the hell is This Site, exactly? A pointless stream of consciousness? A fanboy's ode to his Heroes? A psycho's Favorite topics? All three? Or maybe, it's just the result of a lion chasing rabbits. You might LOL... but this is how it works: I am destined to be the...

Creating [This Favorite] for [Favorite Goal]

For [this favorite] newbies:

Let’s start with the best advice up front.

Just get started.

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For journaling newbies:

The first thing to understand is that perfection doesn’t exist.

You don’t need to know the “how to” on journaling as much as you need to develop the “want to.”  It ain’t fun.  It’s effective.  So the first step is to hammer that home.

Journaling is most effective when it’s done everyday.

Otherwise, it just becomes a burden.

In fact, it will probably feel like a burden sometimes anyway.

That doesn’t mean it isn’t worthwhile though.

Like many things, you have to experiment to find what works best for you.  Try different methods.  Eventually, something will work.

Keep doing that thing.

Continue experimenting with new things.

Over time, you’ll mix and match your way to a successful journaling habit.

No one else’s journaling plan will be exactly what you need.

But that doesn’t mean you have to figure it out yourself.  I’ve taken bits and pieces from many of my Heroes and others.  I encourage you to do what I did.

Look at what other people are doing.

Choose something and try it.

Don’t succumb to analysis paralysis.

JUST WRITING SOMETHING DOWN.

That puts you on your way.

You can worry about advanced strategies later.

 

 

 

From self brainwashing page:

 

It can help you refine your thinking, become more productive, and develop more Self Awareness… through affirmations, planning, streams of consciousness 

 

And of course, it can help you brainwash yourself too, whether that is through Affirmations or something else.

 

 

Developing a Journaling habit is one of the best ways to 

 

 

Jordan Peterson describes writing as one of the best ways to learn how to think better/improve your thinking… power in hand writing things… write goals, affirmations, morning pages

How to [This Favorite] Step-By-Step

00

Get a Bullet Journal!

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01

Goal Setting

Most people can’t create the life they want because they don’t know what that is.  One of the main reasons is because they were never taught how to set goals.  It usually takes some trial and error, but once you learn how to set goals, a world of possibility opens up to you.

 

 

rinse and repeat to see how your goals/desires shift over time

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02

Self Brainwashing

Affirmations

 

from affirmations toggle in how i do it section: If you want to mold yourself into a world beater, there isn’t any better place to start.  Shape an identity you love.  Install better belief systems.  Believe in yourself more.  And convince yourself to do alllll the hard stuff.

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03

Daily Planning

A planner is probably a top 5 productivity/achievement tool

If you want to get your life right, you have to get your days right.  Smart daily planning is a crucial part of building the life you want.

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Favorite Step 4

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05

Habit Tracking

This is like the tier 1 skill… requires patience/discipline but smacks

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Remember: just start.  The first time you put your goals on paper, you’re closer to achieving your dreams than 90% of the population.

My Favorite Journaling Videos

Everything you need to learn about journaling can be found online.

I’m no high performance titan.  I stand on the shoulders of giants.  I simply listen to what my Heroes say and apply it.  Not everything sticks.  But enough does to make a lasting impact.

Data
Dump

 

One of the main purposes of This Site is to catalog my learnings.  I’m not that learned.  But I’m working on becoming moreso.  If you see a “data dump” on this site, you’re looking at unsorted information.  It may be related or completely  unrelated, depending on the topic.

 

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First Video
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How I Use Journaling to Create the Life I want

If you haven’t noticed, I take this stuff seriously.

You don’t have to do it like me.  But maybe you wanna know.  So I guess I’ll tell you.  You might have picked some of it up by reading through this page or clicking on some of the links.

I’ll spell it all out here.

Goal Setting

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Daily Planning

I used to hate schedules.  Then I found that planning out my days gives me the calm confidence I need to chase after my long-term goals like a madman.

Use Google Calendar if you want. I prefer pen and paper.

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Framing Time

goals over time + planner

little notes about “today was the day that” x content challenge “this was the week that”

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Note Taking

I am an autodidact.  Learning may be my greatest skill.  It’s also one of my most important.  I don’t always take notes.  When I do, they are very specific.  They may be notes about my life.  Or perhaps a conversations or presentation.  Most often though, I take notes to develop ideas.

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Writing Affirmations

Affirmations are my favorite self-brainwashing tool, bar none.  If you want to mold yourself into a world beater, there isn’t any better place to start.  Shape an identity you love.  Install better belief systems.  Believe in yourself more.  And convince yourself to do alllll the hard stuff… reused in how to section

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Streams of Consciousness

Many a brilliant mind has tried to decode the human psyche.  The more we learn, the farther we realize we have to go.  Stream of consciousness journaling seems to help in a variety of ways.  Not quite sure how.  But who cares?  Dunno’ what makes seeds grow but I plant them anyway.

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Favorite Coaches

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Favorite Teachers

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Favorite Entrepreneurs

My Journaling Posts

Becoming Legendary: My 2022 Goals

Becoming Legendary: My 2022 Goals

I'm fairly confident 2022 is going to be the most successful year of my life so far. I'm writing this post to help guarantee that. Obviously, I can't control the future.  But I can set intentions and create a plan of action. That's what Goal Setting is all about. So...

Setting the New 20s Off Right: My 2020 Goals

Setting the New 20s Off Right: My 2020 Goals

New Year's Resolutions get a bad wrap. It's not their fault though. It's yours. The truth is: The beginning of the year is a perfect time for a reset. You have to execute though. Do it right and this year could be the best year you've ever had. No guarantees. Because,...

How to Become a Morning Person [Life-Changing Habit #1]

How to Become a Morning Person [Life-Changing Habit #1]

Becoming a "morning person" has changed my life. Only time will tell, but it could go down as a top five factor to my future success. Learning how to wake up early wasn't easy. Until the second half of 2018, I've been a notoriously late sleeper. It started as a kid: I...

Becoming Legendary: My 2022 Goals

Becoming Legendary: My 2022 Goals

I'm fairly confident 2022 is going to be the most successful year of my life so far. I'm writing this post to help guarantee that. Obviously, I can't control the future.  But I can set intentions and create a plan of action. That's what Goal Setting is all about. So...

Setting the New 20s Off Right: My 2020 Goals

Setting the New 20s Off Right: My 2020 Goals

New Year's Resolutions get a bad wrap. It's not their fault though. It's yours. The truth is: The beginning of the year is a perfect time for a reset. You have to execute though. Do it right and this year could be the best year you've ever had. No guarantees. Because,...

How to Become a Morning Person [Life-Changing Habit #1]

How to Become a Morning Person [Life-Changing Habit #1]

Becoming a "morning person" has changed my life. Only time will tell, but it could go down as a top five factor to my future success. Learning how to wake up early wasn't easy. Until the second half of 2018, I've been a notoriously late sleeper. It started as a kid: I...

Setting Goals for 2019

Setting Goals for 2019

I have mixed feelings about New Year's Resolutions. I don't believe in waiting to make changes. I think it makes more sense to try to grow everyday. Create good new habits.  Erase the negative old ones.  Do it all the time. However, I find that measurement is...

My Top 3 High Performance Coaches

"YouTube University" has brought many a life-optimizer across my path.  These three are my favorite high performance coaches.

Brendon Burchard

operation Director, Elegant Themes

Robin Sharma

Tech Support, Elegant Themes

Tim Ferris

operation Director, Elegant Themes

How I Use Journaling

For me, Journaling is one of my most cherished tools.

It has many sub categories, already 4 or 5 tiers deep–and growing as more knowledge does.  Like it’s parent category, I break Money Mastery into two big chunks… Playing Markets and Financial Literacy.

How to Leverage a Journaling Habit

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GTD Method

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Bullet Journaling

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Lifebook

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Self Authoring

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Morning Pages

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HP Planner