New Year…New Journal?

With a new year just on the horizon, many will have good intentions of keeping a written journal of the daily adventures of their life, but keeping up the habit requires determination, grit (sorry!) and reminders.

Even with all these qualities, knowing what to write can often being the obstacle – some days you can feel inspired, whereas other days are more tricky – but Thanh Pham at Asian Efficiency has provided a great template to kick-start your daily journal. Pick one (or more) of these questions

What happened to you that day (events).
Outcomes, tasks, questions. Outcomes are the big things you want to achieve for the day. Tasks are the smaller steps to achieving outcomes.
Write down 3 accomplishments.
Questions (all optional, pick as you please):
What did I read?
What did I learn?
What did I do to help my future?
How did I help someone today?
Who do I love?
What am I grateful for?

Paper journals are nice, and will help you keep your handwriting skills honed, however there are a lovely collection of apps which can prompt you each day to write a journal via your smart phone or tablet. We’ve selected a couple below, which are worthy of exploration:

Please note that * indicates the prices at the time of publication, and are susceptible to change.

Our Favourite Journal Apps for Phones / Tablets

Journey App (for Web, Android & Chrome Extension)

This is a gorgeous app available for Android Devices, but can also synchronise along with the impressive Chrome extension, which make this app extremely portable, and usable anywhere and anytime. The app is beautifully designed, and an in-app purchase allows for different themes, but this is not essential to gain the best of the features. You can also be inspired by Daily Ideas, use the quick add widget, utilise the stickers, and (if you wish!) publish to Social: Facebook, Twitter, WordPress & Tumblr. The App is advertisement free and sign in is required via your Google Account.

The Chrome App is available at: https://goo.gl/yLUKg2 whereas an online App is also available via: https://2appstudio.com/journey/web

If you have an Android Device, you can view/download the app by clicking here.

Penzu (Web, iOS, Android)

We have been fans of Penzu for quite a few years, as they were one of the first blogging platforms that assured security and privacy. The service has developed, as technology has advanced, with accompanying Android and iOS apps, as well as being continually available via web browser. The basic version is free, allowing everything you need to start your online journal or diary, but they also offer a pro version ($19.99 per year*) which offers multiple journals, added security, reminders, and journal customisation. This is a great app if you work across different platforms, as Penzu synchronises your entries across all your devices.

Visit Penzu Online by clicking here, or download the Android App via the Google Play Store here. Click the Apple Store icon below to find the Penzu App in their store:

Flava (Web, iOS, Android)

The ‘moment capturing’ Flava App is a nice app to add random things during the day, and works across various platforms, and offers a beautifully developed timeline feature, allowing you to review your notes, images or comments being displayed on your developing journal. In fact, Flava allows you to save Books, Links, Locations, Photos, Songs, or Text. Needless to say, the app synchronises across platforms and is the most flexible app featured in our reviews here. It’s certainly a service to consider if you have a busy life, but want to remember certain things throughout your day. As you develop your journal, you will see how the app turn your notes into a stunning interface.

Visit Flava Online by clicking here, or download the Android App via the Google Play Store here, or it is available as a Google Chrome Extension here. Click the Apple Store icon below to find Flava App in their store:

Day One (iOS / Mac)

If you only love apps which work on Apple products, then the Day One journal App is built just for you. The apps for iOS and the Mac do come at a cost, but the app backs up your entries to Dropbox and synchronises between your devices. If you like writing with Markdown, then this app has you covered, but it also export entries as text, PDF, or Markdown. This is an elegant and simple app and, like some of those above, will alert you to write, and provide you with inspirational messages to spark your writing. Ah yes, because Day One loves all things Apple, their app even supports Apple Watch. The App is priced 79p* for iPad / iPhone, , available via the icon below. The app is priced £4.99* for the Mac and available by clicking here.