inner+outer journal

Track your inner thoughts and feelings alongside your outer events and observations, and something wonderful happens. As you move back and forth, you notice connections and relationships you might have overlooked. You will naturally find the space in between inner and outer expanding. Sometimes called “the third,” this space “between” is where the magic happens. This is the space between “real” and “pretend.”

Is this a good idea, or not? Am I making this up?
Is it me? Is it everyone else?

Questions like these can haunt and taunt us, making us uneasy about self-expression. In the “in-between” space of creativity, you can relax these judgments. You don’t need to know what something is or where it came from—you just notice. When rigid distinctions turn fluid, new solutions arise. Pretend can become real. You see the interaction of what you think, feel and do. Your understanding of the events and relationships in your life is bound to grow!

try it

Inner+Outer journaling is a simple practice that yields powerful results. Just write everyday. It doesn’t have to be about anything. It doesn’t need to be a certain length of time or a certain number of pages. It doesn’t need to be “special” or “good.” Just keep a little book and write in it everyday. Some days you’ll write a little (“dog threw up”) and some days a lot (“Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.…”) Add sketches and scraps as desired.

Like most simple practices, the results are much more powerful
than you expect.

Have you ever seen a beautiful flower blooming through a crack in a concrete wall? Seeds are tiny powerhouses. Given just a little space and a bit of basic care — sun, water, earth, air — and they can flourish, making the space they need as they grow. Your creative practice is like this. Sometimes you just need the tiniest crack.

plant this seed

Here’s a worksheet to get you started.

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