Can I clarify what I want out of my life through contemplating with a journal?

[john1]

I watched the contemplating through journaling video, and I really think it's a great resource. But in the video, all Leo talks about is deep existential and metaphysical questions. I'm in a period in my life where I don't really care too much for that stuff.

I'm in high school and quite lost in life. I don't know what I should be doing, what I value, what I like, what my goals should be, who I am as a person, etc. Even though I'm halfway through the lp course and have my values, some of my values seem inauthentic, and like I want them to be my values, but in actuality, they're not. I have the same problem with some of my strengths.

So is using the process in the journaling video and then applying it to the problems here a good way to clarify what I want out of life? A good way of finding who I am as a person? What my personality is? What my values are? What I should be doing? Whether I should go to college or not? What my next step in life should be? What I should be learning and exploring?

Basically, is doing the journaling process in the video a good way of strategizing about my life, what I should be doing, and finding who I am and what I want?

How did all of you get clarity in your lives?

 

Thanks for reading. I'd love to hear what you guys' have to say!

[itachi uchiha]

U need tons of contemplation.contemplation is how a common man find these things

[Terell Kirby]

Of course, but it really depends on if you are asking yourself very deep, high quality questions.

You have all the answers in your pen, but you have to be willing to be radically honest.

Book recommendation: Radical Honesty by Brad Blanton

[Preety_India]

If you are honest about your feelings while journaling, you can gain a lot from this habit. 

 

[Vision]

Coming from someone who is also in high school;

Yes, you certainly can.

Can you clarify what you want out of your life solely through contemplation? Probably not.

It is one of the most effective strategies, but it must be paired with experience. That's why I think "self-reflection" is a better term, though they are similar pointers.

Live life, experience life. The more you experience life, the more you learn what you like and dislike. Treat life like a science experiment on yourself. Experimentation helps you see things from new vantage points.

Example: "Okay, I spent 6 months working on one of the potential Life Purposes I came up with; Life Purpose A. I've realized that I don't really enjoy this as much as I thought I would when I initially envisioned it, I feel that there is something more for me.

It wasn't a waste of time though, because now I know one thing that I don't want, which has brought me closer to figuring out what I do want. Another potential Life Purpose I had on my list was Life Purpose B, so I am going to try that out and see if it clicks"

It is through this process of trial and error you figure out who you are and what you want out of life. Imagine if you spent those 6 months just sitting around deliberating in your head whether you should go with Life Purpose A or Life Purpose B, you would be no better off than when you started.

So, don't only experience life without any strategy, and don't only self-reflect and strategize. They are best done in tandem.



I would definitely advise you to make journaling a cornerstone habit. You are your own authority, so your best answers will come from within - journaling is a medium for that.
 

6 hours ago, john1 said:

But in the video, all Leo talks about is deep existential and metaphysical questions. I'm in a period in my life where I don't really care too much for that stuff.

Are you saying that because you really don't care about it? Or is it because you think that you don't care about it because you think that it is not a suitable period in your life to care about it?

There's nothing wrong with not caring, or caring, about anything.

If you truly don't care about it, then that's completely fine. Just be careful with imposing 'shoulds' on yourself.

That doesn't mean you go off and only contemplate existential, metaphysical questions. But who said you can't put aside 10-30 minutes a day? Who said you can't treat it like a little side-hobby while you work on the foundations of your life?

By the time you've mastered your survival and livelihood you'd already have a solid epistemology to work on top of. Little things go a long way.