My Favorite Things: The Five-Minute Journal

My Favorite Things: The Five-Minute Journal

Several years ago, Bryce, Ann, and I met our friends Patricia and Kyle at the Marfa Invitational. Patricia introduced me to her friend Heidi Zuckerman, who was there hosting a group for the event.

  • An Instagram post from the Marfa Invitational
  • A talk under an open-air pavilion at the Marfa Invitational
  • A white corner building against a blue Marfa sky

One morning, Heidi spontaneously joined us for meditation, and I instantly liked her. I started following her on Instagram and listening to her podcast, About Art. She is also a fellow matcha lover and regularly shares her morning matcha.

  • Heidi Zuckerman, host of the About Art podcast
  • A bowl of matcha held up over a city view

One morning, sitting beside it, was The Five-Minute Journal.

I took note.

That looked doable.

It was actually life changing.

The morning begins with three things you’re grateful for. That part was easy for me. I usually wanted to write ten or more. There’s just so much to be grateful for every morning.

Then came the question that really changed something for me:

What would make today great?

Three little lines.

I began thinking about what I would love to have happen that day, before I put my head on the pillow that night.

If it was something within my control, writing it down seemed to quietly remind me throughout the day. And because I DO want to have a great day every day, I would do my best to make those things happen.

This was also around the time I was pushing through some of my fears and those old “not good enough” thoughts about making art again.

So “What would make today great?” might include:

  • Practice burning materials and try a new way of doing it.
  • Spend an hour learning about gold leaf.
  • Make one blessing packet.
  • 2X meditation.
  • Reach out to Mimi.
  • Hear from Patricia.
  • Find the perfect chair for a project.

Some were intentions. Some were things I could actually do. And some were simply things I would love to have happen.

  • The Five-Minute Journal open to a morning page, a pen and a lit candle beside it

At night, the journal asks you to write down three highlights from your day.

This may have been the most transformative part for me.

There were evenings when I would have described the day as average, or even a little difficult. Then I’d sit down and begin remembering:

  • A wonderful conversation.
  • Something that made me laugh.
  • Progress on a piece of art.
  • A beautiful moment outside.
  • Someone I loved reaching out.

Suddenly there weren’t enough lines in the book. I’d fill every available bit of space or pull out my regular journal and keep going.

So many wonderful little and not so little things can happen during a single day, and somehow we can forget them by bedtime.

The journal taught me to look back over the day before going to sleep and search for the highlights.

We get what we seek.

And I started having fun with the morning question too. I stopped treating it like a task list and began leaving a little room for the seemingly impossible, or at least for a little magic.

Once, I was in Miami for Art Basel. I had met Thomas, a New York art advisor, on my trip to Tanzania. We’d hoped to have coffee while we were both in Miami, but it was his busiest time of year and we couldn’t make it work.

So that morning, under “What would make today great?” I wrote:

Run into Thomas at the fair.

And lo and behold, at the very first fair tent Bryce and I walked into that week, Thomas was walking out as we were walking in.

I got to see his sweet face and give him a hug.

Well, that was fun.

So the next morning I thought, why not?

Cassandra Nollman of Sylphide Art Advising was also somewhere in Miami. I knew how busy she would be and we hadn’t made plans to see each other.

Under “What would make today great?” I put down that I’d love to run into Cassandra at Basel.

Granted, it was a VIP day and not as crowded as it would eventually become, but Art Basel is enormous.

Bryce and I were wandering through the booths when, from somewhere in the distance, I heard:

“Laura!”

And yes, it was Cassandra.

What a wink from the universe.

I used The Five-Minute Journal every day for several years.

  • The Five-Minute Journal, closed, beside a candle and a small succulent

What began as a simple morning and evening practice changed the way I moved through my days. In the morning, I was paying attention to what might make the day meaningful. At night, I was remembering how much beauty had actually been there.

It showed me the beauty of the day before going to sleep.

And I really love that.

Eventually, my gratitude practice grew into something else called The Magic.

But that’s another Favorite Thing for another day.

The Five Minute Journal by Intelligent Change
Find the original journal here.

— Laura