Writing is an activity that has many benefits. Even in a digital age, nothing is quite like the power of the pen. It is an activity that is personal, and that conveys your thoughts onto paper. It can be enjoyable and stress-relieving. It only takes a few minutes out of your day to jot down some important notes onto paper and can become a soothing routine. Writing in retirement has especially many pros and is a good habit to develop. Here are some of the reasons why.
Personal Confidence
Writing down fond memories and good ideas can be a real confidence boost. By expressing yourself onto paper, you may feel a higher amount of personal appreciation for your thoughts. Paying attention to crucial moments in your life can make you feel more thankful and fulfilled for what you experienced. It is good to be appreciative of yourself, and this can lead to increased personal confidence. It is good for your emotional health when you are able to remember the things most important in your life, as well as your challenges and successes.
Discipline
Writing in retirement is a great way to develop discipline and have a daily/weekly routine. In retirement, it is important to keep active and engaged not just physically but also mentally. Writing is an easy start to keeping your mind active by developing a healthy habit. Not to mention, there are lots of different fun ways to keep a personal journey: writing can be combined with journalling to save precious pictures and memories.
While you may not be perfect at it at first, building a habit comes with time and consistency. Start small by making a few bullet points of your daily highlights. As you become more confident, begin to write more.
Communication Ability
Writing consistently over a long period of time will improve your communication ability. As you write, you will think about how to best express yourself, and develop a personal voice and writing style. You also improve your capacity to remember events, recognize emotions and recall information. Eventually, you learn how to better articulate your thoughts, and this makes you a better thinker and speaker as well.
Additionally, while writing is a relaxing activity that can easily be done by yourself, you can also make it a social activity if you wish. You could create or join a writing group that meets occasionally to share their thoughts and progress.
Stress Relief
Being able to express frustration and other negative emotions is crucial to having a healthy emotional state. Writing down negative experiences lets you vent your stress. At the same time, it gives you a chance to think about the event through a retrospective lens. Analysing, understanding, and reflecting on a negative experience or emotion is a very healthy habit. By reflecting on an unhappy incident and coming to conclusions, you gain closure. This is good for your overall mental health as it is no good to dwell on negative emotions. Through this practice, you also develop better conflict management skills.
