Setting goals and standards for journal writing

I find I cheat a lot. First of all I have learnt over the years not to set goals that I can't achieve with a little effort - so it isn't like I set unrealistic standards. Usually I am following someone's advice: like write THREE (3) pages every morning in your morning pages (Julia Cameron ... The Artist's Way) or write FIVE (5) things you are grateful for daily before retiring (Sarah Ban Breathnach ... Simple Abundance).

Sometimes I set my own goals on top of these two I see as the absolute basic commitment I will make to journaling ... And I do pretty well. But then sometimes I just get stubborn (god knows with whom I am getting stubborn because no one knows or cares!) and I won't write anything in the Gratitude Journal. Just because. (You can hear the two year old tantrum can't you?). Or I will 'be really naughty' and write an extra morning page when I am on a roll. Just because. There is no purpose to this, as it really doesn't matter how you use the habit once the habit is formed.

I think that is the key. Once the habit is formed. It is hard to be a new journaller or be getting back in to it, and I believe that until the habit is well and truly part of your daily life it works better to set these goals ...

Then once the habit is set ... it gives you a place to be stubborn and break rules. What fun!