Spot Your Thought Patterns Through Radical Honesty Journaling
Photo by Kat Stokes
Many of us struggle with self-awareness and self-love. We’re capable of helping others, understanding their problems, and providing support, but when it comes to our own issues, we have a hard time doing the same. We’re unable to recognize or analyze our behavior objectively.
The truth is many of us are forced into repetitive patterns we believe are an innate part of us. Just because we’re repeating some action, usually unwanted ones, doesn’t mean they’re who we are. Our perceptions of the world are hypotheses based on past experiences and stored information. By employing pattern recognition in our daily lives, we can unlock more of our potential and help ourselves grow. One of the best ways to recognize and deal with our own patterns is through writing a radical honesty journal.
Below, you'll find everything you need to know about uncovering your thought patterns through radical honesty journaling.
Tuning in to your thoughts via pattern recognition
It’s important to understand what exactly pattern recognition is and how it can influence your mental health and overall well-being. Pattern recognition refers to a process of inputting stimulating (pattern) information and matching with the information in long-term memory, then recognizing the category which the stimulation belongs to.
It might sound a bit confusing, so we’re going to break it down and put it simply:
A person receives a piece of information from their environment.
It could be an event, a sound, or something visual.
This information enters the short-term memory
It automatically triggers and activates some matching information from the long-term memory
That means that pattern recognition is about responding to certain stimuli based on human's available knowledge and experience. (Wang Shugen (2002)
Here’s a simple example: Last year something great happened to you while the radio was playing a specific song you remembered. Every time you hear that song, you automatically feel happy and content.
But, pattern recognition isn't always a good thing. It can have negative effects on our mental health.
How can pattern recognition change our perspective?
Following patterns that are not good for us is something we need to recognize and stop from happening. You don’t want to be stuck in a repetitive cycle that’s doing you harm.
This is why you need to learn how to recognize those patterns and decide whether or not they’re good for you. We need help with pattern recognition in order to:
understand our potentially harmful behavior
find a pattern that leads to a negative outcome
free ourselves from patterns that are not good for us
Here's an example: You’re feeling depressed because you didn’t go through with a business idea you had. As you step back and analyze your patterns, you realize this is because you always discourage yourself in such situations and allow for negative self-talk.
Pattern recognition is about connecting your past with your present. If you do it right, you might have a better understanding of why you feel a certain way or why you do certain things.
In the long run, this can help you become more confident, self-loving, and productive.
What is Radical Honesty Journaling?
As we’ve already mentioned, honesty journaling is an effective tool for establishing pattern recognition and learning about self-improvement opportunities. But, what exactly is honesty journaling?
Honesty journaling is a process in which you write down your daily impressions like:
how you feel
emotions you felt at a certain moment
events that meant something to you
your ideas
your fears and insecurities
It’s called an honesty journal because you’re supposed to be completely honest with yourself. That means there’s no room for:
censorship
questioning your journal entries
overthinking every word
Instead, you’re just supposed to write the first thing that comes to your mind without worrying about being judged or embarrassing yourself. This is why honesty journaling truly manages to get to you and dig up your deepest but most truthful emotions and ideas. This is just you talking to yourself honestly and without any limitations.
How Radical Honesty Journaling Helps With Pattern Recognition
There are several ways in which radical honesty journaling is good for pattern recognition, helping you recognize the repetitive cycles you’re in and find a way to deal with them.
It helps you record what’s happened.
For you to be able to recognize your patterns, you need to keep track of your actions and emotions. This is the only way for you to understand what’s happening.
Honesty journaling is something you should do regularly. This way, you’ll be:
writing new entries regularly
writing down everything that matters
keeping track of your progress over time
Keeping it all documented and organized will help you analyze it and draw conclusions.
It keeps you honest.
The whole point of writing this journal is for you to be 100% honest. This would be impossible if you were talking to a friend or a family member.
Honesty journaling is your safe place that no one but you is allowed in. That’s what will make you expose yourself completely and allow yourself to truly understand what’s going on inside of you.
It brings forth new ideas.
When you're writing your honesty journal, you're not thinking in advance. You're not planning every word or trying to make it all aesthetically on-point.
You’re just writing as things come to your mind.
This stream of consciousness method is what reveals your deepest secrets and creates a window into your personality and emotions.
It gives you a new perspective.
As you write in your journal, you’re collecting data about yourself. You’re able to take a step back and go through your writing.
As you’re reading, you’ll be able to recognize:
behavior patterns
emotional patterns
major issues
your triggers
You’ll be able to learn from this personal overview and draw conclusions about why you’re acting or feeling a certain way. That means that radical honesty journaling helps you with pattern recognition and allows you to understand yourself better.
Ultimately, it helps you resolve issues.
As you begin to recognize your patterns, especially the negative ones, you'll also begin to realize how to get rid of them. Understanding is the first step toward resolving.
You’ll be able to learn about:
substituting negative self-talk with positive affirmations
discontinuing negative patterns
introducing healthy changes
loving yourself more
Pattern recognition is crucial for building a positive self-image and making conscious, right decisions that are good for you, your mental and physical health.
Final Thoughts
As you can see, radical honesty journaling is the ultimate tool for learning about yourself and recognizing your repetitive cycles. It can help you with pattern recognition and allow you to work on self-love and confidence.
Hopefully, the information provided in this article helped you understand the importance of radical honesty journaling for proper thought pattern recognition.
Dorian Martin is a professional writer and editor. He primarily works as an essay writer, helping students get into the college of their dreams. He also runs his personal blog, where he shares tips on digital marketing, entrepreneurship and success.