As a writer, I have a bias toward written material. Writing helps you organize and refine your thoughts; it provides a record of what actually happened in real time, rather than the misremembered or edited version of events that people recall much later.
We use written documentation in many ways in business,
including proposals, which document what we can do, plans and reports, which document what we are going to do and how it’s going so far (or after completion.) We document incidents that affect safety, performance, and discipline.
That’s a lot of writing – and reading – for most workers. But I’m going to encourage you to take writing a step further this year and start a journal at work.
It doesn’t have to be fancy; you can always edit or format parts of it that you’ll show to your supervisor, for example. It can be as simple as a notes app or Word document that you keep handy (but protected by a password) so you can access it every day. Set a calendar reminder or popup so your journal is one of your first priorities of your workday.
Emily McGowan, writing for The Good Trade online, suggests starting by writing down your work goals for the month, the quarter, or the year. Then, beneath those, you can start writing what happened on a daily (or so) basis. McGowan writes,
“Start by outlining your work goals in an accessible document. You may even share this document with your immediate supervisor
for feedback and in case there are any resources you’ll need to feel supported in meeting these goals.
Open that document every Monday morning as you plan your work. Each week, create a list of the tasks that will help you reach the larger goals you’ve outlined in addition to other daily tasks that come up along the way.
Now that you have a structure for what you intend to do, you can get started on tracking what it is that you’re actually doing. The point in having both of these lists is to help you hold yourself accountable; the more you practice setting goals and recording your progress, the better you’ll be at predicting your own pace and capacity.”
Having written goals helps you make decisions about what you should be working on, whether something is a distraction or an opportunity, and whether you’re making progress toward what’s important in your role or your career.
Writing prompts can include:
- What accomplishments am I proud of this week or month?
- What positive feedback have I received recently?
- What constructive criticism did I receive? How am I taking action to address it?
- What projects am I working on right now?
- What lessons did I learn from this experience?
- What would I do differently next time this situation occurs?
You can see the value of keeping the document private via a password and careful management. But you will be able to bring it out when you need to recall a conversation, remember feedback, or check in on your daily or weekly goals. You’ll also find it handy for updating your resume, applying for promotions, or preparing for your performance review.
Informally, you’ll be developing a record of what you worked on over the past year and how successful and focused you were. It’s easy to forget what the priorities were at the beginning of the year, how you spent your days, or your motivations and plans to improve your performance.
A work journal is both a person productivity tool and a great way to make sure you get credit (even if it’s just from yourself) for the good work you’re doing every day.
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