These 3 Questions Are All You Need

by Hadleigh Fischer

You might have heard that journaling is a powerful technique for improving your mental health and emotional wellbeing. But you might also be thinking, isn’t that a bit old-fashioned? Why don’t I just talk with an AI-chatbot, use voice-notes or a wellness app?

Maybe you’ve tried journaling before, only to stare at a blank page, unsure where to begin. Or you started strong, but life got in the way, and the habit slipped.

Well, there’s an answer. Journaling doesn’t need to be complicated, or even something you do every day. By using just three simple questions - the same three questions - day after day, you can build the habit. They’re easy to remember, backed by science, and quick to complete when you’re in a rush. 

The Science of Journaling 

Let’s start by looking at the science of writing by hand, (in a notebook or journal), in order to help our emotional and mental health. 

Writing by hand helps us externalise our thoughts, organise emotions, and gain perspective.

Research by psychologist James Pennebaker - the world’s leading scholar of journaling - shows that journaling can make us feel calmer, clearer, and even physically healthier. 

Writing brings order to inner chaos. It’s a kind of meditation, without having to sit on a cushion for hours. You could also say that writing is like having a great conversation with someone, or talking to a trusted therapist. 

Here’s how it works:

1. Writing helps you create distance from your thoughts

When you write something down, the thought becomes separate from you. It shows us that our thoughts aren’t facts - and they aren’t “us.” Writing helps us see that thoughts are just events happening in our minds, that we get to choose to believe or act on, not instructions. 

You can see it more clearly. Psychologists call this cognitive defusion. When we write, we become observers of our own thinking. Your thoughts stop swirling around in your head, and instead become something you can examine, question, or even reframe.

2. It slows you down

Second, writing helps us organise mental clutter. It slows us down and brings structure to that internal noise. You can’t write as fast as you think (or type), so the act of writing forces you to be clear and specific. It helps you figure out what you really feel or think.

Unlike typing, which we edit as we go, typing frantically and then deleting, handwriting encourages us to pause and reflect between sentences or between lines. That moment of hesitation often reveals insight. An aha moment. You might start with a dozen vague thought fragments and suddenly realise, for example: Ah, I’m upset because she said I wasn’t helping enough.

3. It helps you make sense in difficult experiences

Pennebaker’s research on expressive writing shows that when we write honestly about pain loss, change, uncertainty and conflict we begin to shape it into a coherent story. Not just a swirl of emotion or tangled thoughts, but a story with a beginning, middle, and end. This gives us a sense of meaning, and in time, growth.

Think of how the protagonist in a movie (like Frodo) starts off uncertain, has to overcome setbacks, and finally things make sense. If he’d kept a journal, he’d be better off, helping him manage his self-doubt more effectively. 

Over time, we may even notice unexpected insights or growth that came from the struggle. Writing in this way helps us turn something that was merely difficult into something that is also meaningful. It doesn’t make the situation go away, but we get better perspective over it. And we move forward with self-awareness and confidence.

The Only Three Questions You Need

There are endless journaling methods out there. Gratitude lists, mood trackers, dot-point and shadow journals But when you’re tired, stressed, or just need something simple, try these three.

Write them in your notebook. Print them out and stick them on the inside cover. Come back to them as often as you need.

1. What’s on my mind?

This is your mental download. Your brain is for having ideas, not holding them,  as neuroscientist Daniel Levitin puts it. Writing down what’s on your mind gives your thoughts somewhere to go.

So many of the things we worry about are things that we just dont want to forget. And we worry about them because we don’t have anywhere to ‘put them.’ This cycle of rumination adds up and makes us anxious and drains our energy. 

Whether it’s to-do lists, nagging worries, unfinished conversations or random mental clutter -  write it down.

This question is about coming back to the present moment. Slowing down the spin cycle of your brain and untangling the threads, one line at a time.

2. What went well today?

We all have a negativity bias - a normal built-in survival mechanism that scans the world for problems. But when left unchecked, it can make us cynical, anxious, or just plain exhausted.

Of course, it’s so easy to be negative and find what’s going wrong, or where we are falling behind, or somehow not good enough. 

One of the best ways to counteract this ‘negativity bias’ is to make a habit of noticing what is going well. Or, when things are tough, things that could be worse. Things that aren’t awful.

The key is to be specific. Don’t just be grateful for your kids. Be thankful that your son ran up to you after school and gave you a hug. Don’t be thankful for your home. Be thankful for the way the sun shone in the windows this morning. 

This keeps it interesting. Knowing that you’re going to need to remember these at the end of the day also primes your brain to look for things that are going well. 

3. What am I looking forward to tomorrow?

This question is about hope. Anticipation is a powerful emotion. It activates reward circuits in the brain and gives us energy, motivation, and purpose.

When people are struggling with their mental health, it’s common to feel like the past is full of mistakes, the present is a mess, and the future holds nothing. That’s why this final prompt matters.

Maybe you’re excited about a concert. A quiet night in. A walk. A coffee. A moment to yourself. A challenging opportunity that stretches you. It doesn’t have to be big — it just has to be something.

This prompt helps you look forward again.

Making it a Reality

You don’t need to journal every day. This isn’t about ticking a box or adding pressure and another chore to your wellness routine. It’s a tool. Use it when you need to find clarity, calm, or direction. Come back to it when you need a break from life and need to get on top of things. 

Use them when:

• You’re overwhelmed by a decision

• You want to get on top of your to-do list

• You’re feeling disconnected or negative
  

• You’re trying to process something heavy
  

• You just want to check in with yourself

What you write doesn’t need to be poetic, long, or even in full sentences. Dot points are fine. So are sentences that never end. 

Just remember it's a tool you can turn to that helps you sort out the tangle of thoughts, and doesn’t preach back at you. It just listens.