In today’s increasingly digital world, the trusty notepad can often be shoved to one side in favour of to-do list apps or by Google Docs. Sadly, it can sometimes seem as if the good old fashioned practice of putting pen to paper has lost its allure.
Despite this, science shows that there are numerous benefits of writing things down, some obvious, some unexpected.
1. You’ll learn more
Whether you’re at school, university, or simply learning something new later in life, a number of studies show the befits of writing things down for learning and memory. The very act of using a pen or pencil to put things on paper can help you better retain the information you are writing, according to research. That’s because in the physical act of writing, signals are being sent from your hands to your brain to build motor memory. So step away from that computer!
2. It frees up some mental RAM
Your brain is like a hard drive. A multi-layered, super-epic, crazily-complex hard drive. When you note down your ideas, thoughts, and emotions – maybe in a journal – it helps your brain to unload some baggage, giving it room to think about other things. Or better yet, with all that extra space, it could even begin to relax.
3. Expressing emotion through written words can speed physical healing
Writing down your thoughts and feelings after a traumatic event can actually make physical wounds heal faster. In this study, participants were assigned to write in a journal either about their deepest, most innermost thoughts and feelings, or about anything except their feelings or beliefs. Then, after two weeks, they had skin biopsies taken — which left a wound on their arms. Researchers followed up with the participants until those wounds were healed, and found that those assigned to expressively write in the journals had faster healing times than those told to avoid writing about their feelings. Crazy!
4. You gain a sense of achievement
Writing things down can foster a sense of achievement and progress, expanding our possibilities and increasing our productivity. Whether that is finishing a weekly spread for your journal, taking a chapter-worth of notes for an exam or completing your to do list. If we write down everything we need to do in a particular day or week, we gain an additional sense of satisfaction when, having completed the task, we can cross the item off our list. Feeling productive enhances our productivity, creating a virtuous cycle.
5. It allows clearer thinking for problem solving
You simply can’t hold that many thoughts in your head at once. If you want to solve a problem it can be helpful to write down your thoughts, facts and feelings about it. Then you don’t have to use your for mind for remembering, you can instead use it to think more clearly. Having it all written down gives you an overview and makes it easier to find new connections that can help you solve the problem.
6. It can help you cope with hard times
In a study that followed recently fired engineers, researchers found that those engineers who consistently engaged with expressive writing were able to find another job faster. In fact, less than a year later, 52% of the engineers in the expressive writing group and found new jobs, compared with just 19% of those who did not write. The engineers also reported feeling less anger and hostility toward their former employer.
So now that you know some of the benefits of writing things down, write a lot, write every day. Don’t let your pens and notepads sit and collect dust.
