Starting a leadership journal (with 10 prompts & a printable!)
Hey leader, is it hard to clear your thoughts and tune out the noise? There are meetings and metrics, expectations and emails, too many voices offering feedback… and not enough quiet moments to get grounded. I have a tool for you!
Enter: The leadership journal.
A leadership journal is a power tool for tuning in. It’s a private space for gathering your thoughts, challenging and honoring your growth, and centering yourself in clarity. Whether you're navigating a new role, managing a team, or taking your vision to the next left, journaling can help you process, plan, and own your leadership story.
You don’t need fancy pens (...though why not?). You don’t need to write daily (...though discipline is good!). You just need space – and the courage to tell yourself the truth.
So grab a notebook, find your favorite pen, and let’s get down to business.
(PS – A Google doc works great too! Go to Page Setup and choose “pageless,” then set your date as a heading to keep it organized.)
Start with your leadership vision
I just led a Power Friday workshop on Owning Your Voice and Your Vision, and one of the topics we covered was how to articulate your leadership vision. Here’s a post that goes more in-depth on that – you’ll find a few prompts there that are perfect for your first few pages. Revisit those in 6 months and see what you’d change and how you’re tracking… you might be surprised.
When you have a “why” and a vision, you put yourself on a path. And when you’re on a path, you can make progress.
10 leadership journal prompts to build clarity, confidence, and momentum:
Where are you leading from today — fear, clarity, vision, or reaction?
What’s one value you want to show up with this week — and what might that look like in action?
What conversations or decisions are you avoiding? Why?
What stretched you this week as a leader? What were you proud of yourself for? What would you do differently?
Who or what inspired you this week — and what does that tell you about the kind of leader you want to be?
What could have gone better this week? How can you see that as an opportunity?
What feedback did you receive (or wish you had received)? What can you learn from it?
Did you miss any moments to lead from your multicultural identity?
What part of your leadership feels most natural? What’s an area of growth you want to be purposeful about giving attention to?
Friday prompt: Write a bold pep talk for your Monday self.
…I hope that whets your appetite to get started.
Don’t overthink this! Just start writing and see what shows up. Let it be messy.
If you’re a leader who keeps a practice like this… well, watch out world. 😉
