Growing, learning, improving.. these are all things I’m constantly striving for. So I decided to buy a 5 year diary, so I could journal just one line a day.
I believe a big part of being your better self is self-reflection.
Self-reflection isn’t something I’m very good at, but I find when I take the time to think about my day, week, or month, it really allows me to identify what I’ve learnt, along with the ups and downs.
Without taking the time to process, I lose a lot of positive learnings as I simply forget them, or never even identify them.
About 5-Year Diaries
A 5-year diary, also known as a five-year journal or five-year memory book, is a type of journal or diary designed to capture brief daily entries over a span of five years. The concept behind a 5-year diary is to provide a unique way to track and compare your thoughts, experiences, and personal growth over a continuous five-year period.
Here’s how a 5-year diary typically works:
- Format: A 5-year diary usually consists of a single page for each day of the year, with enough space to write a short entry for each day. Each page is divided into five sections, with each section designated for a specific year. This layout allows you to write a brief entry for the same date across five consecutive years.
- Daily Entries: The idea is to write an entry each day, capturing your thoughts, feelings, activities, events, or any noteworthy occurrences from that day. The space provided is limited, often just a few lines or sentences, which encourages you to be concise and focus on the most significant aspects of your day.
- Yearly Comparison: As you use the diary over five years, you’ll be able to see how your thoughts, experiences, and life circumstances change and evolve. It can be fascinating to look back and compare your entries for the same date across different years, providing insights into personal growth, patterns, and changes.
- Reflection and Memory Keeping: A 5-year diary serves as a reflective tool, allowing you to capture moments that might otherwise be forgotten. It becomes a valuable keepsake and a way to reminisce about your journey over the years.
- Versatility: 5-year diaries come in various designs, sizes, and formats. Some have preprinted prompts or questions for each day to guide your entries, while others offer blank pages for more open-ended writing.
- Convenience: Because the daily entries are short and focused, maintaining a 5-year diary requires less time commitment compared to more extensive journaling practices. This makes it an appealing option for individuals with busy schedules.
5-year diaries are not only personal tools for reflection but can also make thoughtful gifts, especially during significant life events such as graduations, weddings, or milestone birthdays. They offer a unique way to capture a snapshot of one’s life over a period of time and can be a treasured possession in the years to come.
My 5 year diary
I wanted to get better at this, so finally bought a 5 year diary. A 5 year diary one line a day to be exact.
A 5 year diary is exactly what it says on the tin.
A day with a page per day, split into 5 years allowing you to record a few lines each day. I’ve made a spot in my daily planner to spend 5 minutes a day thinking about the good things that have happened and recording them.
I’ll be updating it with things such as:
- The happiest moment of my day.
- Something nice I did for someone else.
- A new goal I want to set.
- A goal I reached.
- Something I’ve learnt.
- A quote I love.
Slowly, this should turn into a book of inspiration for me to flick through when I’m not feeling great.
Have you ever heard of a 5 year diary before?
They come in three different versions:
- Five Year Memory Book (blue)
- Five Year Reflexion Book (yellow)
- Mom’s Five Year Memory Book (purple)
You can get your own 5 year diary from Amazon here.
Have you tried a one line a day diary? Could you keep up with a five year diary?
I have heard of this diary. It is very interesting to keep it and to read back after a while!
I have the blue one for a year now, and I really enjoy it!
I bought this as a gift to one of my friends, but kind of wish I got one for myself too – love the idea of them!
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x
You should get one for yourself 🙂
I really want one of these, I’ve been looking at them for ages. I love the idea of looking back in 5 years time and seeing what I was like 5 years ago and how different things are!
This is a really good post considering people are beginning to think about New Year’s Resolutions. This time of year, many people are self-reflecting, but struggle to keep that up throughout the year(s). Hopefully just a little entry each day will allow you to maintain that, which would do sooooo good for your positivity.
Yeah I can’t wait to use it! I’ll probably won’t write in it daily though but I’m going to try at least a few times a week!
That is such a good idea. It would have been great as a gift for someone in my family, I might get it for another occasion. I have to say I would like one too.
I like this book and the title great find doll.
I’ve wanted one of these for ages – it was on my Christmas wishlist but unfortunately Santa didn’t bring it this year. I might have to buy one for myself!
Maybe you should have been nicer 😉
I love the idea of this, especially to look back on. I could never keep up with keeping a daily diary I don’t think so something a bit shorter sounds perfect.
Kristy | http://www.thevioletblonde.com
I will definitely be ordering this today! So cool 🙂
Oh let me know how you get on with using it!
I am about to start something really similar, its called ‘Q and A a Day’ and its for 5 years as well!
I NEED THIS! I actually got a similar one (Q&A a day) for my bestfriend because she loves writing, so I thought why not. But I’ve wanted one for myself for a while. I need to check this bad boy out.
Ella x
Ohh that one sounds good, I’ll have to look it up.
I love this idea and I first heard about it because Arietty in the Borrowers does something similar – such a book nerd!
My sister and I were given 5 years diaries when she was about 16 and I was about 12 and I remember sneakily reading hers and then stupidly asking her why she didn’t like someone which she’d only mentioned in her diary- she instantly clocked I’d been at her diary! I’m not so good at keeping a diary nowadays but I like to think of my blog as that a bit! x
haha oh dear, you’re a terrible sister 😉 (I would have done the same!)
I’ve heard about it however haven’t really checked it. It has been some years since I’ve had a diary and I wasn’t really good at keeping one. I like the concept of it, so I might give it a try. x
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I have the blue 5 Year Memory Book and have almost completed my first full year of filling it in! It’s fantastic, it stops me from waffling on, and will be a great way to look back on how things have changed (hopefully for the better) as time goes on. Sometimes the problem is forgetting to fill it in for a few days then trying to remember the highlights/important things later on!
Sometimes I don’t know what to write and wonder if I should have got the 5 year q&a book!
Sarah 🙂
You’re the second person to talk about the Q&A book now! I need to look into it!
This looks yummy for my stationary addiction, One downside, I’m rubbish at keeping diaries. I write in them for a few days, get bored and give up. I like the thought of just needing a couple of lines per day as well as being able to look back at previous years and seeing how far you’ve come. Why don’t you do a follow-up post in 6 months time so you can show us how it’s going? Cx
I will do if I keep up with it! It would be so cool if I kept it up and could blog about it in 5 years when it’s done!
Sounds cool! Never heard of it before. Although I do know a journal here called A Line A Day but not for 5 years. Wishing you all the best! 😉
This looks amazing – I’m going to buy one today – what a lovely idea! x
Aww this is such a lovely book! I had no idea this existed! I was bought two diaries for 2015 and I used one to record one (or sometimes two!) thing that happened every day of the year. It’s so sweet to look back on all the things that happened because I’d forgotten so much of it, especially the small things. It also made me realise that my sense of time is terrible – my memory’s all in the wrong order!!
Jodie x
alajode.com
A great idea I would never find the time to fill it in though. A few years ago as a gift we gave the life diary which is an opportunity for those in your life to share things that you may not know as a means of passing information on. Good luck filling it in Lucy x
Oh I got the blue one a couple of years ago and only managed a couple of months before I forgot about it. So hard to keep up, but I imagine very rewarding once it’s finished and you can read back!
I hope I can keep up with it!
That’s really interesting! Thanks for sharing))
Happy New Year, Corinne!
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I love the idea of these 5 year diaries! It must be lovely to be able to look back and see how things have changed! x
Oh that’s a really cool idea! It’s all too easy to get caught up and not give the positives or the lessons a thought. This sounds like a great way to reflect on those each day, and into the future. I might be investing in one of these come pay day!
I have these in blue.. I just finished my first five year in 2015. Sad to see one of the journals come to an end.. i will no longer be able to look back at the days of previous years but excited to start a new one.
I’ve only seen a 3-year diary back in my place. I told myself I’d get one for Christmas but I only remembered it now. The problem is, I’m on a shopping ban. Still, I’m getting myself one of these when the ban is over.