My Union Journal

2008 was a year that will certainly go down in history.  Do not let 2009 pass you by without recording what will happent in your life.  You may be planning a family vacation.  Or, like many Americans, you may just be trying to figure out where all your 401K money went and you want a place to vent about your financial stress.  Perhaps, you are expecting a child or new grandchild this year.  You need to write about your experiences.  Maybe you will be getting a new job or expect to change career paths.  Well, write about your experience.  Create a journal for 2009 and start your legacy.  You will never get this year back!

First of all, Merry Christmas to all our readers!  We hope you have the happiest of holidays.  Now that the new year is upon us already, do you have any major plans, goals, resolutions, or the like for 2009?  We all make new years resolutions or goals for ourselves, but so often, we seem to put them on the backburner by February or March.  Have you actually ever stuck to a new year resolution the entire year?  It is tough!  So, here’s a simple and quick idea to help you keep your 2009 resololutions and goals in check.  WRITE THEM DOWN!

Yes, something as simple as putting them down on paper actually instills in you a sense of obligation to complete the goals.  It is almost like a contract with yourself.  Let’s take it one step further.  Create an electronic journal right here with MUJ and make an electronic list of your 2009 goals in your journal.  You can login anytime to re-visit what your original goals were and you can update your progress throughout the year with the awesome calendar feature offered in this online journal.  At the end of 2009, log back into your journal to view your original list of goals and resolutions to see if you actually completed them.  Then take notes on how you did or why you did not complete the resolutions.  You will forever have a record right here in your journal that you can login forever to see what you did in 2009.  Create your journal today, make your 2009 new year resolutions, and have a prosperous year!

Have you ever considered writing a career journal?  First, you should know what a career journal is.  Well, it pretty much explains itself.  Simply put, you write about your career; past, present and future.  Yes, write about all the jobs you have ever had since you first began working.  Record details that you really like and disliked about certain professions.  Write about what you currently like and dislike about your present day career.  And, write about what you would like to do in the future, even if it seems like a pipe dream right now.

Consider this, if you set down, not necessarily in one session and write about your career and everything you have ever done, it could prove extremely beneficial.  When you need to update that resume, you could quickly reference your journal for a recap.  More importantly, you could put all the pros and cons of your past and current positions into their respective categories.

Next, take a long hard look at the pros section of your list and decide if your current career is fulfilling most of those pros.  If not, you should consider what kind of career would fulfill those pros and start going for it.  Most people change careers at least 7 to 10 times in their life.  If you set a goal, know what you like and dislike about certain jobs, then you can really go for your dreams.

So, create a career journal today right here with MUJ!  It may just make your professional life much more fulfilling someday.

What an interesting time to be watching the gas prices fall.  On one month the average gas prices have fallen from $3.14 per gallon to $1.92 per gallon.  And the average gas prices have fallen daily for the past 50+ days.  Why is this a good topic to journal about?  Well, it is historic.

Do you remember a time in your life when you have seen gas prices swing so high and then all of a sudden drop so low and so quickly?  It is in fact a wonderful boost to our terrible economic condition to have cheaper gas prices, and you may find it interesting to chronicle in your personal journal. 

You may want to even do a little research on why gas prices have all of a sudden fallen so drastically, but I will give you a clue.  One huge reason is that gas prices follow the price of crude oil in the commodoties market.  The price of a barrell of oil (crude oil) has fallend from around $150 to around $60 now.  That is a huge drop and it is clearly reflected in gas prices. 

So, definately make a journal entry today about gas prices in your area and even write about what you are going to do with the extra money you are saving on gas.  Happy Journaling!

Are you the type of person who likes to blame everyone else or other external forces for everything that is going bad in your life?  Maybe you don’t even realize it, but just think for a moment.  When something goes badly at work, do you say “Why does that always have to happen to me?”  Or, do you say something like, “When am I going to catch my big break?”  Maybe you are setting yourself up for failure and a life of disappointment just in the way you think and talk. 

Why don’t you try this first.  Write you your journal about the good things going on in your life and write about some of the things you would like to accomplish.  This will start putting you in a positive frame of mind and it will also give you an opportunity to see in writing what you really want out of life.  Maybe you have never really thought about it, but we all really want something.  So go for it.

Next, change your bad habit of negative talk and negative questioning.  When you go to work and something goes wrong, for example, with a co-worker.  Ask yourself, “what can I do to make this situation better”, and then do it.  If you are passed over for a raise, ask yourself, “how can I increase my job performance to make sure I am the next in line for promotion?”  Never assume that just because you are there and have been loyal to your job for a long time that everything is going to go your way.

Practice positive thinking and positive questioning outside of work too.  How about in your personal finances.  Instead of asking yourself why you never have any money, ask yourself what you can do to stretch your dollar further, and then act on it!  Do not ever assume anyone around you is going to take responsibility for making sure you are best served.  You are really responsible for your own destiny and anything good and/or bad that may come your way.

Sure, we all have bad days, but just always pick yourself up and begin asking yourself, “how can I make tomorrow better?”  Enjoy life, it is but a fleeting moment, and don’t forget to practice some of these techniques in your journal just to get in the habit of thinking and questioning in a positive manner.

Don’t forget to vote tomorrow (11/04/2008).  It is one of our most precious rights as Americans living in this democracy.  You should certainly exercise that right.  Even if you have to wait in line; suck it up and go vote.  There are so many citizens of other countries that would absolutely love to vote for their leaders and representatives.  Don’t take it for granted.

After you vote, come back to MUJ and create a journal or login to your journal and write about your voting experience.  It is a historical election and it will be nice to look back on your journal in a few years to see whether you chose McCain or Obama, and also write about your voting experience.  Maybe you are going to vote at a local community center or at your courthouse; well write about it.  What kind of ballot did you cast (electronic or other)?  How long did you wait in line?  Was the voting process easy?  Or any number of issues that arise while you vote.

We only have the opportunity to vote for our President every four years, so it is certainly important that you vote.  And, it is a great idea to record your experience right here in your journal!  Go vote.

Recently a story came to my attention that really opened my eyes to the wonderful benefits of journaling.  A young woman was struggling with depression.  She just could not seem to shake the depression no matter what she tried.  She read self-help books, took anti-depressive vitamins and other medications.  One of her friends suggested she go see a counselor and the counselor gave her a simple suggestion.  Write in a journal.  So, the young woman researched several journals and considered several physical journals and electronic journals.  She ultimately chose a private web-based journal because it just fit her lifesytle better and she could login from home, work or her phone to write.  Plus, all her journal writings would remain completely private.  It was just the best fit for her.

On her next session with the counselor, the young woman asked her counselor what she should be writing about.  The counselor told her to just start “free writing”, meaning just write whatever comes to your mind.  So she did, and guess what.  The young woman started spilling her heart out in her journal and all of a sudden things from her past started coming out that she had completely forgot about.  Obviously she had repressed memories of some bad experiences in her life.  Fortunately, this free writing technique completely turned her life around. 

Now, the young woman is a mother of three, with a wonderful husband and a healthy and happy life.  She still writes in her journal regularly!  This is a great success story on the power of journaling and will certainly help others that may be experiencing similar depressive tendencies.  Create Your Journal.

Can you really put a price on your words?  Well, maybe, but the truth is that a journal or diary is intended to be a private place for you to go and really just spill your heart.  Many people like to publicly share their journals through other online sources, however, those journals or diaries are probably not always true representations of the person’s soul.  And really, who cares about someone else’s private journal.  To keep your complete privacy in regards to your diary entries and/or personal photos, you really cannot utilize one of the public websites that publish all your material.  Even if they claim that your journal/diary is private, the publishers of the website can often see your entries.  This is not the case here with My Union Journal. 

When you create a journal with MUJ, not even the publishers of this site can see your content.  Here’s the really cool part, you create your own password, and you simply provide the publishers of MUJ with a hint of that password.  We really never know what your password is.  Just in case you ever forget your password, we can provide you with the hint that you originally gave to us, but that’s it.  Only you know your password, and only your password can open and unscramble your journal.  Yes, your journal is completely scrambled until you login with your unique password, to virtually unlock your journal. 

So, to put a value on your journal is up to you, but you can certainly afford the modest $1.85 monthly fee for MUJ.  Or, to make it even more affordable, just pay for the entire year for only $6.95.  Choose MUJ, the most secure journal online!

It is a great idea to keep your travel journal online.  Maybe you only take one vacation per year, or perhaps you go on many.  Maybe you are a constant business traveler and basically live out of a suitcase.  Regardless of your travel habits, it is a great idea to keep a journal of your adventures.  When recording information about a trip in your journal, make sure this information is always included:

1. Who was involved.
2. Date (with MyUnionJournal you will login to the exact date - it makes this simple).
3. Name / City you traveled to.
4. Reason for travel (vacation, family reunion, business, etc.).
5. Events that took place (the story or account of the experience).
6. Special memories of your trip.
7. Attach pictures to your journal from the trip.

Remember to try and record your information about your trip as soon as possible.  It is amazing how quickly we forget the little details. 

Some great tips on photos to upload to your journal from your world travels. 

There are many different types of photographs you might want to save to your journal, depending on the trip. If you are on vacation with your family, obviously a group photo should be saved to your journal.  Maybe you visit all four parks in Disney World and you have a photo of you in front of all the parks’ signature points of interest (i.e. Cinderalla’s Castle); upload these photos.  Maybe you are visiting your grandparents for Christmas.  Put in pictures of your grandparents as they will be precious to you when you no longer have your grandparents.

You might want to include pictures of your children jumping in a pool, your favorite restaurant to eat at on vacation, or take a quick snapshot of the hotel/condo you are staying in so you can remeber from year to year whether or not you really liked the place. 

The objective is to capture the travels of your life in your online journal by combining photographs, and written memoirs. By recording your travels in this way, you will have a precious gift for a lifetime. You will be preserving memories, and it will become more valuable with each passing year.  Register With MUJournal Today.

Just look around you.  So many historical activities are happening right now that will be written about in history for years to come.  Yes, most of it is negative as reported by the news, but it is still very noteworthy.  I want to point out a couple of these points of interest that you may want to consider journaling about.  By chronicling your life in you own private journal you can look back years down the road and read your own writings to see exactly what you were experiencing at that time.  Here are some great things to write about:

1. The current state of our US and global economy.  We are seeing unprecedented swings in the stock market during daily trading.  This is driven by the poor housing market and the failed financial institutions.  Now, the government has stepped in to “bail out” or “rescue” these failed institutions to the tune of $750 billion dollars of the taxpayers money.  A good point of journaling is how this has affected you.  Maybe you have lost a lot of money in your 401k or perhaps you are going to have to push back retirement.  Maybe you are a student and you were unable to acquire a student loan to go to college because of this crisis.  Write about it in your journal.
2. We are in the midst of a historic presidential election.  There will be a first in 2008 regardless of who wins the election.  If the Democrats bring victory, then it will be the first time in history that a person of color (Barack Obama) will be President.  If the Republicans bring victory, then it will be the first time in history that a woman (Sarah Palin) will be Vice-President.  This is a great subject to write about in your journal to remember which ticket you voted.