As soon as we knew it, it was August first, and we're left wondering, “where did time go?" July flew past, and for a lot of us, it's time to close our summer on a good note, and start planning for school in the fall. Starting a journaling routine is a phenomenal way to organize your thoughts, schedule, goals, and plans. Sometimes it's a struggle to actually find time to sit down every day and put that pen to paper, but it's incredibly fulfilling to do, a great reflection, and an amazing routine starter. To make it a little easier on you, I came up with journal prompts for the beginnings of August, to start reflecting on the past few months of summer, and begin setting goals for this upcoming school year.

Name one thing you're grateful for today - it can be an experience, a person, an animal, a situation, something in your life, or even something that you did/didn't do. Be specific, and really dig into why you're grateful for it.

What is one thing you did today that you're proud of yourself for?

What is one situation, scenario, or thing that you did/went through today that you know you could've taken more out of? How could you have pushed yourself more, and why didn't you?

How did you take care of yourself today, mentally, emotionally, and/or spiritually?

What are your career goals for the next few months, year, few years, and a decade in advance? Where do you want to see yourself thrive?

How can you take everyday steps to get there? How will these steps accumulate, but most of all, what will these goals accomplish for you?

What are your personal goals for the next few months, year, few years, and a decade ahead? What do you want to work on, and where do you see yourself then?

How can you take everyday steps to get there? How will these steps accumulate, but most of all, what will these goals accomplish for you?

What did you do today to meet your overall goals, and how can you take small steps every day to meet those goals?

Describe the most recent scenario that made you feel 100% nothing but gratitude. That full-heart, teary eyed, gratitude.

What can you do in the every day to find that same gratitude, and how will it be easy/difficult for you? How could you push past this?

Looking back on these summer months, how have they met, exceeded, or fallen short of your expectations? Without judging your situation, why do you think this is? What can you do to make the most out of every day left of your summer?

What are your top five main goals for this school year, and how can you stick to them? What will you do every day to work to achieve these goals?

Instead of beating yourself up over not meeting a goal at a particular time, what can you do instead? How can you reevaluate and move forward?

Name a few things that you just love. An activity, a hobby, a situation, a person, something that someone you love does, a personality trait, a thing, anything. Describe it in detail.