I've been journaling almost every day for 15+ years. I've a bookshelf of full, handwritten, unlined notebooks...<p>When I journal with pen and paper, it's less about recording 'task and goals' or being 'productive'. Instead, I sit down to just write. I explore whatever's on my mind. And if there's nothing, I just write until something interesting shows itself... and invariably, something almost always does. Writing in this way is about letting go, about listening to what You really care about in that moment.<p>But I also journal digitally, (used to use Evernote, now just use Atom). This is where I keep my project notes and ideas, stuff that I want to record, come back to, and edit. The point of this is to keep my ideas / projects organized. While my folder structures are strict, what goes in the files is all very freeform.<p>I also wrote an app (www.bicycl.com) to save the gems from all my journaling, since it's easy to lose track of and forget key insights.<p>The key to journaling is about reflection... developing self-awareness about how you relate to the future (goals, tasks), the past (what's happened, stories, accomplishments), and the present (emotions, inspiration, insights). If you find you're always thinking about 1 of those, try to understand why. Perhaps, look instead at a different vector to see from a whole new perspective.