Shadow work journal prompts.
Sixty prompts about the parts of yourself you usually look away from: what irritates you, what you envy, what you hide. For noticing on paper, not for judging.
Start with the first group: a reaction from this week is easier to write about than an idea about yourself. Answer one prompt, describe rather than judge, and stop after ten minutes. If something heavy comes up, stop there.
The idea comes from the Swiss psychologist Carl Jung, the founder of analytical psychology. He used “the shadow” for the darker side of the personality: the parts of ourselves we don’t recognise or don’t want. In his account we tend to project them, meeting them first in other people without seeing that the source is our own (a summary of his book Aion, from the International Association for Analytical Psychology; an overview).
These prompts borrow the idea and keep it modest: noticing your own reactions on paper, without judging them. They are not therapy, and they leave out anything about trauma on purpose. If old pain comes up, that is a conversation for a qualified professional, not a page of prompts.
Strong reactions 10 prompts
Start with what annoys you. It is the easiest way in.
- Who irritated you this week, and what exactly did they do?
- Which habit in other people annoys you more than it seems to annoy anyone else?
- When did you last react more strongly than a situation needed?
- Finish this sentence five times: “I can’t stand people who…”
- Look at one of those sentences. Is there any small way it describes you too?
- Which kind of comment makes you defensive straight away?
- What do you complain about most often? What might the complaint be protecting?
- Describe a recent argument from the other person’s side, as fairly as you can.
- Which compliment do you find hardest to accept, and why?
- What would you never want to be called? Why does that word sting?
Envy and admiration 10 prompts
Envy points at something you want. Admiration can point at something you already have.
- Who do you envy, even a little? What do they have that you want?
- Which success of a friend’s was hard to celebrate?
- Who do you admire for a quality you say you don’t have?
- What would you do if you were as confident as the person you most admire?
- Which of your wants are you embarrassed to say out loud?
- What do you secretly hope people will notice about you?
- Which talent of yours do you play down? What would happen if you stopped?
- Write about someone whose life you compare with your own. What does the comparison leave out?
- What do you criticise in others that you would quite like to try yourself?
- Which ambition did you give up because it seemed like too much?
The face you show 10 prompts
The version of you other people meet, and what it leaves out.
- How do you want strangers to see you in the first five minutes?
- What do you hide at work or school that your friends know about?
- Which part of yourself do you keep for when you are alone?
- When did you last say “I’m fine” when you weren’t? What was the true answer?
- Which opinion do you keep to yourself to keep the peace?
- What do you pretend not to care about?
- Which role are you tired of playing?
- What would people be surprised to learn that you enjoy?
- When do you feel you are performing rather than being yourself?
- Write a short description of yourself that you would never post online.
Rules you were given 10 prompts
The “shoulds” you picked up before you could question them.
- List five things you believe you “should” do. Where did each one come from?
- Which feeling did you learn, somewhere along the way, not to show?
- What got praise when you were growing up, and what went unnoticed?
- Which rule do you still follow even though you no longer agree with it?
- What does “being good” mean to you, and where did that idea come from?
- Which habits of the adults who raised you do you notice in yourself?
- What were you not supposed to be when you were younger: loud, lazy, sad, proud?
- Which mistake are you hardest on yourself for? Whose voice does the criticism sound like?
- Pick one “should” from your list and rewrite it as a choice: “I could…”
- What permission would you like to give yourself that nobody gave you?
Patterns 10 prompts
What keeps happening, written down so you can see it.
- Which situation keeps repeating in your life, with different people?
- What do you do when you feel ignored?
- How do you behave when you are tired, hungry or rushed? Describe it without excuses and without blame.
- What do you avoid saying, even when you know it needs saying?
- What do you tell yourself just before you put something off?
- When do you go quiet instead of saying what you think?
- Which of your reactions surprises the people who know you?
- What do you do to feel in control when things are uncertain?
- Think of a time you were unfair to someone. What were you protecting?
- Which pattern would you most like to catch early next time? What is its first sign?
Making room 10 prompts
Not fixing yourself: noticing, naming, and keeping what is useful.
- Pick one trait you dislike in yourself. When has it been useful?
- What would a kind but honest friend say about the pattern you wrote about this week?
- Which of your “bad” qualities has a good twin? Stubborn and determined, for example.
- What did the reaction that surprised you most teach you about yourself?
- Write a short, understanding note to the part of you that gets angry.
- Which feeling would you like to allow yourself more often?
- What can you admit on the page today that you could not have admitted a year ago?
- How could your strongest reaction this week become a question instead of a verdict?
- What would change if you stopped hiding one small thing?
- Read back one of your earlier answers. What do you notice now that you missed while writing it?
- Name the feeling exactly. Annoyed, resentful, jealous and hurt are not the same. Choosing the precise word is good English practice and good thinking: I felt resentful, not angry.
- Describe, don’t judge. Phrases of observation keep an entry calm: I noticed…, I tend to…, and I found myself + -ing: I found myself interrupting her.
If something you write about feels too heavy to carry alone, you don’t have to. Talk to someone you trust, a doctor, or a support service where you live.
Frequently asked
What is shadow work journaling? Writing about the parts of yourself you usually avoid looking at: strong reactions, envy, the things you hide. The idea of the “shadow” comes from the psychologist Carl Jung. On this page it means noticing your reactions on paper, without judging them.
Is shadow work a kind of therapy? Not on this page. These prompts are for reflection, not treatment, and they leave out trauma on purpose. If writing brings up something painful, stop, and talk to someone you trust or to a qualified professional.
More prompts: morning · evening · gratitude · self-reflection · goals · writing in English · self-love · relationships · creativity · new year · 30-day challenge, or all twelve themes. New to journaling? Start with how to start a journal.