I have a friend who has struggled with her creativity for a \rlong time. She's extremely uncomfortable thinking of herself \ras "creative." We've been working together on it, and making \rprogress. One of the tools that's really helped her has been \rjournaling.

From Julia Cameron's The Artist Way to Natalie Goldberg's \rWriting Down the Bones to Linda Trichter Metcalf, Ph.D. and \rTobin Simon, Ph.D.'s Writing the Mind Alive to numerous \rother publications, journaling has enjoyed a long history of \rcreative-nurturing along with a host of other benefits.

For my purposes, I'm defining journaling as any sort of \rloose, longhand writing. Whatever thoughts come into your \rhead you put them down on paper. There's no structure, no \rform, nor concern about spelling or grammar or even \rlegibility.

Even if writing isn't your dream, incorporating a regular \rprogram of journaling into your life is a wonderful way to \rjump-start your creativity and cultivate a constant flow of new \rideas. Here are three reasons why.

1. Helps you get rid of the junk in your head. We all have it. \rJunk thoughts. Everything from self-defeating comments \r("Oh, I'll never be good at that." or "Who told you that you \rcould be a writer?") to the "worry of the moment" to neurosis \rof every type to the ever-growing, constant to-do lists.

Who can be creative with all that noise going on? For that \rmatter, who could even hear a creative thought over all that \rracket?

Journaling is a way to quiet the mind. Writing all that junk \rdown transfers it from your head to the paper. Suddenly, you \rfind you can actually think rather than simply react.

The best part is this quiet lasts long after the journaling is \rdone for the day. And if you journal frequently, then the effect \ris cumulative.

When I finish journaling, I find that I feel peaceful. Calm. \rAble to focus. The junk is gone, leaving space to be creative.

2. Gives you a chance to try new ideas. What better way to \rsee if a new idea will work than to try it out on paper? You \rcan write out the pros and cons, describe a scenario, play \r"what if" games ("What if my new business was \rsuccessful?" "What if I tried that new advertising \rcampaign?" "What if I contacted the editor at Money \rMagazine?"). And the best part is it's all in a private little \rnotebook that no one will ever have to see.

Try writing down your hopes, dreams, goals, visions. Play \raround with them. You may find as you journal about them, \ra strategy for making them come true suddenly presents \ritself, right there in the pages of your notebook.

3. Helps you build a bridge to your muse. This one really \ronly kicks in after you've sufficiently done number one (at \rleast, this is the way it works for me). It seems only after I've \rgotten most of the junk out of my head that the muse \rsometimes slips out to play a bit.

How do you know the muse came to visit you? When that \rbrilliant idea flashes in your head. It may not happen while \ryou're journaling, but instead while you're showering, \rwalking, driving or something else. This is the muse talking \rto you.

It's important to remember muses have quiet voices. They \rcan easily be drowned out by the incessant bickering of the \rother noisy chatter going on in your head. Once you can get \rthose other voices to shut up, you can start to listen for the \rmuse.

Don't worry if this doesn't happen right away. There have \rbeen weeks and even months when I write nothing but junk \rdown. But then, one day, that great idea appears on the \rpaper or in my head as I'm walking my dogs.

And when that happens, I know all the time I spent \rjournaling about nothing has paid off.

Creativity Exercises -- Journal more ideas

I would love it if you made a pact with yourself to journal \rregularly for a month. If that's too much of a commitment for \ryou, try it as a creativity exercise.

Write down your challenge at the top of a piece of paper. \rMaybe it's ways to increase business or promote your \rproducts more or a new PR campaign. Now just start writing \rabout it.

Don't think, just write. Fill a few pages of musing about that \rparticular challenge. Don't type it either -- write longhand. If \ryou wander away from it, try nudging yourself back.

Write for at least 20 minutes. If no answer presents itself in \rthat time, don't get too hung up about it. Try it again the next \rday or a few days in a row. Sometimes it just takes awhile to \rjar things loose. And remember, great ideas have a \rtendency to pop up in the most unexpected places, not just \rwhen you're doing something "creative."

Michele Pariza Wacek is the author of "Got Ideas? Unleash \rYour Creativity and Make More Money." She offers two free \re-zines that help subscribers combine their creativity with \rhard-hitting marketing and copywriting principles to become \rmore successful at attracting new clients, selling products \rand services and boosting business. She can be reached \rat TheArtistSoul.com.