| I agree, though I would extend the call to more than just a programming journal. All my life I've been told that keeping a journal would be a worthwhile and valuable experience. However, I could never stick with it for more than a few days or a week at max. Cut to this summer, where I got my first "real" job, and made friends with a very cool guy[1]. At some point, he mentioned how he adapted the idea of journaling into his life. He had encountered the same issue I had, where he could never keep a journal for any amount of time. Instead, he bought a moleskine large notebook and began using it for notes of all kinds. The genius is that while it is an organizational tool, it also acts as a "no-effort journal." He showed me all the things he had been working on and thinking about just by looking back at the previous pages of his notebook. With his advice in mind, I have also started keeping a notebook just to write things down in. It's tremendously helpful for my own organization, and it gives me a clear view of all the things I've had on my mind. In short, I recommend a notebook for everything in your life, not just programming (although a separate programming notebook may be worthwhile to you). [1]http://adamryman.com |