New Year Journal Prompts: 60 Questions for a Fresh Start

A new year asks a lot of a blank page. Resolutions, goals, a whole new you by the second week of January. These prompts ask for less: what you want the year to feel like, and one small step toward it.

New year journal prompts help you set intentions for the year ahead: how you want it to feel, what you want more and less of, a word of the year, a few goals and the first small step. Pick a group below for three prompts at a time, then use the 60 prompts to write a few pages in the first week of January.

Pick a new year prompt

How do you want this year to feel, in three words?
What would a good ordinary Tuesday look like this year?
When do you want to feel most like yourself this year?

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Quick takeaways

Look back before you look forward. A short review of last year makes this year’s plans more realistic.
Write how you want the year to feel before you write goals.
Phrase goals as things to do, not things to stop. Research suggests that works better.
A word of the year is easy to remember and easy to use.
Choose one first step you can take in the first week of January.

Why use journal prompts for the new year?

Journal prompts slow the new year down. Instead of rushing into resolutions, you think about what you want and why, which makes the goals you do set more specific. Writing them down also gives you something to reread in March, when the new-year energy has faded.

The first week of January is a natural time for a fresh start. It works best as a direction rather than a test you can fail by January 12. If you haven’t looked back yet, the end of year reflection questions are a good place to start.

Do new year’s resolutions work better as “do” or “don’t” goals?

Resolutions to start or do something tend to last longer than resolutions to stop or avoid something. In a Swedish study of 1,066 people, 58.9% of those with approach goals (“start running”) considered themselves successful a year later, compared with 47.1% of those with avoidance goals (“stop eating sweets”).

The study, by Martin Oscarsson and colleagues, was published in PLOS ONE in 2020. The takeaway for your journal is simple: turn “stop scrolling at night” into “read ten pages before bed.” Same aim, but you know what to do instead.

A wish, an obstacle and a plan. Three lines that make a goal real.

New year intentions prompts

Intentions describe how you want to live, rather than what you want to achieve. These prompts help you find the feeling you want and the small ways to get there.

How do you want this year to feel?
What do you want more of this year?
What do you want less of?
What kind of friend, partner or family member do you want to be this year?
What would you like to make time for?
What would you like to stop making time for?
Where do you want to spend your attention?
What does a good day look like for you?
What would you like to feel when you wake up?
What would you like to feel when you go to bed?
What promise could you make to yourself that you know you can keep?
Who do you want to become a little more like this year?

Word of the year prompts

A word of the year is a single word that guides your choices, like “steady,” “brave,” “home” or “less.” These prompts help you choose one and put it to work.

List ten words that describe the year you want.
Which word on your list feels a little scary? Why?
Choose one word. Write what it means to you in three sentences.
How could your word change an ordinary Monday?
What would your word tell you to say no to?
What would your word tell you to say yes to?
Where will you put your word so you see it daily?
Look back at last year. What word would have described it?

New year goal-setting prompts

These prompts turn intentions into a few clear goals. Keep them few, phrase them as things to do, and plan for the obstacle before it arrives.

What three things would you most like to do this year?
Why does each one matter to you?
Which goal would make the others easier?
What is the first small step for each goal?
What might get in the way? What will you do when it does?
Who could help you with each goal?
How will you know you’re making progress?
When will you check in on your goals? Write the dates.
What goal from last year is worth trying again, differently?
What would you be happy to achieve, even if it’s smaller than you hoped?

Planning for the obstacle is the core of WOOP (wish, outcome, obstacle, plan), and the vision board ideas include a planner that walks you through it for each area of your life.

A new year starts in the dark. Plan for the short days, not just the big ones.

Fresh start prompts

Fresh start prompts are about beginning again: clearing space, setting up routines and giving yourself permission to change. Use them in the first week of January or any time you want a reset.

What would you like to clear out before the year gets busy?
What routine would make your mornings easier?
What routine would make your evenings calmer?
What would you do this year if you weren’t worried about being bad at it?
What’s one thing you’ve been putting off that you could do this week?
What would a fresh start look like in your home?
What habit would you like to build, one day at a time?
What would you like to learn this year?
Write a letter to yourself on January 1, to open on December 31.
Describe the version of you who reads this next December.

Gentle new year prompts for a hard year

Not every new year feels like a fresh start. If last year was hard, these prompts are about getting through the next few weeks kindly, not transforming your life.

What did you survive last year that you’re not giving yourself credit for?
What do you need most right now?
What’s one thing that would make this week a little easier?
Who could you let help you this year?
What can you let go of without replacing it?
What small comfort could you build into each day?
What would it look like to go slower this year?
What would you say to a friend starting the year the way you are?
What’s enough for January?
Write down one thing you’re looking forward to, however small.

Prompts for the first week of January

The first week is where intentions become habits. Use one prompt a day for the first seven days, then keep going with whichever you liked best.

Day 1: What do you want to remember about today?
Day 2: What did you do today that fits the year you want?
Day 3: What got in the way today, and what could you try tomorrow?
Day 4: What are you enjoying about this week?
Day 5: What’s one thing you did for someone else?
Day 6: What did you notice today that you usually miss?
Day 7: Looking at the week, what do you want to keep doing?
Bonus: What’s your one intention for the rest of January?
Bonus: What will you tell yourself on the first day you miss?
Bonus: What would make February easier?

If you plan on paper, the January bullet journal guide covers a goals page and a word-of-the-year spread. For a habit to track, the habit tracker ideas include 100 to choose from. More prompts for every season are in the journal prompts hub.

New year journal questions

What should I write in my journal on New Year’s Day?

Write how you want the year to feel, one word for the year, three things you’d like to do and a first small step for each. Keep it to a page or two.

How do I set intentions for the new year?

Start with how you want to feel, then write a few sentences about what that looks like on an ordinary day. Intentions are about direction, not targets.

What is a word of the year?

A single word that guides your choices for the year, like “steady,” “brave” or “less.” Write it somewhere you’ll see it every day.

Should I make new year’s resolutions?

If they help you, yes. Research suggests goals framed as things to do tend to last longer than goals framed as things to stop, so “walk after lunch” beats “stop sitting all day.”

What if I miss a few days in January?

Start again the next day. A missed day doesn’t cancel an intention, and the prompts work any time of year.