100 Shadow Work Journaling Prompts

Shadow work helps us explore and integrate suppressed layers of the psyche. Here are 100 journaling prompts to help you get started with shadow work right now.

Shadow work is a modality that aims to resolve unwanted and repressed aspects of the self (such as greed, lust, anger, or aggression). The goal is to turn these unwanted traits into an asset rather than a liability.

Practicing shadow work is a lifelong process — but even just a small amount of effort applied in the form of journaling can make some substantial leaps and bounds in eliminating some of our toxic patterns or traits.

There’s a lot of low-hanging fruit here regarding personal development that starts by simply answering a few confronting questions about who you “think” you are.

This post includes 100 shadow work questions which are broken down into 23 different sections each exploring a specific aspect of shadow work. You can use them however you like, but I recommend focusing on just one section per day.

Shadow Work in A Nutshell

Shadow work is a concept introduced by the Swiss psychologist Carl Gustav Jung.

The idea starts with our persona — which is the “you” that you present when you want people to accept and like you. All the parts that don’t fit that ideal persona are repressed. These repressed aspects make up the shadow.

We repress traits that don’t conform with our persona — but that doesn’t mean they aren’t still there. Repressed traits remain deep within the unconscious where they maintain influence over how we think and act.

The more we suppress our shadow selves (either knowingly or unknowingly), the stronger it becomes.

Engaging in shadow work is a process of identifying and acknowledging the traits we suppress and reintegrating them into the psyche in a healthy way. This removes the unconscious control they have over our thoughts and actions.

Traits commonly found in the shadow (not all are inherently “negative”):

• Selfishness

• Lust

• Greed

• Anger

• Envy

• Desire

• Playfulness

• Creativity

• Sexual Desires

• Jealousy

• Fear

• Shame

• Pride

How To Use Journaling For Shadow Work

Shadow work requires considerable moral effort. It involves acknowledging the dark aspects of one’s personality that may be hard to accept. We’re forced to consult our resentments in life and dig to the root of the problems — none of which is easy.

Journaling is the easiest way to get started with shadow work. By following the prompts, we can tap into the mind and identify aspects of the shadow you may be oblivious to. And best of all, it’s free.

Once you’ve identified the shadow, the real work begins to integrate it.

Tips for getting the most from your shadow work journaling practice:

1. Aim to be as authentic and honest as possible (it’s going to feel uncomfortable at times).

2. Practice tapping into your emotions — nobody is going to read this, so let anything that pops up come out onto the page.

3. The prompts below will help you get started, but feel free to write down anything else that comes up during the session.

4. Don’t feel pressured to write a lot — journalling isn’t a competition and works best when it happens organically. If you only have a few words to say, just leave it there and come back to it later.

5. Set up a routine or ritual around your journaling — this will help get you into the right mindset for the practice to work more efficiently.

How to Use These Shadow Journaling Prompts

These prompts are broken up into 23 sections to introduce you to different aspects of shadow work. Each module has a specific focus and is designed to help you identify with different aspects of your shadow.

Some of these questions may be triggering. The very nature of shadow work is to point out aspects of your personality that your ego disagrees with. When the ego is challenged, it can become defensive. This is where the need for “moral effort” comes in.

Often, the questions we have the hardest time answering or find the most pointless offer us the most value. There’s usually a reason our minds feel repelled by certain types of questions or prompts. The whole point of this journaling is to probe the psyche and challenge the ego so we can become more conscious.

I recommend treating each module as its own session and doing them day-by-day — but you can use these prompts however you like.

Take some time first thing in the morning or in the evening before bed. Meditate, make some tea, or do whatever you need to do to get yourself into inquiry mode.

100 Shadow Work Journaling Prompts To Become More Conscious

Without further ado, let’s get started with the prompts.

1. Setting Intentions

Warriors use their intent and will to shape their lives. All of their actions are conscious, intentional, and complete. — Kerr Cuhulain

A core aspect of shadow work is to set some intentions before you begin. What do you want to get out of your shadow work practice? What brought you here?

The Prompts:

• What aspects of yourself would you like to improve? Why?

• What does the term ‘Shadow Work’ mean to you?

• What are three main goals you want to achieve with your shadow work?

• What are your motivations for exploring shadow work?

2. Identifying the Shadow

Your Shadow is all of the things, ‘positive’ and ‘negative,’ that you’ve denied about yourself and hidden beneath the surface of the mask you forgot that you’re wearing.” — Oli Anderson.

The first step in the process is to learn how to identify aspects of your shadow. This involves consulting your resentments and probing the psyche for traits we don’t want to accept about ourselves.

Think about any dark desires or fantasies you may hold. Consider how you may be projecting aspects of your own shadow onto others. Define specific traits you deem “good” or “bad” and why you might label them this way.

The Prompts:

• Make a list of the traits you consider to be the “worst” traits a person can have?

• Make a list of the traits you consider to be the “best” traits a person can have?

• What causes you to feel shame?

• Are there any traits you have that you consider “negative” that also provide you with some sort of advantage or benefit in life?

• How do you measure success? What motivates you to achieve success?

• Do you have any dark desires or fantasies? Where might these desires come from?

2.1. The Persona

Personality is like a charioteer with two headstrong horses, each wanting to go in different directions. — Martin Luther King, Jr.

The persona is the outward-facing self. It’s the mask we wear in the world that projects our ideal traits to conform with others and be liked.

Our persona may not match who we truly are underneath the mask.

In order to maintain our persona, we must lie to ourselves and others. We hide the negative parts we don’t want others to see and highlight the traits we want to embody.

Everything we hide from our persona ends up becoming our shadow.

The Prompts:

• How do you want other people to see you?

• What do you lie to others about? Why?

• What do you lie to yourself about? Why?

• What do you wish people understood about you?

• When do you feel most capable of being your true self?

2.2. The Golden Shadow

For things to reveal themselves to us, we need to be ready to abandon our views about them — Thich Nhat Hanh.

The shadow is a powerful force — forming much of our creative and destructive powers.

Learning to define your shadow and acknowledge its existence allows you to take advantage of this power in a healthy and constructive way.

Not all parts of the shadow are negative. The shadow merely represents the traits we suppress.

Sometimes, this can involve “positive” aspects like playfulness, sexual desire, or creativity. This is referred to as the “golden shadow.”

The Prompts:

• Who do you admire most? What traits do you admire about them?

• Which of your traits or characteristics are you most proud of?

• Under what conditions do you experience your most inspired and creative self?

2.3. Animus/Anima

What is the most beautiful in virile men is something feminine; what is most beautiful in feminine women is something masculine — Susan Sontag.

Part of the shadow is comprised of concepts called the anima and the animus.

The animus is the unconscious masculine traits in women, and the anima is the unconscious feminine traits in men.

In young boys, the anima is often suppressed when he’s taught to subdue traits conventionally viewed as “feminine” — such as dancing, playing with dolls, showing signs of vulnerability, expressing love or emotion, etc.

In young girls, the animus is suppressed when they suppress masculine traits — such as aggression and competitiveness.

The Prompts:

• What are your preconceptions towards masculinity? Where did these come from?

• What are your preconceptions towards femininity? Where did these come from?

• Make a list of your masculine traits, behaviors, and desires.

• Make a list of your feminine traits, behaviors, or desires.

3. Shadow Suppression

The ability to observe without evaluating is the highest form of intelligence — Jiddu Krishnamurti.

When we have a thought, emotion, or urge that conflicts with our persona, the mind will attempt to ignore it and pretend it doesn’t exist. This is easier than working out the paradox this feeling presents.

We can repress these urges or emotions, but there’s a consequence to doing this.

Unconsciously, these suppressed urges can influence our conscious actions — leading to confirmation biases, projection of our negative traits onto others, or compulsions for activities that help avoid having to face our conflicting or hypocritical thoughts or emotions.

The Prompts:

• Do you have any addictive tendencies or compulsions? What do they do for you?

• Which cognitive biases are you most guilty of?

• Are there any groups or individuals you dislike? What don’t you like about them?

4. Self-Awareness

Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life, and you will call it fate — Carl Jung.

People are not born completely self-aware — it’s a learned process that takes effort and mentorship to develop completely.

Working to improve your self-awareness will make it easier to observe the psyche and identify the influence past traumas or upbringing have on the unconscious mind.

The Prompts:

• What makes you feel powerful?

• What makes you feel calm & relaxed?

• How do you recharge?

• How do you put yourself first without feeling guilty?

• How do you spend your time when you’re alone?

4.1. Somatic Manifestation

All emotions, even those that are suppressed and unexpressed, have physical effects. Unexpressed emotions tend to stay in the body like small ticking time bombs—they are illnesses in incubation — Marilyn Van M. Derbur.

The “somatic shadow” is the physical manifestation of our unconscious shadow.

This is what causes your throat to feel tight or your muscles to tense up when trying to talk about topics that bother you or make you uncomfortable.

Learning how to notice the physical signs of unconscious influences is a helpful way of noticing and acknowledging the shadow.

The Prompts:

• What are the first signs that you’re burning out?

• What are the physical manifestations that present when your mental health starts to dip?

• What physical reactions present when you’re angry?

• What physical reactions present when you’re happy or excited?

5. The Collective Unconscious

Knowing your own darkness is the best method for dealing with the darknesses of other people — Carl Jung

The collective unconscious is a concept highlighted by Carl Jung that describes the deepest layers of our unconscious self. It’s shared by all humans.

Jung outlined this concept and brought it to the field of psychology, but he wasn’t the first person to identify this unconscious realm. Many cultures throughout history have mentioned the idea of a shared collective consciousness.

The collective unconscious refers to fragments of memory passed down from previous generations that exert unconscious influence over our thoughts and actions.

When we’re born, we’re essentially given “memories” from events we never experienced.

Jung observed that people from all different cultures would often experience similar imagery in dreams — called primordial imagery. He postulated that there are indications of “templates” of human psyches.

Exploring one’s collective unconscious involves dream analysis with the help of a Jungian psychoanalyst. Some find psychedelics help bring out these dream imagery where they can be interpreted later.

The Prompts:

• Do you have recurring nightmares? What’s the theme?

• Are there any recurring images or symbols that appear to you in dreams, psychedelic experiences, or day-to-day?

• Do you find patterns or synchronicities that can’t be explained? What do you make of them?

• Write down a full account of a dream you’ve had recently. Try to include as many details as possible.

6. Shadow Projection

Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves — Carl Jung.

We project our suppressed “undesirable” traits onto others around us.

This means that, somewhat ironically, the traits we find most annoying or unbearable in others are a mirror image of the traits we work so hard to suppress in ourselves.

The Prompts:

• What traits or characteristics in others do you find irritating?

• When was the last time you felt disappointed? What caused it? Was it justified?

• Who do you envy? What do you envy about them?

• What’s one trait you see in other people that you wish you had? Why don’t you possess this characteristic yourself?

• Write about a person you’ve never forgiven. What happened, and why did you not forgive them? Do you think you could forgive them now?

7. Triggers

If you are easily provoked, you are easily controlled — Unknown.

We can suppress traits and urges successfully — for a time. However, if subjected to enough stress, or if that stress is applied to particularly sensitive areas of the psyche — the shadow can pierce through the unconscious and manifest in the conscious realm.

The result is a sudden outburst of the very traits we’re trying to suppress. Rage, lust, jealousy, greed, and aggression are all common presentations of a triggered shadow.

Learning to identify your triggers can be uncomfortable, but it offers some low-hanging fruit to tackle first.

The Prompts:

• What emotions bring out the worst in you?

• When have you been self-sabotaging or self-destructive in your life?

• What is the most insulting or offensive thing someone could say about you? What gives these words so much power?

• What negative emotions do you tend to avoid? Why might this be?

8. Morals & Super Ego

The pendulum of the mind oscillates between sense and nonsense, not between right and wrong — Carl Jung.

All humans are capable of committing atrocities. A truly virtuous person is one who knows they’re capable of causing damage and destruction but chooses not to act on it.

Our parents, society, and our peers instill a set of morals to follow in order to suppress the urge to commit atrocities that compromise our ability to live in harmony with other members of society.

These prompts seek to help you understand where your moral compass comes from and how it may be contributing to the suppression of your shadow traits.

The Prompts:

• What are your core values? What are you morally passionate about?

• What philosophies or worldviews do you align best with (if any)?

• What is your moral compass? When in doubt, where do you turn to for wisdom or guidance?

• What moral code were you brought up under? Was your family religious? Do you still align with this moral code today?

9. Relationships

Relationships are all there is. Everything in the universe only exists because it is in relationship to everything else. Nothing exists in isolation. We have to stop pretending we are individuals that can go it alone — Margaret J. Wheatley.

Humans are social creatures — a lot of the negative manifestations of the shadow present in our relationships and ability (or inability) to connect with other people.

Observing how we interact with our friends, family, and intimate partners offers a window into the influence of our unconscious selves.

The Prompts: