The Emotions Jar with an Easy Peasy Workbook

This is an excellent tool if you struggle with letting things go. (I know I did.) It’s like a place to put things down for a while. You can use a jar, a box, even a basket, or an old coffee can if that’s what you’ve got handy. The point isn’t what it looks like. It’s that you have somewhere safe to put the fears, worries, resentments, even an urge that’s pulling at you. You can keep one at home, and if you want, make a mini version for when you travel. It’s a reminder that you don’t have to carry everything all the time. That you can apply the KISS method. (Keep It Simple, Silly!)

Whenever something starts weighing on your heart, write it down. A worry, a fear, a frustration, even an urge to escape, numb out, or control something you can’t**.** Scribble it on a scrap of paper, fold it up, and drop it in the jar. It doesn’t have to be neat or poetic. It just has to get out of your head and land somewhere else.

There’s something powerful and cathartic about that. When you write it down, you give your brain a break. You’re not ignoring the feeling or pretending it isn’t real. You’re simply saying, “I don’t have to hold this all by myself right now.”

This is also a gentle reminder of something we all forget: we don’t control the universe or other people. But we do get to choose how we respond and react. We control what we carry and what we let go.

If you want, come back to the jar in a few hours, days, or weeks and look at what you wrote. You can ask yourself:

Do you still feel the same? Does it still hurt as much?

Some things might still tug at you. Others might feel lighter or even gone. This whole thing is a practice in letting go and learning how to process our emotions.

Letting go matters because it gives your mind and heart room to breathe. When we hold on to things like anger, guilt, or resentment, it’s like carrying around a backpack full of bricks. You can do it for a while, but it wears you down. When you finally set it down, even a little bit, you make space for peace, clarity, and things that actually help you heal.

Letting go doesn’t mean you’re saying what happened was okay. It just means you’re choosing not to let it control you anymore. It’s choosing hope over being stuck in the same loop. And the more we practice it, the more we learn to make healthier decisions, trust ourselves again, and move forward. You got this!

And of course, I have a super simple workbook too.