Are morning pages worth it?

Quick answer

Morning pages come from Julia Cameron's The Artist's Way: three handwritten pages, first thing, whatever comes out. One person posted that after almost a year they didn't think the pages did anything for them. The replies split.

Some said it cleared their head every day. Others said it helped for a few weeks and then flattened out.

What 125x is: 125x is a web app at 125x.app. You connect your YouTube subscriptions, and it gives you a feed of the latest videos from the channels you follow, each with a summary: a verdict, the 5 key takeaways, and the spoiler, plus Actionable and Lessons tabs with more tips. You read that and decide what's actually worth opening.

Open 125x

Who tends to love them

People with a busy, looping head in the morning.
Writers and creative people who want to warm up.
Anyone who likes a slow, quiet start to the day.

Who tends to drop them

People who already have a full morning and resent the time.
People who want a record they can look back on. Morning pages are meant to be messy.
People who find three pages a grind.

How to test it

Try two to three weeks before judging.
Treat three pages as a guideline. Plenty of people write less or type.
Ask one question at the end: did my day start clearer? If the answer is no for weeks, stop.

Our take

We side with the skeptic halfway. If it's been months and nothing's changed, move on. A shorter habit, like three sentences at night, gives most busy people the same clearing with less time.

Where 125x fits

On 125x, every video in your subscriptions feed comes with a summary: a verdict, 5 takeaways and the spoiler, plus an Actionable tab with steps and a Lessons tab with the bigger ideas. Some people like to fill a slow morning with one good talk or lecture. The verdict tells you which one is worth it.

FAQ: questions people ask

What are morning pages?

Three pages of longhand writing first thing in the morning, from Julia Cameron's The Artist's Way.

Do morning pages have to be three pages?

Many people treat three pages as a guideline and write less.

How long before morning pages work?

Give it a few weeks. If nothing changes after that, a shorter habit may suit you better.