Journaling was a valuable exercise for me which I have used in the past. It definitely helps to put on paper what I'm thinking and to then review it and put it into perspective. Its a good thing to do while having a coffee! When I ran out of things to write I usually write about what I have done that day and then that reminds me of things I can write more in depth about.
The concept that your emotions are not who you are is one which is seemingly obvious - emotions are not permanent so how can they be defined in a permanent manner. It is interesting then to recognise the words we use to describe our emotions. Perhaps this initial recognition is important to engaging in mindfulness.