Bullet Journaling

A couple of weeks ago I wrote about different journals that I have used and enjoyed.  Today I want to talk about bullet journaling.  Bullet journaling has gotten quite big over the years and almost everyone knows something about bullet journaling these days.  One of my favorite parts about bullet journaling is how personable it can be.  You can make it as complicated or as simple as you like.  If you look up bullet journaling you will get lots of videos of extremely artistic journals.  I think that is wonderful because that is what those people like, however, if art is not your thing or even mixing art with your planning is not your thing then there are so many other ways to do it.  I have gone through lots of trial and error with my bullet journaling to find what I enjoy seeing when I open my journal.  Three words I would use to describe my journal are: simple, pretty, and usable.  

If you were to look at how bullet journaling began you would find that it started with a very basic and simple idea.  A man named Ryder Carrol started the bullet journal.  A notebook to be used as a sketchbook, a journal, a to-do list, and anything else.  Now there are lots and lots of things you could add to your bullet journal.  Some that are just not practical for me, but could be for you.  To name a few you could use a mood tracker, habit tracker, sleep tracker, gift tracker, weight tracker, meal tracker, etc.  There are thousands of ideas on the internet of things to add to your bullet journal.  

Here is what I use

On a daily basis, I use:

• a calendar that I make at the beginning of each month
• a habit tracker
• a to-do list

I have used a bullet journal for a little under two years and I have learned that if I make it too complicated then I don't use it.  I have other pages that I don't use every day, for example, a list of goals that I want to achieve in 2020, and a future log (simply an overview of all the birthdays and events occurring in 2020).  I love art so I do include art in my bullet journal but I don't include it in my daily to-do lists.  

At the beginning or just before the first of each month I make a page like this.

  

I love putting a poem or a quote (or a poem that I wrote in this case) at the beginning of each month.  Then on the next two pages, I draw out a calendar.  Next, I make a habit tracker, which looks something like this: 

The Key

The key is the system for how you mark off your tasks.  There are lots of different things you can use.  In the past I used a circle and filled the circle in once I finished the task but this year I started using bullet points and I like it much better.  Here is my key:

I really enjoy bullet journaling.  For me, I started bullet journaling more as an art journal but soon I realized that I wasn't really using it the way that was best for me.   Now, I am able to dump all that I need to do for the next day or week and I really use it to its full potential.  

Thank you for reading! I hope that you enjoyed this and if you have never heard of a bullet journal what do you think? 

Do you use a bullet journal?  What are your thoughts? 

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