A couple of times, mostly in my Week In Review posts, I’ve mentioned that I’ve started bullet journaling. If you’re not familiar with the idea, basically, it’s a planner, idea book, to-do list, and organizer all in one. You’re not really limited in what you do with it, though, which is really nice. I use mine for a bunch of different things, which I’ll share in a little bit.
My mom was the one who introduced me to bullet journaling, and I really liked the idea. It’s a fun place to jot down ideas, and keep track of all my stuff. Plus, it gives me a chance to doodle with a purpose, so to speak. I’m adding new pages all the time – it’s a good way for me to relax.
If you want to know more about bullet journaling, you can visit the official website where the idea got started. But today, I’m also going to share a bit about my bullet journal and how I use it!
Since I wasn’t sure how deep I’d get into bullet journaling, I started with an inexpensive, grid-paper composition notebook. More expensive bullet journals use a grid-paper system with dots instead of boxes, but I actually prefer the boxes, it helps me keep things straight. To jazz up the cover a little, I used my mom’s Cricut machine with some scrapbook paper, glued the paper to the cover, and then covered that with contact paper to keep it from coming off.
Since the pages of my journal are on the thin side, It was hard to find a smooth-writing pen that wouldn’t bleed through the pages. My mom gave me one of her treasured Jetstream pens to use, and I fell in love with the way it writes on the page. Of course, any pen works, this one is just what works best for me.
I haven’t filled my bullet journal entirely yet, of course, but lately I’ve been adding to it. I get a lot of my ideas for pages and lettering from Pinterest, which is a great place to start if you’re looking to begin your own bullet journal.
The index is usually one of, if not the last page in your journal. Every time you add a page to your journal, you give it a number and then add it to your index in the back. it helps you keep track of where things are. In fact, I’ve found this system so useful that I’ve started using it for my school notebooks so I can reference my notes later on.
I’m the worst person at remembering birthdays. Sometimes I even forget when my parents’ birthdays are (sorry). Now I have a list! I can’t say I thought this layout through entirely, because I ran out of room for some months, but I like the spread anyways.
I got this idea for looking at a page idea called “the week in texts,” which used speech bubbles to summarize a week in text messages. I decided to take this idea and apply it to random things I’ve heard at college, which there are plenty of, I assure you.
I shared these goals on my blog at the beginning of the year, but I decided to also include them on a page in my journal, if for no other reason than for motivation.
I shared this not to long ago as well, but I’ve also started using my journal as a place to track my progress towards my goals. Whenever I complete a goal for the day, I color in that box appropriately. If I don’t, I cross it out. If I make progress towards a goal, I mark it with a dot. It’s nice to see what I’ve accomplished on paper, rather than just in my head.
My hope is that these bookshelves will become fuller as the year goes on, but for now there’s just one. I can’t wait to add more as I read more books this year!
I saw a page like this on Pinterest, which I adapted to make a list of the movies I want to see this year. When I finally see them, I’ll add the date to the ticket and color it in. I’m planning on adding more tickets to this page too, but I didn’t have the time when I first designed the page.
My bullet journal isn’t really a “divulge all of your feelings and personal stuff” kind of journal, as you can probably tell. I do like this page, however, since it gives me a space write about the good things that happen each day (or, in some cases, forces me to find the good in each day). And plus, I think it’ll be nice to look back at the end of each month and see all of the good memories I’ve had.
This is another page like the Daily Gratitude one, expect it goes for the whole year. At the end of each day, I simply color in the box with the appropriate color. At first, I was a little unsure about placing value on each day, since there’s always a mix of good and bad, especially since I’m not writing anything about them. But at the same time, I think it’ll be cool to look back on the year and see all of the good days I’ve had.
I also have other pages in my journal, not pictured: About Me, Future Planner, Blog Post Ideas (spoilers), a list of Christmas Gifts for 2016, Names I Like (for future characters), Skills to Learn (for my 2017 goal), and Blog Post Planning (again, spoilers).
Have you ever tried bullet journaling? Do you have a certain type of notebook or pen that you like to use? What sorts of pages do you have in your journal? If you’ve never done it before, do you think you’ll give it a try?
As always, thanks for reading! Feel free to leave a comment below, I’d love to start a conversation with you!
Maggie your journal is awesome! I could never reach that level of organization. I’m terrible at birthdays too, I really like that page and the “Overheard at College” page. I hear some crazy things over here too, but I never thought to write them down!
Thanks Paige! It’s really nice to have this organization. The Overheard at College page is one of my favorites too. Thanks for your comment!
Wow Maggie. That is impressive. When you were talking about it at Christmas I really didn’t understand how awesome it van be
Gotta say, I love the way you’re doing this! I’m gonna steal the “how was your day?” chart for sure! Also that snippets of conversation page!! Ha! People say the strangest things!
Thanks for your comment, Kate! I’m so glad you enjoyed reading about my bullet journal! The “Overheard” page is one of my favorites too, and the “how was your day” is one that I enjoy working on a lot. It’s nice to have a way to look back and see that even though there were bad days, there are still good days too. Thanks for stopping by!