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When I started with the bullet journal planning format last summer, I initially thought it wasn't worth doing unless the results were as beautiful as the ones that inspired me on pinterest but then I discovered that regardless of how it looked, my bullet journal pages were helping me to be both more productive and more balanced.
It turns out a good way to check if you're overcommitted is running out of room on the page.
Plus it's fun.
My own pages range from more thought out designs that I colour. They can be anything from a sketch of a pile of books representing a potential book series for a later date to a quote I liked. I also regularly employ quickly sketched layouts of the week that are higher on function than form.
Being open and flexible to how the layout will work and how I will use it means whatever the week whether it is full of assignments, freelance work, or conference season; there is a planning tool to get the job done and enough time to use it.
When I share the process with others in workshops, I start by doing a pre-assessment of participants’ past experience with bullet journaling. Chances are many of them do a version of the trendy past time without making the connection. The time honoured processes of listmaking, doodling, and mindmapping all lend themselves to #bujo tracking.
Once I show the applications it is easily used for — everything from workout tracking to quote and verse hoarding to coursework and freelance project list making to water consumption and habit forming— participants see the connection to this hobby which looks mainly creative at first glance and see another layer of use beyond decompression.
Few things are as fun as a new week laying out before you in your bullet journal. It helps to highlight the fun stuff and demystify how exactly you are going to be able to get everything done.
How Bullet Journaling Helps:
1. Helps not to have unrealistic expectations of yourself.
2. Helps prioritize main work objectives and self care.
3. Helps distribute to-do’s out over the week.
4. Builds in creative pursuit and thinking.
5. Ensures you have down-time.
6. Reduces anxiety and the feeling that there is not enough time.
7. Reduces procrastination and overscheduling.
8. Builds anticipation over after-work and weekend activities.
9. Helps to make bucket list items happen.
10. Increases everyday joy, gratitude, and intentional living.
The trick is to make the process itself as easy as possible. To jazz up your pages you can use stickers or make simple sketches.
Find easy to follow instructions for drawing quick sketches of everyday items at learntodraw.today
note: blog post image is my own. You can find the original here. This post was also shared with Groundwork Magazine, the trade publication of the Adult Basic Education Association of British Columbia. You can find the issue it appears in here.