Back in January of this year, I became more aware of this creative planning method called bullet journaling. It was all over my Pinterest feeds and Instagram ads. I was instantly intrigued by this journaling method because I've tried year after year to stick to a traditional pre-made planner, but it never worked for me longterm. After my friend Caitlin sent me a video of her 2019 bullet journal, I was hooked. She flipped through the pages and explained how she sets up her journal and why it's been so beneficial for her. She kindly offered me an extra journal that she had accidentally purchased for this year and I immediately started using it. After nine solid months of using my bullet journal on a daily basis, I can confidently say that this new practice in my life has been transformative in so many ways. 

 So, what is bullet journaling?

The bullet journal is an analog system created by Ryder Carroll, a designer based in New York. In his words, the bullet journal is meant “to help you track the past, organize the present, and plan for the future.”

The bullet journal itself is a blank journal filled with a dot grid pattern that serves as a simplistic guide to however you want to design your journal. Some people use their journal traditionally to express their thoughts and feelings. Others use it more like a planner to keep track of their personal and professional lives. I use it for a mix of those two things! You can set up your journal however you'd like and change it along the way as needed. I oftentimes visit Pinterest and Instagram for ideas on how to make my journal more organized and effective.

If you've listened to episode three of The Working Diva, you've already heard about how bullet journaling has really helped my productivity this year. I briefly talked about bullet journaling in that episode, but I've been meaning to go more in-depth about the topic, so here we are!

Why Bullet Journaling?

Why does bullet journaling work for me? Here are the three biggest reasons why I love it!

Habit tracking and goal setting // I had never attempted habit tracking prior to bullet journaling this year, but I have been big on goal setting for the last several years. This year, I created four segments of goals in the very first pages of my journal. The goals were split up into these categories: personal, career, finance, and health. Once I created 3-4 major goals for each of these categories, I wrote down little habits that I could form throughout the entire year that would keep me on track to reaching these goals. It definitely worked! Some of my habits each month consist of taking daily vitamins, making my bed, going for a walk, or simply remembering to eat three meals a day- it's definitely not a complex system. I create new habits each month based on what I want to accomplish for the next several weeks. It's been highly effective for me and I've already crossed off fourteen of the sixteen major goals I set for the year.

Task management // As a self-employed business owner, I always have dozens of tasks to get done every day, meetings to schedule and attend, emails to send out, etc. Before bullet journaling, I attempted to use a digital task manager to keep track of all my to-do lists, but it never seemed to work for me. I think it was mostly ineffective because my task-manager internet tab would always get covered by the other things I was doing on my computer, but having a physical journal that sits open on my desk all day is always there for me to see. I use my bullet journal to set up a weekly calendar. I color code all of my tasks for the week and write down every single thing I need to do. Meetings are highlighted in orange, invoicing is highlighted in yellow, actual work tasks are categorized by client, and so on. It's very organized and I rarely (if ever) forget to complete a task for the week because it's always written down in front of me with a due date attached. This has alleviated a lot of my stress and I feel like I sleep better at night because I'm not constantly worrying about things I may have forgotten to accomplish that day. 

Creative outlet // This is one of my favorite things about bullet journaling! I don't consider myself an artistic person, but bullet journaling has helped me tap into my more creative side by wanting to coordinate color schemes, pick out patterned washi tapes, and pair them with cute stickers for a cheerful spread in my journal. I love to sit down on a Sunday afternoon and spend anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour just planning out the week ahead and giving my weekly spread a fun theme. Some people may find this to be tedious, but I find that it's very therapeutic and relaxing to plan my journal each week. It forces me to sit down, unwind, and mentally focus on what I have ahead of me for the next seven days. It also helps me immediately jump into my work day on Monday morning rather than trying to figure out what I need to work on first.

Bullet Journaling Supplies

Journals