If you think about it, the Bullet Journal system seems to have been designed for people who want to keep a journal but don’t have time to journal in long-form. Bullet points are shorter and quicker. They’re much easier to write down and read back. So when people say that they don’t have time to bullet journal, they actually mean that they don’t want to make time to journal at all.
“I don’t have time to do the whole bullet journal thing” – that one person who comments about the bullet journal
Journaling, regardless of style, does take time. It is a way to declutter the mind and somehow organize our thoughts. If you feel that your lifestyle is too fast-paced but you want to adapt this analog system, keep reading. Here are [possibly] surefire ways to help you keep up with your bullet journal.
1. Know the basics and keep it simple
I always start off with this: understanding the basics of the Bullet Journal system.
Why?
Because there have been so many interpretations of the bullet journal system these days. Most of us have encountered the bullet journal system through social media and don’t have a clear picture of what the bullet journal is. On Facebook, there are members of bullet journal groups who have absolutely no idea where to start! Some don’t even know bulletjournal.com.
The Bullet Journal is really simple to setup. Read more here.
If you’re always on-the-go, then you need to keep it simple so that bullet journaling won’t feel like a chore.
2. Don’t color-code; use signifiers to your advantage
In practice, the bullet journal system can seem like an organized mess. It’s because you try to cram everything in one notebook – notes, tasks, events, memories, even sketches.
Sometimes, color coding (maybe through highlighting or different colored pens) might sound like a good way to visually organize your notes. However, when you’re living a fast-paced life, you most likely wouldn’t be able to carry different colored pens. You might even forget or lose your pen!
To succeed at using the bullet journal system, you need to keep things as simple as possible. You will be able to organize everything by heavily using custom bullets and signifiers.
The basic bullet points are the dot (for tasks), dash (for notes), and hollow circle (for events). Use each accordingly to categorize your bullet points.
Signifiers are symbols that emphasize or give additional information to a bullet. Typically, they’re placed to the left of the bullets so that you can easily spot them.
Ryder uses these two signifiers as examples:
* = Priority: Used to mark the most important things on your list. Use it sparingly. If everything is a priority, nothing is.
! = Inspiration: Great ideas, personal mantras, and genius insights will never be misplaced again!
3. Use supplies you actually love
It’s not necessary to have the best supplies out there. You don’t need a $30 notebook and a $3 pen. You can start a bullet journal with a notebook from the Dollar Store and a pencil. But make sure that these writing instruments are what will keep you motivated to write as much as you can.
4. Always bring your notebook and pen (or pencil)
It’s best practice to take your bullet journal wherever you go. The sight of your notebook will remind you that you must write when you have the time to do so.
I take my bullet journal wherever I go whenever sensible. I bring it to work, I bring it when I shop, and even when I travel. Sure, it adds weight to my bag but then again, that reminds me that I have it with me.
Which brings me to…
5. Use a slim or small notebook
The official Bullet Journal notebook is an A5 notebook (approximately 5×8 inches). If you don’t carry a bag all the time, then you wouldn’t be motivated to bring it all the time.
Get yourself a passport sized notebook. It’s only 3.5 x 5 inches so it can fit big pockets. Most passport sized notebooks are slim so they aren’t as heavy as the Leuchtturm notebooks.
A5 notebooks are recommended because you can fit at least 6 months in one notebook. Unless you want a year’s worth of data in one notebook, then a slim passport sized notebook should be okay.
You can try using a travelers notebook (which is super customizable), if you want to protect your notebook.
6. Use whichever handwriting is most comfortable for you (to read and write)
I have tried writing different ways in my bullet journal. I’ve written in plain print, block letters, and even cursive. I love my cursive handwriting because it was the quickest way to write things down but it tends to be messy sometimes. I find that I was not motivated to read previous entries (when I need to review/reflect) because of that. So I resulted back to my plain block print.
Remember that your handwriting does not have to be pretty or perfect to journal. What matters most is that YOU understand it because you are writing you own memories and thoughts for YOURSELF and not anyone else.
You can write in cursive or print. You can write big or small. Also, you also don’t have to write in English, if you’re not comfortable with that.
And if you really hate the way your handwriting looks, use the bullet journal improve and explore.
7. Only write down what’s necessary and important
“A system flexible enough to handle whatever I threw at it and fast enough that it wouldn’t get in the way” – Ryder Carroll, inventor of the Bullet Journal system
This is how Ryder Carroll described his Bullet Journal system. He designed this flexible analog system so that he would be able to track whatever he needed to all in one place.
With great power comes great responsibility. The Bullet Journal system is so customizable that it can get out of hand. We might keep track of things that we think we need but don’t. Habit trackers are a great way to monitor the habits you want to keep or eliminate but be careful not to track too much. Once you feel like you have to drag yourself to bullet journal, there is a bigger potential of abandoning the system altogether.
8. Don’t force yourself to journal
One thing that sets a bullet journal system apart from a dated planner is that you are not obliged to write every single day. “Daily logs” in bullet journal meant to be taken a day at a time. You aren’t supposed to write days ahead of time because that defeats the system’s flexibility. You write the date today, then a list of your tasks and thoughts. If you have nothing to write the next day, then don’t write the date and don’t feel guilty for not writing in your journal.
9. Don’t be intimidated by the bullet journal community
Everyone in the bullet journal community has a different purpose for their bullet journal. Most on social media are creative. Let’s face it – that’s how social media is. The grass is always greener.
What we don’t see is how some are actually able to use the bullet journal purely for its function. You need to know that there are people who don’t decorate their journals at all or have the messiest pages. But these people are comfortable with how they are adapting to the system.
The bullet journal system is forgiving. You are allowed (and even encouraged) to make mistakes. When you’re always on the go, all you need is your pen and notebook and the motivation to write.
You should also try to reach out to the bujo community because if you have a problem that you want addressed through bullet journaling, someone is bound to have a solution for it. Once you find it, make it work for you.
10. Write whenever you can
Once you have realized that the system works for you, keep writing. The first few days, maybe you don’t know what to write yet. Maybe you skip a day or two. That’s okay. Keep going because you’ll be surprised where it will take you.
Eventually, bullet journaling will be part of your lifestyle and you will make more time for it.
“Every decision requires you to focus and focus is an investment of time and energy. “
– Ryder Carrroll
Bullet journaling is simple and will only take a few minutes of your entire day to complete. The bullet journal system will allow you to pause and reflect no matter how quickly you go about your day. Again, here are the tips. Feel free to look back on the points discussed earlier.
- 1. Know the basics and keep it simple
- 2. Don’t color-code; use signifiers to your advantage
- 3. Use supplies you actually love
- 4. Always bring your notebook and pen (or pencil)
- 5. Use a slim or small notebook
- 6. Use whichever handwriting is most comfortable for you (to read and write)
- 7. Only write down what’s necessary and important
- 8. Don’t force yourself to journal
- 9. Don’t be intimidated by the bullet journal community
- 10. Write whenever you can
Bonus: I found this old video of the Bullet Journal from Ryder’s old Kickstarter page. He briefly explains why he created the system in the first place.
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