Starting a Bullet Journal
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In the past couple years, this new trend of "bullet journaling" has exploded. I see it all over Pinterest, and as a creative, I instantly became intrigued with this new thing that many people are adding to their daily routines. I have tried to start a bullet journal before but became intimidated numerous times and failed to complete my first spread. I always thought that a bullet journal had to consist of a crazy amount of spreads that tracked every single part of your daily life (e.g. water intake, mood, exercise, sleep, habits, chores, etc. etc. etc.).
All of these things are very important and are great to keep track of it all in one place, however, as someone who is constantly on the go I knew that if I were to start some spreads that consisted of all these "trackers," I would not keep up with it, so I was okay with keeping my journal as simple as possible.
Before we go on any further, what exactly IS a bullet journal? Well, according to bulletjournal.com, "The Bullet Journal is a customizable and forgiving organization system. It can be your to-do list, sketchbook, notebook, and dairy, but most likely, it will be all of the above. It will teach you to do more with less." Awesome. So it can be whatever you want it to be! And the whole purpose of it is to boost your productivity.
So how should you start? Well, here is what I did...
Here are the supplies I purchased from Amazon to use in my bullet journal:
As a newbie, I knew that I did not want to over complicate my bullet journal so I created spreads that I knew I would use or reference back to throughout the year. I purchased notebooks that had dotted paper opposed to lined, blank or grid paper because the dots would be a great guide for me to layout my spreads without being too visible and distracting from my journals contents. I also had ink pens, washi tape, and a small transparent ruler on hand. Feel free to use your favorite supplies to create your own bullet journal.
To come up with the layout of my bullet journal, I simply thought of the goals, projects, and habits that I wanted to work on throughout the year. This way I knew exactly how to utilize every page of my journal to help me track and achieve year-end goals.
Here is exactly how I laid out my first bullet journal in a simple format:
Cover Page: Inspirational Quote
I feel as though this is a great way for me to start out any sketchbook or journal. It takes away the fear of messing up on the first page and it sets the tone of the whole sketchbook. In this case, I simply searched my Pinterest boards for an inspirational quote and found "Everything will work out." Very fitting to start off a bullet journal. And lastly, I bought these adorable cactus stickers from HaNaCoOL's Etsy shop.
Spread 1: Index / Master Key
This spread is very straightforward, however the further along I got to laying out my bullet journal, the more I noticed that this spread wasn't crucial and did not serve much purpose for it to be in my bullet journal. I initially included it to be where I would write in the key for the symbols used throughout the journal, but because I am including keys on each spread for the symbols that are used on those pages, I feel as though this master list isn't always necessary for me to include. I do, however, have an Index where I keep track of the order that my spreads are in, and I am currently trying to figure out what to add onto the blank page.
Spread 2: Yearly calendar / 6-month and 1-year goals
Having the calendar spread out on one page really puts timing in perspective for me. A year to some people seems like a really long time, but once they get to the end of it they say that it has flown by. Well, it has flown by because one year really is not a long time!! This is a great way for me to light the flame under my butt and start on the next project sooner rather than later. I also included a list of goals I want to accomplish at the 6-month benchmark, as well as what I would like to complete at the end of the year.
Spread 3: Brain Dump / Social Media Trackers
Art, photography, and traveling are my passions and hobbies, and one day they will be my full-time career. In order for that to happen nowadays, it is helpful to have a decent following on social media. So in order to stay updated with the growth of my platforms, I am keeping track of how many followers I start with at the beginning of each month. I also have included a "brain dump" page to jot down any ideas that come to mind so I do not forget about them later.
Spread 4: Monthly Spread
This is a great way to start off the month because you can add so many layers to this spread. For this month, I have the monthly calendar where I mark dates of when I will make my social media posts, along with goals that I set for myself to reach in April, Notes/To do's, as well as a column for me to write down any important dates to remember that would not fit in the calendar layout.
Spread 5: Week 1 Spread
I stuck with simplicity for the design of my first weekly spread since it was my first time creating a layout for a bullet journal. I included a "side bar" on each page to include an April thumbnail calendar reference, weekly goals, blog post and video ideas.
What I plan to include for the future
In the current state of my art career, I am still figuring out what I would like to do in order to grow. I have an idea, but I am someone who needs to have tasks and lists written out in order for me to feel organized, which is initially the reason why I started bullet journaling (hopefully it continues!! 😬). To take it a step further, I am going to incorporate a Habit Tracker to keep my daily chores and assignments in check to help my art career flourish.
My initial thoughts on bullet journaling
Overall, I really enjoyed planning out the layouts and catering my bullet journal to my needs in order to be the most productive I can be. I hope that I can continue on with this and I am looking forward to delving deeper into the world of Bullet Journaling!!