My Bullet Journal

I like to get organized. I like the feel of having a neat calendar or agenda where I can keep track of everything, or even a journal for that matter, or a task or to do list. I love scratching off items from a to do list. The only problem? I can get organized…for a while. I always tend to give up, and rather fast, or simply no longer have time for it when the main purpose of getting organized is to get more spare time… Sigh.

Anyway, this year I’ve decided to give things another try, as one of my goals and resolutions for 2019. Get my writing more organized, write more consistently, and just basically get my entire life more organized. I was doing pretty well back in 2017 but when I started my new job, things became hectic fast and I lost track of it. 2018 was, in all terms, a hectic year, and I’m trying to get back some control.

That’s a very long way to explain that… I’m just excited to show you guys my bullet journal!

Let’s start with the first page which, as in most bullet journals, shows the keys and colours. I also drew a key that, for someone who is not gifted at drawing at all, doesn’t look too bad! The colour codes will be used throughout the journal. Most bullet journals start out with an index and a key page, so I figured it was a good place to start.

On the second image, you can see I made an overview page for the month of January, with “to do” items on my calendar, and a quote of the month. The colours used on the calendar and future log are similar as to on the keys page. My quote for January: “Don’t wish for it, Work for it.”

Drawing with a pen is fun but also gives some drawbacks – when you make an error it’s not that easy to correct. I first had this issue with the quote since I almost made an error when writing “work” and the purple lines are not as straight as I’d like them to be. But, we can’t have it all, and it’s still fun to keep this quote in mind for the month!

Next up, I created a larger monthly overview for the month of January, where I can write more information for each day, again using the colour codes I picked on the keys page. There’s also some room for notes, which I thought could be useful.

The next page is a run-down list of tasks relating to cleaning the house that should happen ideally every week (but for some reason, never happen once a week, more likely once a month…) And also some daily tasks, like doing the dishes. I do like this run-down since it helps not to forget of any tasks (especially those tasks relating to garden work or cleaning up the garage, I’m more likely to forget now it’s winter…)

Next page includes my writing goals for January 2019. I wrote them all down with boxes in front, so I can cross off the boxes when the task is completed.

Next up, I created a weekly spread for the first week of January, with each day of the week, room for all my goals for that particular day. Additionally, on the left you can see a tracking area, where I can keep track of whether I prepped a (healthy) lunch, worked out that day, etc. There’s also a section of notes, a future log regarding the next week, and a reminder to complete the weekly chores. On the right, there’s a tracker for hours slept on any particular night of the week, a tracker for work-outs, and a weekly word count tracker. I also drew some books and a reminder for myself not to forget to read.

I used to read about 150+ books a year, but with a full-time job, building our own house this year, writing, and so on, I barely have any time to read, so I wanted to build in a reminder that I should make some time to relax and read as well.

I hope these pages can give you some in-sight in the creation of my bullet journal. I’m sure I’ll add more pages as we go. So far, I’ve also created pages for daily tasks, where I can better keep track of them, and divide them into more seperate tasks (I figured I did not have sufficient room for this on the spreadsheet). If anything, so far the bullet journal has helped me to keep better track of everything, and that’s already a bonus!

What about you? Do you use a journal – maybe a bullet journal? If so, can you share any tips to this beginner? If not, then maybe my post has inspired you to start your own bullet journal, which would be great!