Bullet Journals: What are They? And Why You Need One

Last updated on October 5th, 2023 at 01:20 pm

Bullet journaling has been a growing trend for a while in planner communities online. Whether you’ve heard of it or not, it’s time to get acquainted. If you’re someone who loves to-do lists or check-lists, using a bullet journal is something you will quickly grow to love.

Do you have too many things to remember? Do you think about all of your “must-do’s” on a daily basis and need a simple system to help you keep track and organized? Bullet journaling was made with you in mind!

We have a lot of daily tasks, appointments, and responsibilities that we need to remember. If you manage a team at work or family at home, it becomes nearly impossible to keep everything straight in your head. How much more productive and less stressed would you be if you could stop having to remember all this “stuff” in your head?

A bullet journal is very simple. It’s a way of keeping track of everything you need to do in one notebook. Often times the notebook consists of three different parts.

The first part is the index and key. These occupy the first two pages of your journal and help you keep track of what’s where and how the journal works.

The second part is the monthly log or calendar, followed by running, daily entries.

The last part of a bullet journal is sometimes called collections or lists. They are just that, lists of related things you want to keep track of. For example, you may have a list of books you want to read, or a list of tasks you need to complete for a project this month.

The idea with a bullet journal is that you set aside two pages for your index and then record things as they come up throughout your day, week, or month. At the beginning of the month you set up a monthly page. Here you can record appointments, anniversaries and other important dates.

Some bullet journalers make a list of 1-30 (or 31) and then leave space to note appointments as they come up. Others prefer to draw a more traditional monthly calendar grid over two pages. You really can decide what works bet for you – that’s the beauty of bullet journaling! When you draw each monthly grid or list at the beginning of the month, make a note of what page it is on in your index.

After the monthly pages, enter the day’s date, and start recording things you need to take care of, appointments to keep today, and anything else you need to keep track of. This is where your key comes in handy. There are two common ways to do your key along with many variations in between.

Any task on your list can be crossed out if it is no longer applicable or needed.

This photo is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic License.

Pick the key system that seems most intuitive for you and start recording the things you need to keep track of. One way to think of it is as the ultimate ongoing to-do list.

At the end of the day, review your list. Things that have not been completed need to either be crossed out because they are no longer relevant and important, moved to the next day.

This system of tracking is really great for people who love lists and want to keep a running list of things. It’s also good if you’ve got a creative side and want to use your journal not only to keep track of things but as a creative outlet. Remember there’s no wrong way to do this – it’s really whatever works for you!

Have you tried bullet journaling? Do you plan to?

Also read: 9 Important Benefits of Using a Planner

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