Bullet journaling

[Eileen101]

I know this was a thing a fair few years ago, but I've got thinking about starting it up to try and organise my thoughts and overwhelm - I currently have depression and anxiety and think it might help.

Does anyone still do this? Does it help you organise your thoughts?
What do you focus on? Where to start really? I've been having a look at Instagram, but it all seems so involved and intricate! Where's a basic entry level point?

I do a loose form of it…some of the Instagram pages are works of art! Look up Kerry Hales…she uses a fairly no-nonsense approach.

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Pinterest is your friend. I do very simple monthly and weekly spread and it's both a diary and a record of what happened. Keep it simple and just do what works for you.

Tiger had a £5 dotted journal.that my teenager bought me for Christmas and it's really good (& a hell of a lot cheaper than the really expensive ones!)

I use a spiral notebook which I add the dates to in nice handwriting a page a day because my lists are too long for a weekly spread.
I use a bit of washi tape or/and stickers to decorate very simply, because otherwise I'm spending hours decorating rather than checking off tasks.
There are loads of people doing simple bullet journals rather than the highly decorative versions, we don't all have time (or effort) for perfection!

The original version, by the guy who invented it, Ryder Caroll, wasn’t elaborate at all.

There used to be a great video on the Bullet Journal website but I’ve just looked and it’s all changed now- presumably to get you to buy his book or take a course. I’ve listened to the book on audio and I would recommend it, honestly - it’s interesting about his personal journey as well as step by step.

I’d try searching for ‘basic bullet journal’ or simple bullet journal’ to filter out all the arty ones!

This is also practical not arty
www.thelazygeniuscollective.com/blog/how-to-bullet-journal

I love mine! I bought it from Smiths and I think it was about £15. It is thick! You can use Ny notebook though. I went on Pinterest for ideas as to whT worked for me. That is the beauty of bullet journalling, you can do whatever you want. I do use stickers and stencils sometimes, other times, I stick in memories, write lists , do plans, ti,enables etc.

Can you give us a list of the sort of problems you'd like to solve? I tried it a couple of years ago and loved it. Designed my own weekly spread to include space for meal planning as that was my major issue but also a quick diary too.

Had separate spreads for:

Keeping track of Kids weekly activities
Sowing / planting / harvesting garden schedule
Training plan for a half marathon I had later that year
Christmas planning

Might start doing it again actually!!

Thanks everyone, really interesting responses.

@FusionChefGeoff yes, I'm hoping to keep a 'good habits' tracker for each day- meds, general hygiene, a walk per day, planning healthy meals, yoga, a bit of reading etc.
Along with a bit of a monthly tasks, weekly tasks, and hoc to do list.
Then a bit of a daily plan for my day.
I know I sound daft but everything is a mess and I'm just overwhelmed by it.

Yes I love it!
I've just set up 2023 bullet journal, along with 2023 desk diary.
Both from mums office/ Blox diary.

I watched the bujo guys YouTube channel the other day, he said something helpful - look at what you plan to do (plans), are doing (the desk diary) what actually happened.

So Ive got a double page spread for each month in 2023, and I'll fil it out after the month, so see what I did. The diary tracks all the to dos, and lots of other bullet journal pages are notes on my plans. Garden, decorating etc.

A key part is the 'brain dump' literally make a list of all your to dos. Then put them into your diary to plan them in.
When planning the next week soo what is left over to do, and either delete it, do it, or plan it in again.

This weekly reset is great.

Don't get overwhelmed with Pinterest. Get an erasable pen, like frixion or legami, then you can use colours, but still erase and change pages. You will find your own style. It doesn't have to be arty at all.

Forgive my ignorance (old!) but isn't this just another way of saying "keeping a diary"? Honestly not being sarcastic, I really don't understand!

www.mumsoffice.co.uk/products/the-big-family-diary-2023

And this lovely notebook.
www.mumsoffice.co.uk/products/the-blox-dot-notebook

It is set up for bullet journal as it has pages already numbered and an index section. Nice paper, gorgeous colour.

We've gone for crazy green diary this year, the really big one- in the hope we don't lose it!

It’s a specific way of keeping a diary/journal, using a system of bullet points and symbols and different sorts of planning pages.

Ah. OK - I'll have a look! Thank you

Well no, you can use is as well as a diary, or instead. I use it as well.