The Paper Kind

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My Updated Bullet Journal Method

Last year I wrote a post about how I was using Ryder Carroll’s bullet journal system to keep my blog organised. I thought I would do a little update since how I use it has changed quite a lot in the last 12 months.

My bullet journal is a really important tool which I use to stay organised. Not only does it help me plan my life and remind me of tasks needing done. By using a planner to stay organised it in turn helps reduce stress. This is important when it comes to managing my CFS.

MY UPDATED BULLET JOURNAL METHOD

Moleskine notebook with sharpie fineliner pens.

I think the biggest change is the notebook I use for my bullet journal. Last year I had been using a lined notebook and I was never truly happy with it. A few months ago I bought a gridded Moleskine. I’ve found that the grid paper makes it much easier to lay my bullet journal out in an organised way.

A lot of people will say you don’t need a specific type of notebook for a bullet journal. Personally I would recommend one with some sort of grid or dot grid paper.

I also use a number of different pens now. I have a mechanical pencil for writing in my monthly calendar. As it’s easier to change things if my plans change. I’ve also started using a fine line sharpie. I’m not even sure why I use it. Normally I prefer a much finer nib, but this is the pen I’m liking most just now. I use a combination of Tombow Brush Pens and Staedtler Fineliners to add a bit of colour. And of course I have a selection of washi tapes to hide any mistakes I make.

KEY AND INDEX PAGES

Key and index pages in bullet journal.

I think Ryder Carroll updated the key recently from boxes designating a task to just a simple dot. It took me a while to get used to this new way but I really like it. Makes everything look much neater. I should also note that I don’t use the event, urgent or research bullets at all. Most are usually just written under a note.

I’m not massively happy with my index pages but they work. I think this out of all this is what makes me most want to try a Leuchtturm after I finish the Moleskine.

BOOK BLOGGING TRACKER

Pages to keep track of book blogging.

My review list hasn’t changed much in the last year. All I’ve done is add a column so I can see what month a book is being released in. My Read3Buy1 page doesn’t need to be so neat but I like it that way. You may also note the washi tape on the edge of the page. This is where I messed up so bad I have to remove a page and start again.

BULLET JOURNAL MONTHLY LOG

July set up in bullet journal.

I was really unhappy with my old monthly pages. I think a big part of that was because I couldn’t tell where the weeks were. That problem was solved by a person on youtube who suggested just drawing a line to differentiate the weeks.

It’s so simple I’m not sure why I didn’t think of it myself. I use pen on the tasks page. But on the actual monthly calendar I only use pencil, it’s easier that way if something changes.

BLOG POST TRACKER

July blog post tracker.

My post schedule is very similar to the calendar page. For a while I actually just wrote my blog posts on the calendar page. But I needed more room for tracking if a post had been written/ edited/ scheduled ect. I also have space on my tracker to show if my reviews have been shared. I have to manually do these and forget about it quite often.

There is some space on the very right hand side of the page. So I fit in a little calendar for the next month where I can forward plan blog posts. You also may not be able to see it in the photos. But on the dates I’ve highlighted my posting days so it’s just a little easier to schedule my posts out.

DAILY LOG

Daily log pages in bullet journal.

I have seen many variations of a weekly layout. I’ve ended up using a 3 days to a page layout. This does mean I can’t see a full week on a spread. But that really doesn’t matter much to me as I don’t do any forward planning in my dailies. I lay my dailies out in advance so I don’t have to spend time on it every morning. That means all I need to do is write out a to-do list for the day. If anything happens during the day I will note it down on the left hand side of the page.

The time tracker is something I’ve only recently started doing. I can see the times where I want to sit down and get stuff done without being distracted. It sort of works… I’ve seen lots of people use the tracker to note down the times they wake up/ go to sleep. But it’s something I don’t see the point in writing down. I have CFS you guys, my bedtime never changes.

DAILY BULLET JOURNAL SET UP

I thought I would show how I do my headers. Since a number of people have pointed out that they look very complicated. I write out the date. Then go back and make the vertical parts of the letter just a little wider than the rest. I then use the Tombow Marker to highlight the date just to add a little colour. They are actually really easy to do and just look complicated.

SOCIAL MEDIA TRACKER

Instagram tracker in bullet journal.

I try to post on my Instagram every day. So I made a little calendar page so I can schedule posts out a few days in advanced. There are a number of apps that will do this for you. But I’ve found them all to be too much hassle. Instead I just write down what I want to post on a specific day. If it changes it’s easy enough to fix on the page.

My brain dump page is where I write down any post ideas I have during the month. It’s still the start of the month so I haven’t written anything down yet. Though I do have a list of the books I want to get through this month.

52 BOOKS CHALLENGE

52 books challenge page.

I didn’t really need a 52 books list. I can just check Goodreads if I really want to see how I’m getting on. But I saw grangergrades on Tumblr had a page like this and I really liked it so I made one. Also yes I know it says the 52 book challenge. But I didn’t like how the list ended in the middle of a page so 52 became 74.

38 responses to “My Updated Bullet Journal Method”

  3. I really like Leuchtturm notebooks, by far the nicest for diary type planning. I can’t afford one right now but I will get one for 2017 in the new year sales.

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    • I got a lined Leuchtturm recently and it was £10 which I didn’t think was too bad. My Moleskine was £15 but I got money off that.

      But yes the Leuchtturms are far nicer notebooks and I’m going to get a dotted one to use as my bullet journal when this one is finished.

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  5. I think you may be right about the dotted notebook looking a lot more neater. Although your style and the way that you lay things out helps this a lot anyway.

    I’ve seen a lot of washi tape in journals but never thought to get any! Do you just pick up yours from Hobbycraft?

    Also, yes to the gif. I thought it was great!

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    • Yeah I much prefer the grid. Definitely look at the Leuchtturms if you want to get a dotted notebook. I know I want to finish this one as soon as so I can get a Leuchtturm!

      If you’re looking for washi tape the best place to go is Etsy. Hobbycraft, Paperchase and Waterstones have a small selection of tapes but you can pretty much find anything you want on Etsy.

      Liked by 1 person

  6. This is amazing!! 😯 I am definitely going to try to create my own version for my blog just to get more organized (if it’s possible haha!). You seem so so so organized that I got really inspired reading this 😄

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  7. I’m kind of in awe at how organised you are. It’s made me never want to show anyone my notebook! (Which btw is just a spiral bound pukka pad because I prefer it to all of the expensive ones I’ve ever used. Including my moleskin!)

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    • I try to post regularly on my blog and I have all sorts of college work and other things to do so I kind of have to be a little organised.

      And yeah I remember you saying you liked those notebooks. I don’t mind having a spiral sketchbook but I hate using a spiral notebooks, I find the rings get in the way of my hands.

      Liked by 1 person

  8. I love how simple but pretty it looks! I love seeing bullet journals but I can’t use one myself, I don’t have enough patience or consistency to set one up!

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      • Well I like ring planners because I can take my time organising it and rearranging things as I see fit. I feel with a bujo I’d have to have it all planned out first.

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      • Yeah I liked the ring planners cause you can move things about, it’s one of the things about the bullet journal that annoys me. It would be interesting to see if you could set up a bullet journal in a ringed organiser. Though getting it set up would involve a bit of work.

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      • That’s something to consider. I’ve been thinking of getting another planner and have been thinking through how I’d lay it out. Maybe I’ll try out the bujo style in it! It wouldn’t be my main planner so I’d have time to set it up.

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  10. I’ll probably give that a try myself, I need one to get my Tales From An Elevator series of short stories started up again.

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Hello!

I’m Emma. I am a designer, calligrapher, and content creator, sharing my love for paper goods. Expect pens, pencils, and some really fancy paper!

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