If you’re a fan of journaling, you may have heard of a bullet journal. Similar to a journal, it’s often a creative outlet for people and a way to practice mindfulness — however unlike your standard journal entries, bullet journalists fill their pages with designs, thoughts, tasks, and ultimately ways to stay productive and organized within the many different areas of their lives. Essentially, a bullet journal is "a mindfulness practice disguised as a productivity system."
Bullet journals are rising in popularity — especially for those of us who lack the time to write down full pages of our thoughts every day or have a hard time putting our thoughts into words. With bullet journaling, you can use shorthand, symbols, or designs to capture your thoughts or reflect on your day.
Creator of the bullet journal, Ryder Carroll, says that this unique and creative method of journaling and planning will help you live a more productive and meaningful life. He knows the power of bullet journaling first hand as he recalls, “When I was young, I was diagnosed with ADD and there weren't a lot of tools or resources available, so I had to design my own. Rather than keep notes like other people, I figured out how to organize and sort information the way that my mind works.”
The key to bullet journaling is that it’s about functionality over form and you’re empowered to fill your pages with whatever helps you make the most out of your day and your life. Since Ryder Carroll, many people have shared inspiration on how to optimize your bullet journal.
Whether you’re looking for a creative outlet, a way to track your self-care routine, or even just stay organized, bullet journaling offers a ton of great benefits. Still not convinced? Below are nine reasons why you should pick up bullet journaling!
It Helps You Stay Organized
Bullet journals are a great place for you to jot down everything that matters. If you’ve ever found yourself struggling to remember what’s next on your to do list, what time your doctor’s appointment is at, or even what you had for breakfast yesterday, your bullet journal is the perfect place to hold all of the information that goes through your brain on a regular basis.
If you really want to optimize on the organization benefits of a bullet journal, you can create an index at the beginning of the journal and different sections throughout the journal. This way you’ll know exactly where to go to find the information you stored.
Helps You Practice Mindfulness
Like regularly journaling or diary writing, bullet journaling can be a great way to practice mindfulness and become aware of your thoughts and feelings. Not only can you log the deepest parts of your mind within the pages, within your bullet journal pages you can write down daily gratitude, your favorite quotes, or mantras that will help you stay mindful and at peace with your coming and going thoughts.
Motivates You to Chase Your Goals
If you have a goal you want to accomplish, just the simple act of writing it down can oftentimes make it seem more attainable. By committing to something on paper, you are making your goal concrete and therefore holding yourself accountable to accomplishing it! Writing down your goals in a place where you can see them often is a great motivator and can not only keep your goals top of mind, but ensure that you stay on track. If your goal is intimidating at first, try jotting down your micro-goals that will help you steadily grow towards achieving your goal.
A Place to Inspire New Ideas
Sometimes all you need is to put what’s in your mind on paper to get your brain flowing with inspiration — once you do this, you might be surprised at what comes out of your own brain! You can use your bullet journal as a form of meditation to clear your mind and just let your thoughts pass through your brain to the paper. If you’re longing to travel somewhere, have a business idea, or want to start a new hobby, this is the place to document all of this. By jotting them down, you’re turning your thoughts into actual ideas, which begins the process of hopefully making your ideas a reality.
Promotes Creativity
One of the great things about bullet journaling is that you can completely make it your own and express your inner creativity. Many people use fun images, markers, symbols and designs to express themselves within the journal. Whether you’re an artist, writer, or can only draw stick figures, anyone can find their own creativity within their bullet journal.
Helps You Remember Important Things
While the system can appear quite complex, experienced bullet journal users suggest it becomes much simpler once you get the hang of it. If you’re like the many people who rely on different apps, calendars, planners, or folders to stay on top of things, a bullet journal might actually be a simpler system for you.
If you’re one of those people who cover their desk with sticky notes or can’t remember where they put their password information, having a bullet journal is a great system to jot down important reminders.
Keeps Everything In One Place
One of the reasons why bullet journaling is an efficient way to stay productive and organized, is because everything is in one place. Instead of scrambling around for various notes, reminders, or tasks, you can find them all in your bullet journaling book. Having the information you use the most in one place is a great time saver, and allows you to reference or reflect on older entries — which can be a fun way to look back on your progress in life.
Inspires Productivity
For many people, writing down to-do lists or jotting down tasks can be highly motivating. Place clear, defined items that need to be checked off after completion can be a source of inspiration and keep you motivated for the next task. If you’re feeling overwhelmed or lacking motivation, starting with a list in your bullet journal can be extremely helpful. When you complete a task off of your list, consider checking it off with a fun design, sticker, to make even the most monotonous tasks a little more fun.
It’s Fun
Finally, one of the most important benefits of bullet journaling is that it’s fun! It can be a great way to begin or end your day. The pages are essentially the story of your life so make it your own. Fill it with things that bring your joy, happiness, and that will inspire you to live your best days and even help manage the days that aren’t your best.
Author bio: Christine is a full-time digital content writer who specializes in various health and wellness topics. When she’s not writing blog posts, you can find her traveling, walking her golden retriever Brady, or practicing yoga.
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