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Hi guys! My name is Mark of @mabujork on Instagram! I’m excited to share my bullet journal with you all and am extremely grateful for Kim of @tinyrayofsunshine for inviting me to post on this blog! Thank you Ryder Carroll for inventing such a super simple yet innovative task management system!
I had heard of the Bullet Journal system before, but never delved deep enough to gain any interest. One night, I decided to check out bulletjournal.com in order to discover more. Hours later, I had fallen deep into an Instagram-feed-scrolling and YouTube-channel-watching abyss. I had become obsessed with bullet journaling but haven’t even begun. This marked the beginning of my deep infatuation with the dotted notebook.
I began utilizing the Bullet Journal system at the beginning of 2017, and have been logging things almost every day since. Not only is it an efficient way of tracking tasks, it has become an outlet to express my creative side and a fun way to document ideas. Though I keep true to the system’s basic principles, I often incorporate my own ideas and remold it to fit my own needs.
The design of my Bullet Journal is largely minimalistic. I try to keep a common design theme for each month, with slight variations of that theme for each weekly or daily spread. My bullets change all the time, so I have no specific Key page to define them since they are self-explanatory for the most part. I find creating spreads enormously therapeutic and calming. In fact, there are times where I’d draft and create a new spread, not realizing I’ve been sitting at my desk for hours! Certainly, if I’m in a rush or simply can’t allocate time, I’ll keep things super simple and spend no more than 15 minutes on a spread.
My Future Log is fairly simple. I divide sections of a page into three months and include a small calendar for each month as a visual. This is where I keep track of birthdays, important meetings, and upcoming events.
For the first few months of this year, I utilized Ryder’s original Monthly Log layout, along with an accompanying list of goals for the month. Once I’m ready to create a new spread, I transfer any events from my Future Log to my new Monthly Log and add to the log periodically as things come up.
Lately, I’ve been creating whole calendar spreads for my Monthly Logs. I prefer to visualize the month this way. It also allows me to get a little more creative with my spreads.
Some weeks I like to utilize a Weekly Log, which gives me a nice overview of the week, making it easier to assign certain tasks for specific days. This method of short term planning seems to work well for me.
I keep a Habit and Sleep Tracker in most of my weekly spreads. The habits I track typically change from week to week.
Some days I utilize a Daily Log, as it allows more flexibility. I can rapid log as little or as much as I want and am not restricted in terms of space. Once again, it allows my creative juices to flow.
I like using a Daily Task Bar when I need to strictly time manage important tasks at certain times of the day.
We all have good and bad days, but regardless of the situation, I believe in making the best effort to count our blessings. Whether in a form of a sentence, a word, or a drawing, every evening I document my thanks for that day in some form of a Gratitude Log.
In addition to task logging and habit tracking, I love drawing and doodling in my journal. Some pages even contain the random information I want to jot down and remember.
I use a black Leuchtturm 1917 in A5 size with dotted pages as my Bullet Journal. My primary writing tools are a Pentel Arts Hybrid Technica Pen in 0.3mm size to write down my tasks, a Muji Gel Pen in 0.38mm size to create my bullets and draw design elements, and a Zebra Mildliner Highlighter in gray for accents. I use a six-inch Westcott Stainless Steel Ruler for creating straight edges and @inkbyjeng’s Stencil to create my bullets and design elements. To hide mistakes, I use a white out tape roller I purchased from the Muji Store. Finally, all my tools are stored and kept organized inside my Smart Fit Pencil Case I purchased from Amazon.
I hope this post has given you some insight and inspiration to start a Bullet Journal yourself, or perhaps add new ideas to the one you already use! No matter how you approach it, I hope your Bullet Journal brings you joy and productivity! If you want to join me on my Bullet Journal journey, be sure to follow @mabujork on Instagram! Happy logging! ☺
