i recently started a new bullet journal in april and this time, i bought a squared notebook instead of a ruled notebook like my last one. with that, i ended up with a different type of layout that lots of you guys were asking about hehe. so here’s a post explaining my current 2016 set up!
journal
my bullet journal is a brandless squared journal that i found in a store nearby. it’s similar to the moleskine journals, but the pages are thicker and i haven’t noticed any bleeding that i’ve seen with some moleskines. overall, i’m really quite happy with it because it’s slim and easy to carry around.
monthly
i drew a monthly calendar that fit the entire spread instead of the single page calendar that i had before. it’s just a simple calendar with boxes large enough to fit whatever i need. i put things like test dates, important events, appointments, etc. i don’t really have a color scheme or anything for events; i just highlight the important ones that i absolutely cannot forget.
i used a fine sharpie pen (not the permanent marker) to draw the calendar, a black frixion ball slim to write in events so that they were erasable and adjustable, and zebra mildliners to highlight important/must-not-forget stuff.
daily
i found that it was really hard to schedule things in advance with a bullet journal, and that was one of the only things that really held my bullet journal back. this time, i divided the page up into thirds and pre-wrote the dates for the month. i write my tasks across and down to save space, and i haven’t had any problems with the space being too small. tbh it’s not really like a traditional bullet journal anymore, but i like the aspect of having spaces ahead of time that a planner has.
i also track the hours that i spend doing school assignments / studying to keep myself motivated every day (1 square = 1 hour). i like to keep my streak going and do at least something productive every day, even if it’s only for an hour. sometimes, i’ll forget to keep track though haha
color scheme
i pick one main color for every month. for example, march was green, april was purple, and may is blue. i use that color to write the title dates and write events on each day and mark off tasks with. it’s just easier to carry around one or two similar colors rather than having six different colors to color-code with. also, i have a tendency to forget color codes easily hahaha.
key
like i said, i have trouble remembering color codes and keys are no exception. i just simplified the entire key thing down to a few things. x means that the task is done, / means that the task is halfway complete, –> means that the task was moved to the next day, and ⦻ means that the task was cancelled. i don’t fill up the whole box in my bullet journal because it feels awkward to do so (i tend to write small). i just make the tiny mark next to the task.
to be completely honest, i don’t really follow my key. my bullet journal is mainly to help me remember the things that i have to do that day, and sometimes, i won’t even fill out the tasks. so even if a task is done, i’ll forget to cross it off hahahaha. i’m trying to fix that though lololol
misc
i have a page for fitness hours and volunteer hours on the page right after my monthly calendar. i’ll also have general boxes off to the sides of my daily pages for whatever reason there might be. i might also have little doodles and inspirational quotes drawn in the margins as well. i usually don’t really stick washi tape in my bullet journal bc i usually don’t have the time ;; however, i have sticky tabs on each monthly spread so that i can flip easily to it. it also separates out the months. there’s also a little ribbon bookmark in my journal that i place on the current day.
hope this helped and good luck! if you’d like to request a post, go here and if you’d like to see more helpful posts, go here!! thanks :)
