Bullet Journal Benefits
A couple of years ago, I was trawling the Internet for good writing videos. I found one on using a bullet journal in order to plan your book. Aha! Must be the ticket.
I left that video disillusioned. Bullet journalling, it seemed, was far too complicated for me. The presenter (whom I do not criticise in any way) had pages for this goal, calendars, trackers, pages for one thing and another... It was too much for me, so I dismissed bullet journalling altogether.
It wasn’t until 2020 that I got into videos on notebooks. I often watch videos in French (which usually follow English-speaking social patterns), so I found a bunch of videos where presenters showed us collections of notebooks. As a stationery fan, this was inspiring to me.
By far the best video was this one (in French). The presenter here had her own system of filling in a bullet journal which was far more tailored to my own preference for writing. In fact, she advised against expending too much energy into creating a work of art. She preferred to see the Bullet Journal as a tool for achieving one’s objectives.
From this video, I also finally understood how to use a habit tracker. I also subscribe to a Youtube channel dedicated entirely to Bullet Journals (in German). Once again, the presenter makes clear that a bullet journal can be tailored to your needs. Minimalist bullet journals exist!
My bullet journal is a wirebound notebook with squared pages. I originally used it for rough drafts before kicking myself in the backside and implementing proper organisation. The Leuchtturm 1917 books seem most popular, particularly with the dotted pages. I may use a dotted notebook in the future, but I work best with squared paper, owing to its flexibility.
Why has using a bullet journal been beneficial to me? A few reasons:
1)- It has reinforced my daily objectives. Too many mornings have sailed by, with me completely forgetting about what I should achieve. In fact, I would wake up for years without setting any kind of objective, leading to analysis paralysis and calamitous procrastination. At the moment, I have not yet succeeded in using my bullet journal in the morning (no use filling objectives in the evening, as I have done today), but I have a stronger idea of what must be done today.
2)- It has encouraged regular habits. Beforehand, I would think of developing a habit in terms of hours and hours of uninterrupted study. I almost never achieved this. With the bullet journal, I can finally press on with my long dormant aim for drawing on a regular basis. For the record, I completely failed to sketch on a regular basis this week, but I have a habit tracker in place for the following week. I wrote some frustrated notes on why I had to draw, so I have not forgotten the objective.
3)- It has encouraged multiple habits. In the video I linked above, the presenter combined the bullet journal methods with tarot cards. This was novel to me, and inspired me to combine regular drawing with learning foreign languages. The vague idea is that I practice sketching based on a theme of vocabulary in French and German (I have the Bescherelle Allemand Vocabulaire to assist with this), and then write a piece of reflection on the piece in said language (French or German). I realised that if I did not have a conscious need to draw (in this case, so that I could use drawn material in foreign language lessons), I would just use it as a hobby. And if so, I would get so preoccupied with daily concerns that I would forget to practice drawing entirely. As I write this, I should include more prompts to encourage drawing, since most of my bullet journal entries are written.
4)- It has encouraged writing by hand. This is an important goal for me, which I had already achieved in other notebooks. The vast majority of the bullet journals I have seen via Tumblr (just type “bullet journal” into the search bar and prepare to waste hours staring at other people’s hard work) are written by hand. Not just that, but we also see beautiful calligraphy. Some bullet journals are quite ornate, but I have no time for that. The benefits of writing by hand cannot be underestimated. Slowing down, concentrating, developing fine motor skills, removing pesky thoughts from cluttering your mind, becoming more creative, calming down, alleviating anxiety and stress-- all of these come from writing by hand. Small wonder that numerous studies have confirmed this link, while many other studies have confirmed the damage caused by overuse of computers and smartphones. I use a fountain pen for journal entries, which brings me even greater satisfaction.
At the moment, I set a weekly goal of running at least 15 000 steps, taking Vitamin D, sketching, learning new vocabulary, and other things. I have failed to meet any of these requirements for one simple reason: failing to wake up early. If I do not have the time to sit down and concentrate on setting goals, those goals will not be completed.
I haven’t gotten any reading done either, and keep getting frustrated with my lack of reading at the moment. I wasted most of this afternoon on the PC looking up yet more stories about coronavirus, rather than completing my To-Do list. So even though a bullet journal is useful, it cannot help you make progress without having a solid lifestyle routine in place.
