I promised I would give you an update on using a Bullet Journal and therefore I will!
Long overdue, but hey. It’s like a period: I don’t see the problem as long as you get it in the end.
My handwriting isn’t that great and there’s a lot prettier Bullet Journals out there, but this is how I use it. My Bullet Journal of the past few months below!
BEGINNINGS I started using my bullet journal early 2015, and was surprised at A) how much I enjoyed working with it and B) how much overview it created.
I wrote an original article with pictures, but my website had a few bugs and I had to delete it, but it included some Bullet Journal basics, as well as things that work really well for me, like the to-do lists so I can be at my most productive. (I don’t know, there’s something about lists that just get my motor running)
I’ve used it for over a year now and my Bullet Journal is my faithful companion through productivity and procrastination (the more I use it, the less of the latter), through work and through writing: It’s a great tool for anyone who thinks on paper, who likes to plan creatively and who enjoys writing things down.
MONTHLY CALENDAR I make a monthly calendar so I know what the fuck is going around me throughout the month, how much time I still have left to do important things and what type of dates and appointments I shouldn’t forget.
I also sometimes include a ‘Miscellaneous’-list throughout the month if household or administrative tasks turn up.
WEEKLY CALENDAR This helps me plan out the week. If I can (roughly, plans change) decide beforehand how I’m arranging my working hours, social events, work outs and me-time, I know how to handle everything.
DAILY TO DO LISTS/LOGS This is what makes me most aware of time, most productive and happiest to work with in my bullet journal. If I have a day in which I want to get shit done, I make a to-do list for the day, rev up my Pomodoro app on my laptop or phone and get to work.
I check the items off my to-do list and turf how many Pomodoro’s I’m using.
It’s very satisfying during, and after. You feel useful all day and it’s a good feeling when you realise how much you get done!
If I have a somewhat chill day but still want to make myself useful, I time log instead (click here to read more about time logging).
Honestly, I still feel a bit silly from time to time, whenever I’m drawing a logo or an icon, or meticulously putting together a monthly calendar or a to-do list. But fuck it, it works.
If standing upside down for 10 minutes with my head in a bucket full of rose petals would turn me into a fit productive machine, I’d bloody well do it too. However, using lists, markers and Moleskines seem to be doing the trick, so let’s do that then. Saves me some unnecessary exercise.
Have a fantastic Monday, guys. Later.
I just wanted to say that your posts never fail to make my days fantastic – be it Monday or any other day. I am pretty sure I should thank your blog in my thesis acknowledgement for introducing me (and all the other readers of your blog) to the pomodoro technique. I’ve been thinking about a bullet journal and putting my head into a bucket full of rose petals for a while now too. I should give it a go. In any case, thanks for doing what you do with the words you use.
(Side note: You recently mentioned the search bar in your podcast – and I just wanted to say that I as a reader actually use it regularly, so it is not just the blogger him/herself! I did have some trouble finding it with your new layout, though I think it is quite clear that if it’s not at the top, it’s at the bottom of the page.)
Ditto to your posts being an awesome addition to my day, and to the search bar. I use it too!
Ziet er super uit! Ik doe het eigenlijk heel anders haha, net een beetje wat ik fijn vind. De ene keer plan ik per week, de andere keer per dag.