I am the most unartistic person ever. Now let’s add to that, I am the most unorganized person ever. Those traits along with being a fulltime student is quite a treat. Everyone says “get a planner it’ll change your life”, so I did. It didn’t change my life. I never remembered to fill it out, most planners didn’t have places where I could put information that tailored to me, and I’m not the “average person”. So as anyone would, I stopped using it and went back to my ways of being an unorganized stressed college student, it was great..
One day, I was wasting my time, per usual, on YouTube when I came upon a video on bullet journaling. I was intrigued, just as any other student would be, who has much larger priorities. I thought watching videos of other people who have their shit together would help me get my shit together. Surprisingly, it did. I’m still shocked. For those of you who haven’t ever heard of bullet journaling, a quick search will bring you to an elaborate diary with intricate illustrations, complex layouts, and colorful borders. But, bullet journals are not just aesthetics, they’re about making you more productive, one of my weakest suits.
This book is filled with just dots, so evidently my initial thought was “what the f*** is this”. I proceeded to watch a tutorial video, which made me even more doubtful. So, I gave it a try!
This journal is 100% a customized planner. You cater it to your schedule and needs. You put together squares, rectangles, colors, anything you want to make something unique. I make my own monthly calendar for each month and then fill in all the information I need per month. For myself I added my school schedule, all my sorority events, work schedule and important dates. That sounds like a basic planner I know, BUT, I also make an expenses page, so I can track how much I spend monthly, a mood board in which I color coordinate my mood daily so I can look back and reflect on the month, as mental health is extremely important, and I even track on what days I work out, clean, and study. I didn’t think I would stay up on this but the idea of making a new monthly lay out the way I want, with the things I want, makes me look forward to it every day! I now can say I have my shit together and have for some time now.
I know this seems like a lot, but I promise anyone can do this. Stencils are now my best friend. I encourage you to go out and get a journal and just start customizing your life in a little journal. You can thank me later, I’ll wait.
Attached below is a link to a bullet journal and my favorite felt markers.
Happy October and happy planning!