That is the question. For today.
First off, my apologies for going AWOL this past week and a bit. We headed off on a road trip to see family on the Friday before last, and when the kids and I got home the following Monday I finally came down with the lurgy that had been threatening. Solo parenting and nasty-lurgy time don’t tend to encourage the mental capacity to blog once a long day is done, hence my vanishing act.
Today I am back, and with a question…
Do you keep a journal? If so, what kind?
A long time ago, when still working full time, I used a task list / appointment set up in a day-per-page diary. It served me well at that time and I realised how much I had been missing that helpmate at the end of last year. So I thought I’d give an expensive, pretty, day planner a go as a method of planning and tracking, mimicking what I used to do. Sadly it bit the dust about half-way through the year.
Unfortunately I knew I still needed something, as keeping on task has become harder and harder as the kids and I go about our daily lives. Things get missed, turn up as a surprise last minute panic, or get put off indefinitely. My head was about to explode with the lack of productivity (yes, I may be one of those people) and focus.
A while ago I stumbled across the Bullet Journal and was taken with the simplicity of the idea, but never went so far as to put it in to practice. At the point I first saw it, I hadn’t realised how much I missed the analog organisational tools and was still trialling a number of digital options. Then it faded from memory until a couple of months ago.
It’s implementable in any spare notebook you currently have on hand. Hurray for not needing mega-bucks planners! Far more flexible and creative than a store-bought book (as flexi or creatie as you can be bothered to make it). And best of all, I really think it’s going to be something I can stick with, most of the time.
There are a few groups online that you can connect to and get inspiration from – and by crikey it’s worth it for the beautiful and individual ways people use the basic ideas.
Over at G+ there’s the Bullet Journal community and at Facebook there’s the official page of the Bullet Journal creator. Don’t forget to search Instagram for some wonderfully inspiring glimpses into other people’s journals, try this search to see what you think.
As I type this I’m in the process of preparing my journal for December and I’ve discovered that a bit of inspiration from other creative types is all I’ve needed to up my game from simple daily lists, scrawled in random pens, to actually taking some time and effort in laying out the month ahead.
I can see this happily marrying both sides of my brain… and hopefully aiding with a jump in focus, concentration and productivity. Not to mention indulging my love of paper products and colourful pens. I may have happened to mention that a good quality dot grid notebook would make a wonderful Christmas gift this year. Fingers crossed that the powers that be were listening at the time I was speaking.
In the meantime, here’s some inspiration for you to check out.
~ Boho Berry
~ Passion Themed Life
~ Bulletjournaljoy
