#bullet journal method

[modernmonkeymind]

As someone with ADD and executive function issues on top of that, I tried to use the bullet journal method for a LONG time. After all, it was devised by a dude with ADHD, its gotta be a good fit, right? Maintenance was a pain in the @$$. These days I use the "Reminders" app on my iPhone and Macbook Air. Way less maintenance and I get way more done. Its all about what works, not what you're "supposed to do."

[randomboxofthoughtsandtreasures]

Also a reminder that the method is about reflection on what matters to you. Yes it can be used as a productivity tool, but it's also a way to prioritize what is important to you. Which isn't always about getting something done, sometimes it's just taking care of yourself.

A quick reminder that the bullet journal method was designed as a disability tool by a person with ADD. It's meant to be practical, and can be helpful especially to neurodivergent folks. Don't let the Instagram pictures or grind culture make you believe you cannot use it. The method will not work for everyone of course, but it is largely what you make of it.

[gigi-journaling]

Journaling Methods- Library 📚

Last Updated: June 1st, 2025

We host monthly themes on our journal community “Journal With Us” to expand our practice, challenge ourselves, and strengthen our creative skills. Monthly themes are monthly posts that highlight and breakdown a journal method/technique with information, insights, tips, and helpful articles and videos.

The Expressive Writing Paradigm-Processing Trauma

A four day prompt-driven method created by Dr. James Pennebaker designed to help one articulate and process through traumatic events and emotions.

Morning Pages/Three-Page Method

A technique developed by Julia Cameron to clear away the ‘brain clutter’ that stunts creativity and productivity through a daily exercise that incorporates ‘stream-of-consciousness’ writing.

Visual Journaling/ Art Journaling

A common and popular method of journaling for creative visual individuals. This type of journaling can be tackled through broad techniques tailored to the individual, but is an excellent way to express oneself and strengthen visual art skills.

Gratitude Journaling

An easy method to incorporate into your journaling routine that encourages you to practice mindfulness through reflection and appreciation by writing what you’re grateful for and why.

[thejournallo]

Life hack: Write

Writing can literally be your saver when it comes to everything. 

I had a bad day, and I have no one to vent it to; Write it.  I hate this person, and I don't really like how they act; Write it. I feel loved and confident; Write it.  want to be a better version of yourself; Write it.

We are literally people capable of endless imaginations; writing about our feelings, thoughts, and projects makes it real, makes it true, and helps us visualize and get into detail. 

We have to write everything down to be able to actually process it most of the time.  When we feel bad or good, our body and mind need to process it in many different ways, and most of the time, writing is a great way to let go and feel it at the same time.

[studywithvictory]

Pomodoro tracker!

Need help staying focused? My pomodoro tracker printable helps you tackle tasks in short, focused bursts -- perfect for keeping track of study sessions or work projects.

-> available in red, green, AND in black and white for those that have limited printing capabilities

-> perfect for letter-sized printing with 2 per page for maximum convenience.

-> grab yours now in both PNG and PDF formats on my google drive!

-> new to the pomodoro method? check out these posts:

the pomodoro technique on todoist

the pomodoro technique: mastering productivity one tomato at a time by @pinkishpink

my latest "getting housework done" adhd hack by @jabbage

ideas for 5-minute study breaks at the library by @audiocultures

-> remember: there's no hard rules on how to do pomodoro. if 25:5:30 doesn't work for you, change it up! it's not cheating. its personalizing! personally i do 10:5:20 :)

(if this looks familiar, i think i accidentally deleted the original post T_T)

[studyanthropy]

Hmmmm...

Feeling the urge to get a bullet journal again...

[hillbillyoracle]

Sidekick Journal Setup

Wanted to make some notes on how I set up the newest version of my sidekick journal. It's still an A6 Leuchtturm 1917 notebook- though this time I'm using a dot grid, not ruled, version. Still using a Traveler's Notebook Monthly insert in the back as well. Past that, I've adapted it to loosely use the PARA framework by Tiago Forte that I've had luck using with my digital notes.

Much like last time, I still have a today card for tasks on the front. Some days I pick some out at the beginning. Some days I just write things down as I go. Not much has changed there.

It's worth noting that this journal springs open if I don't keep the strap on it. I use the strap to notch in a gel pen (currently trying to find one of my spare fountain pens to use instead). I don't personally mind this but I know it bugs some others.

On the back side of the front cover, things have changed more. I still have a next card to jot down tasks that don't need done today that come up throughout a day, but underneath is the P in PARA - projects.

Each project gets it's own card. I like this because things were getting lost in my notebook and I can more easily see what I've committed to so I don't overcommit. Tiago Forte recommends 10-15 projects but I am disabled and have issues with energy so I shoot for 5-10. I think currently I have 9 which is a little on the high side.

They all fit nicely under the black clip here and I can shuffle through them each day to see what I want to work on.

I have a To Read, To Watch, To Listen (podcasts), and To Listen (music). I occasionally have people recommend me things and they tend to get lost in my phone. So this is just a space to jot those down. My complete TBR is still kept in Storygraph atm. My TBW is on Letterboxd (kind of). I don't listen to a lot at the moment but I'm hoping to change that.

For the first A in PARA - Areas - I set up topical indexes. I know a lot of people tend to have a lot more but I group my stuff under Personal, Home, Work, and Ria (my partner). Personal is just me. Home is anything shared with Ria. Work is mostly writing and freelance projects at the moment. Ria is for anything that is just for Ria. Anything that doesn't fit in the categories goes in the main index that comes preset up in the notebook.

This way I can jot down whatever notes I want in this notebook but when I'm looking for something specific or just want to see what's going on in a given area, I can flip to that index.

This is just an example of the kinds of things I tend to use this notebook for. I did a menu plan and wrote down the order of steps to make a new dish I wanted to try (came out really nice). It's mostly to just order my thoughts and help my brain let go of things.

This is the Traveler's Notebook Passport Size Monthly Insert I really enjoyed last year. I've set up the first few months and will set up a few more. I need to go back in and add events/holidays.

A big reason why this still felt necessary is that I'm looking at switching to a dumbphone which means I won't necessarily have access to Google Calendar on the go. So I plan to keep this as up to date as possible. I might use it for some light memory keeping as well.

Lastly, I flip the notebook upside down from the back and this is where my commonplacing will go which will be how I manage the R in PARA - resources. I have 3 categories I tend to like jotting down information about to start with but there's room for more. I won't keep the markers with me but will periodically add circles for ease of reference.

For the last A in PARA I'm planning on storing these in a nice box when I'm done with them.

I don't really intend to journal in this though I suppose I could. I have a separate "bullet journal" that in all honesty I don't use super often. I do stream of consciousness journaling on 750words.com. It's mostly to jot down notes and get things out of my head quickly. I like that it's small enough to toss into most bags.

Hope this is interesting to someone!

[balatroyaoi]

i understand that a lot of people are perfectionists, but if you want to start a journal/bujo and expect it to be perfectly organized and that you will remember to update it every day and that you will like everything about it from the get go you've already failed step one and it bothers me so much that people dont understand this...

[morayfeels]

My therapist: I’m going to give you some journaling “homework” via email.

Me: cool.

(Two weeks pass, no email)

Me: hi were you going to send me homework? I haven’t received it.

My therapist: it wouldn’t scan :(

Me: ……..

My therapist: *does nothing*

[notolux]

Hacking The Bujo Method For Autistics

I've been journaling for several years, but I've only known I'm autistic for one and half. Naturally, I went looking for any bujo spreads I could weave into my practice. I came up empty handed. So, I created some spreads and shared them in this post. However, I'm always trying improve my bujo practice and make it even better, so I figured it's time for an update.

Anyway...here's the adjusted system I created with reasons why it'll work for our autistic brains.

The Key

I never understood the use of a Key, but as life gets more complicated and I have more to keep track of, I started to see it's purpose. I've kept it simple and to the point due to Ryder's advice to not go crazy with signifiers.

Symbols

I have a way to show when:

A task is completed

A task needs rescheduling

A task has become irrelevant

Colour-Coding

I've also added a few colour-coding items to this Key.

I needed a way to visually separate personal tasks with work tasks as I didn't want to complicate things with a second journal (I've tried that, it doesn't work). Now, I use a different colour when marking work tasks versus personal ones.

Since starting this new business (and slowly piecing it all together) I also wanted a way to keep track of business tasks, notes, and ideas so I dedicated a colour to it. I did the same thing for Autism related spreads and went with a bold red.

The Future Log

Future Goals

The purpose of a future log, for me, is to actually schedule long-term goals, break them down into monthly goals, and then specific tasks within that month.

For example, my reading goal this year was 25 books. By the time October rolled around I realized I was a little (a lot) behind schedule. So, I did some mental math and realized I needed to read three books during November and December, as long as I finished my current read by the end of October.

I actually used sticky notes to section out how many pages I needed to read in a day until the month ended. This averaged out to about 30 pages, which I can read no problem. Then, I continued this process. Thirty days in a month, three books, that's ten days to read a book. Again, I used sticky notes to separate how many pages I needed to read in a day and I stuck to it.

*Side note: this is also helpful for getting past that first third of a book which is mostly exposition and setting up the story.

The Monthly Log

This brings us to the monthly log. By planning everything out for the month in the future log, the monthly log is just a transfer of information.

Monthly Goals

I also break down those long-term goals into smaller ones, as I mentioned above. I create a checklist for goals next to the monthly calendar. For example, I write down which books I plan to read that month in the goals column, and then the day I need to finish it in the Calendar column.

I'll admit everything so far, does take some time to plan and set up, but it's a process I believe to be worthwhile as it has been working for me for the past couple months.

Mood And Activity Tracker

My mood and mental health has been all over the place recently due to the amount of change I've experienced (moving out, having my work hours drastically cut, having to find new clients, starting my business, etc.). It's been quite an ending to this already interesting year.

Now, I journal every day, and I have been for a long time. But going back and reflecting on those journal entries is not something I do. I thought maybe that's what needs to change, maybe there are some patterns I can find, certain activities that drain my energy versus ones that bring me energy.

As you can see in the picture above, I have a colour-coded scale to track my mood and two columns to record activities that give me energy vs. ones that do not. I also give the overall week a colour so I have a sort of median mood I can examine later on.

The Daily Log

As I said, I've been journaling for several years, and this is the first time I've used a daily log. I used to use a weekly one, but I wanted a way to integrate my long-form journaling with my daily schedule.

Because of the future and monthly log set up, I don't need a weekly overview anymore. This allows me to take one day at a time. It also helps me:

Not become overwhelmed with everything that needs to happen that week

Satisfies my detail-oriented brain

Slow down and not try to do everything at once

Here's how I set up my daily log:

To keep things simple for every day, I split a page in half. Tasks on one side, journaling on the other.

If I happen to need more room for journaling I carry on to the next page. If I don't use an entire page in one day, I don't worry about wasted space and start on the next page as well.

Collections

I know this has been said before, but honestly collections are great for special interests.

Anything that piques my interest, a new idea that pops into my head, I can just flip to the next spread and start writing. This is how I worked through Building a StoryBrand by Donald Miller, and marked important things from Unmasking Autism by Devon Pierce.

The Index

I saved the index for last, because I wanted to show how I catalog all of the above spreads into my index.

As you can see the Daily logs use the most amount of pages and before I was trying to squish as many page numbers onto one small line. You can use whichever index system works best for you, but this is what works for me.

Final Thoughts

If any of you made it to the end of this post, I appreciate it. Truly. I know it's a long one, but I didn't want to split it into two parts. If you use any of these tips or have more of your own please leave a comment below.

P.S.

Journaling as been such a beneficial part of my life and I wanted to find a way to share these benefits with others. Benefits such as learning to understand my emotions, reflecting on my experiences and in turn understanding myself better, and organizing my life in a way that works for me. This manifested as my very own dotted/bullet journal collection.

The latest collection is inspired by the Autistic community and utilizes a pastel-like colour palette so it's soft on the eyes and a paper-over-board cover so you write on your lap any where, any time. Explore the collection here or you can buy your journal now.

Originally published on notolux.ca and can be viewed at thebullejournalist.com.

[magicratfingers]

me trying to find a time-management method

We have a bird playing on our skylight window.

[gigi-journaling]

💕 Gratitude Journaling 💕

Gratitude journaling encourages a positive mindset and healthy outlook on life through mindfulness—the practice of non-judgmental awareness of a present moment. Consistency with this practice is the key to reducing symptoms of stress and anxiety, and may increase overall optimism.

Mindfulness is the key to gratitude journaling; to achieve this, you must go beyond simple lists and dig deeper into your responses.

First, let’s go over what to avoid

Avoid general answers that lacks emotional depth and specificity that may leave you feeling emotionally empty or insincere.

Writing about what you’re grateful for before it has happened. Mindfulness emphasizes present moments; you’ll find it easier to connect emotionally with things that have happened in the near present, rather than something that will not happen until a couple of days. A good tip I encountered was to give yourself a limited window of time, say 24 hours or less.

Likewise, avoid actively looking for things to be grateful for as you experience your day. Be fully present in your daily life, when it comes time to journal you will have time to reflect on your day. Revisiting these moments gives you time to decompress, reflect, and look at them with a fresh perspective.

How To:

When you first start to practice gratitude journaling, it’s easier if you limit the amount of things you write about while still giving yourself a goal that will encourage you to dig deeper. I recommend finding three things to start with.

Write what you’re grateful for and be specific! Being specific helps you be more present and reignite the memory. Don’t just write “I’m grateful for the food I ate”, write what you ate.

Add why you’re grateful. Adding why is a game changer. Writing why is what encourages awareness and emotional depth.

What I’m grateful for

I’m grateful for my grandparents who took me to breakfast to try huevos motuleños, a popular region dish of tomatoes, pork, and eggs here in Motul, MX. I’m grateful because I know it’s almost time for me to travel back to the US and I don’t know when I’ll be able to travel and see them again. I’ll miss them, but I’m glad we’re able to have these moments together while I’m still here.

I’m grateful that I had a stable wifi connection today because our home here in Mexico doesn’t often get the best connection or cell reception. I was able to spend some time online to update my blog, which I’m proud of and always look forward to engaging with creative individuals and their art, and I was also able to call my brother whose back home in the US. I didn’t realize how much I missed home until I spent some time with him catching up and now I’m excited to go back home instead of just feeling sad that my vacation is coming to an end.

I’m grateful for my grandma because she is so talented and has been knitting me leg warmers just because I showed her some I was considering buying online. I didn’t even know she was working on them until she brought out the one she was working on to measure the width of my calf. She stopped by this evening and sat with me for a couple of hours knitting while I exercised. They’re going to be white, which is exactly the color I wanted. I can’t wait to use them this upcoming fall and winter, they’ll be perfect with the pink knitted dress I thrifted.

Come visit our tumblr journaling community ‘Journal With Us!’ 🔗

Videos:

3/3/3 Technique by paper_republic

How to gratitude journal + tips by claudiaspaurel

How to start a gratitude journal you’ll actually keep by carenhope

Articles:

The ultimate gratitude journal guide

The four A’s of gratitude by Quint

14 benefits of practicing gratitude journaling by Kori d. Miller

[thejournallo]

Explain the method: The Dream book

As always, I will love to hear your thoughts! and if you have any questions, I will be more than happy to answer them! If you liked it, leave a comment or reblog (that is always appreciated!). if you are intrested in more method check the masterlist!

This method is for those who love journaling. because it is literally it.  I love journaling, and some years ago I started to have different journals for different things. 

Right now, I have a total of 4 journals:  one for negative thoughts, "the locker book." one of my projects and aspirations, "The Architect Book." one for my feelings and check-ins, "Keep on Book."  and the fourth one, the desire book, where every time I have a manifestation in mind, I write in this journal. 

I like to think that I am in a movie where everything I write in this journal becomes true. And let me tell you that since I have been using these journals, my life has changed from 0 to 100.  I started to be more positive about everything I do, and these journals became a safe spot and coping mechanism.

my thought:

This is a method that I created, and it has always worked wonderfully for me. I manifested anything in my life just by writing and believing that my journal was magical. Give it a try, and let me know!

[blackgirlhappyplanner]

8 Functional List Ideas for Your Planner/Journal based on the Alastair M...

[justposting1]

Stop using productivity apps. Use these instead.

Welcome to Analog Action, the best channel on YouTube for getting things done with simple tools like pen and paper, a pencil, a whiteboard, and timers. You can even use sticky notes! Ask yourself: How often do you really go back through that endless list of to-dos stuck in your reminders or productivity app of choice? If you’re anything like me, too many of those to-dos get lost in the infinite…

[poisonousivy616]

7-𝖉𝖆𝖞 𝖕𝖗𝖊𝖙𝖙𝖞 𝖌𝖎𝖗𝖑 𝖈𝖍𝖆𝖑𝖑𝖊𝖓𝖌𝖊!!!

ﮩ٨ـﮩﮩ٨ـ♡ﮩ٨ـﮩﮩ٨ـ. 🐍🖤 ﮩ٨ـﮩﮩ٨ـ♡ﮩ٨ـﮩﮩ٨ـ

☆𝔭𝔯𝔢𝔱𝔱𝔶 𝔤𝔦𝔯𝔩𝔰 𝔡𝔬 𝔞𝔭𝔭𝔢𝔞𝔯𝔞𝔫𝔠𝔢 𝔠𝔥𝔞𝔫𝔤𝔢 𝔠𝔥𝔞𝔩𝔩𝔢𝔫𝔤𝔢𝔰☆

Challenge Dates: May 1st — May 7th

Hi babes!! ♡

This isn’t a “pretty please universe” moment—it’s a "I'm That Girl" reprogramming.

We're not hoping. we're not waiting. we're assuming and embodying.

Pick a feature (or your whole appearance, babe), lock it in, and act like it’s already canon.

⋆༺𓆩⚔️𓆪༻⋆ 𝕿𝖍𝖊 𝕽𝖚𝖑𝖊𝖘 ⋆༺𓆩⚔️𓆪༻⋆

༺♰༻ Pick your poison (1–3 methods) based on how your brain learns

༺♰༻ Do your method(s) for 30-60 mins after waking up, 30-60 mins before sleeping, and during habitual tasks (shower, dishes, walks, etc)

༺♰༻Repetition > overthinking

༺♰༻ No trash talk about your looks (even internally)

༺♰༻Stop overconsuming loa content— you don't need 500 tips, just one assumption

༺♰༻ Stop checking the 3D like it's in charge. It's not. You are.

༺♰༻ Assume it's already done. You're not asking—you're remembering

This is a fun, seven-day experiment to prove to yourself that you create reality from within. Repeat after me:

It's already mine. It's already done.

⋆༺𓆩⚔️𓆪༻⋆ 𝕸𝖊𝖙𝖍𝖔𝖉 𝕸𝖊𝖓𝖚 ⋆༺𓆩⚔️𓆪༻⋆

𝔞𝔨𝔞 𝔥𝔬𝔴 𝔶𝔬𝔲𝔯 𝔥𝔬𝔱 𝔟𝔯𝔞𝔦𝔫 𝔩𝔢𝔞𝔯𝔫𝔰 𝔟𝔢𝔰𝔱

Are you a visual, auditory, read/write, or kinesthetic learner? Pick your vibe—or mix and match if you're a multimodal like me

♡𝔙𝔦𝔰𝔲𝔞𝔩 𝔤𝔦𝔯𝔩𝔦𝔢𝔰♡

"ℑ𝔣 𝔦 𝔠𝔞𝔫 𝔰𝔢𝔢 𝔦𝔱, 𝔦𝔱'𝔰 𝔯𝔢𝔞𝔩"

༺♰༻ Pinterest vision boards = your future camera roll

༺♰༻SATS visualizations like movie scenes of your glow-up arc

༺♰༻watch fictional characters or influencers who resemble your desired appearance (I've done it before & it works!!!)

♡𝔄𝔲𝔡𝔦𝔱𝔬𝔯𝔶 𝔤𝔦𝔯𝔩𝔦𝔢𝔰♡

"ℑ 𝔥𝔢𝔞𝔯𝔡 𝔦𝔱 & 𝔦𝔱'𝔰 𝔡𝔬𝔫𝔢"

༺♰༻Affirmation tapes & subliminals while you get ready

༺♰༻Manifestation playlists (act like the lyrics were written about you)

༺♰༻Rampages like you're giving a TED Talk on being pretty

༺♰༻Talk to yourself out loud like your own PR manager

♡ℜ𝔢𝔞𝔡/𝔚𝔯𝔦𝔱𝔢 𝔤𝔦𝔯𝔩𝔦𝔢𝔰♡

"ℑ 𝔴𝔯𝔬𝔱𝔢 𝔦𝔱, 𝔰𝔬 𝔦𝔱'𝔰 𝔱𝔯𝔲𝔢"

༺♰༻ Script your glow-up like a journal entry from your future self

༺♰༻Bullet-point manifestation lists like you're shopping online: add to cart, check out, and expect delivery—no tracking obsession allowed

༺♰༻Write & reread your affirmations like they're handwritten love letters from your army of obsessed simps

♡𝔎𝔦𝔫𝔢𝔰𝔱𝔥𝔢𝔱𝔦𝔠 𝔤𝔦𝔯𝔩𝔦𝔢𝔰♡

"ℑ 𝔪𝔬𝔳𝔢, ℑ 𝔟𝔢𝔠𝔬𝔪𝔢"

༺♰༻ Strut around your house like a runway model while mentally affirming

༺♰༻Mirror work: speak your affirmations with attitude while looking in the mirror

༺♰༻Embody the new version of you like you're method acting a role

⋆༺𓆩⚔️𓆪༻⋆ 𝕱𝖎𝖓𝖆𝖑 𝖕𝖗𝖊𝖙𝖙𝖞 𝖌𝖎𝖗𝖑 𝖓𝖔𝖙𝖊𝖘 ⋆༺𓆩⚔️𓆪༻⋆

༺♰༻Your assumptions are law. not your mirror. not your doubts

༺♰༻ You don't need to micromanage the 3D—you already have it

༺♰༻This is your reminder: you run this simulation

Start May 1st. Finish May 7th. But let's be real—this is just the beginning.

Tag me and update me on your success stories!!! I CAN'T WAIT!!!!!

𝕷𝖔𝖛𝖊, 𝕴𝖛𝖞 🖤💚