c/bullet-journaling

TIL my cat has a thing for fountain pen ink.

I was setting up my new weekly spread on the kitchen table when my cat, Mango, jumped up and knocked over a full bottle of Noodler's black, which then soaked through 15 pages of my Leuchtturm journal, and now I'm trying to salvage it by pressing the pages flat under a stack of heavy books for a week.

Question about bullet journal paper weight

I was setting up my new journal, a Leuchtturm1917, and decided to look up the paper weight out of curiosity. I always thought it was just 'thin paper'. I found the exact spec on their website, and it's 80 gsm. For some reason, I had it in my head that all nice notebooks were at least 100 gsm. It surprised me because my fountain pen ink never bleeds through, even though the number seems low. Has anyone else been caught off guard by a paper detail like that?

Looked back and saw I filled 12 notebooks in 3 years

I was cleaning out a drawer and stacked up all my old bullet journals. I counted them and it was 12. That's one every three months. It surprised me because I never thought I'd stick with it this long. My first one was just a cheap grid notebook from the drug store. I was just trying to get my thoughts in order after a messy move. Now, flipping through them, it's like a map of my life. There are grocery lists next to big life plans, and trackers for everything from water to how many times I called my mom. It's weird to see how much changed, but the system stayed the same. Has anyone else been shocked by how many books they've filled?

Just realized my bullet journal doesn't need to be perfect after talking to my mom

She saw my messy weekly spread and said 'it's a tool, not a museum piece,' which finally made me stop stressing over every line. Anyone else have a simple rule that helped them use their bujo more?

My notebook got soaked at a coffee shop in Raleigh last month

I was setting up my bullet journal at a table when a whole latte spilled right on it. The pages were a total mess, and my weekly spread was ruined. I had to let it dry for two days, which really messed up my tracking. Now I keep a plastic sleeve in the back of my journal for emergency notes. Has anyone else had a journal disaster and found a good way to protect it?

Just noticed I've filled 50 pages in my bullet journal this year. Didn't think I'd stick with it.

My week went from a total mess to sorted out because of a simple bullet journal change.

Last week, my car broke down, a client moved a deadline up, and my cat got sick, all in two days. I usually just list tasks, but I was so stressed I drew a big circle and wrote 'This Week's Fire' in the middle with arrows to each problem and my next step. Has anyone else tried switching from lists to a more visual map when things get crazy?

Pro tip: I tried tracking my water intake with a full page spread and it backfired hard

I set up a detailed tracker with 8 glasses to color in each day, thinking the visual would help me drink more. After three days, I felt so stressed about filling it perfectly that I just avoided the page completely. Has anyone else found that making a habit tracker too fancy actually makes you less likely to use it?

Okay, so I had to pick between a super detailed weekly spread and a rapid-log style for my work journal.

I went with rapid-logging because setting up the weekly took me over an hour last Sunday. It's been three days and I'm already way less stressed about keeping up. Anyone else ditch a complex layout for something simpler?

My sister saw my bullet journal and asked if I could teach her the basic signifiers over coffee this weekend.

She pointed at my '>' migration arrow and said, 'That little thing makes your whole to-do list feel less scary, like it's okay to move stuff.'

I bought a $70 'bullet journal starter kit' online and it was just a notebook with some stickers

I saw an ad for this fancy kit that promised everything you need to start your first journal. It arrived yesterday, and it was literally just a basic dotted notebook, a single black pen, and a sheet of generic motivational stickers. The pen skipped on the first page. I could have gotten the same stuff at the big box store for maybe $15. The whole thing felt like a cheap cash grab aimed at new people who don't know any better yet. I'm annoyed I fell for the marketing. The notebook isn't even that good, the paper is thin. Has anyone else been tricked by one of these 'all-in-one' kits that are actually just overpriced junk?

Hot take: I just threw out $45 worth of fancy metallic pens because they smudge on my journal pages.

I bought them online for a special gratitude spread, but the ink never dries on my 160gsm paper and ruins everything I write next to it, so has anyone found a good brand that actually works?

A quiet moment at the library that changed how I track my reading

I was at the main branch downtown, working on my reading log spread. An older woman at my table leaned over and said, 'You know, I just write the date I finish a book, not the day I start it. It feels more like a win.' I tried her way for three months now. My list looks shorter, but each entry feels solid. Has anyone else tried tracking just the finish dates?

My friend told me my weekly log was too crowded to read

She pointed out that I was trying to fit everything into one small box per day, which made it look messy. I switched to using a full page for the week with bigger spaces for each day. Now I can actually see my tasks clearly without squinting. Has anyone else tried giving their weekly spread more room?

Serious question, are you guys actually using your bullet journals?

I keep seeing these perfect, artistic spreads online, but my friend in Chicago just admitted she hasn't opened hers in three months. The whole point is to use it, not just make it pretty. How many of you are actually tracking tasks daily versus just setting it up?

I thought the whole 'future log' thing in my bullet journal was just extra work for no reason.

I finally kept a monthly habit tracker going for a full 90 days

My February page had maybe five things filled in, but I just closed out April with almost every box checked. I think setting it up right next to my weekly spread made it impossible to ignore. What's one small change that made a habit actually stick for you?

Just realized my bullet journal setup was a mess after a chaotic weekend trip to Chicago

I had to track a last-minute flight change, three different dinner reservations, and my friend's birthday gift budget all at once, and my usual weekly spread just couldn't handle it, so has anyone else had to make a special 'emergency travel' log page?

Unpopular opinion: I was wrong about needing a fancy notebook for bullet journaling

I read a blog post from a teacher in Chicago who tracked her whole year in a basic 99 cent composition book. She said the cheap paper forced her to focus on the system, not the art. I tried it for a month and my planning got way simpler and faster. Has anyone else ditched the expensive stuff and found it helped?

Switched from a daily to a weekly log and my brain feels so much lighter

I used to set up a new page every morning with a long list of tasks, but I'd get stuck rewriting the same things. Last month I tried a single weekly spread with my main goals at the top and just seven small boxes for daily notes. The difference is I'm not starting from scratch each day, so I actually move things forward. Has anyone else found a simpler layout that finally clicked?

Shoutout to my friend who said my weekly spread looked like a 'to-do list graveyard'

She pointed out that I was using three different colors just to mark things as incomplete, which honestly made my whole system feel like a failure. I switched to a simple dot for anything that didn't get done and now migrate it without all the extra marks. Has anyone else simplified their signifiers after getting feedback?

My sister saw my weekly spread and said it looked like a crime scene

I was showing off my new weekly layout last month, all proud of the color coding. I had red for urgent tasks, black for regular stuff, and a bright orange highlighter for deadlines. My sister took one look and said, 'Lee, this looks like a murder board from a cop show. Are you tracking a serial killer or your grocery list?' I laughed, but she had a point. The next week, I swapped the red for a calm blue and the orange for a soft green. My journal went from looking like I was solving a case to just planning my week. It's way less stressful to open now. Has anyone else had a color scheme totally miss the mark?

My bullet journal collection tracker just hit 100 different pens.

I started a simple list in the back of my 2023 journal just to keep track of what I had, and I added the last one this morning. It made me realize I have a real thing for blue-black inks. Do you track your supplies, and what's your most common color?

TIL my fountain pen can't handle the humidity in my Florida garage

I was setting up my journal on the workbench to plan the week, and my Lamy Safari just started dumping ink everywhere. It bled through three pages of my Leuchtturm notebook before I could cap it. Has anyone else found a good waterproof pen that works in a damp shop?

Serious question, has anyone else tried using a cheap watercolor palette as a makeshift highlighter set for their weekly spreads?

I was getting so frustrated with my highlighters drying out and smearing my ink, so last Tuesday I grabbed my kid's $5 watercolor set, used a tiny brush with just a drop of water, and now I have perfect, smear-proof pastel color coding that lasts all week.