My Bullet Journal Beginning

Three years ago, I got wrapped up in the planner craze - Well, sort of. One of my colleagues told me about the Passion Planner. I looked it up and thought, this would be great for me. I like things to be nice, organized and well planned out. My reality was that much of my work life was disjointed and I was reacting to the chaos around me without any direction or forethought. Needing a change, I purchased my Passion Planner and was uber excited when it arrived. With all of that excitement, I ended up not using it and gave it to a friend. The pre-printed schedule didn’t work for me and my writing wouldn’t fit in those little spaces. 

Fast-forward to December 2019

If you don’t know, Pinterest is amazing! I didn’t understand the power of the P before, but I do now. Creativity sparks creativity and before you know it, I was giving the planner another try. Not liking the rigidity of pre-printed planners, I found the bullet journal and fell in love! Now, there are some things you should know before you embark on this journey – have the proper tools, don’t compare your journal to others and do what works for you!

It took me a while to find my bullet journal groove. After passing along 3 oops notebooks to my girls, I finally found a journaling method that worked for me. I like the artistic bullet journals on Pinterest and Instagram with the calligraphy, fancy paintings and drawings, etc., but I’m not creative in that way. I am, however, resourceful and I found a way to elicit that my-bullet-journal-is-so-damn-cute feeling whenever I open my notebook.

The notebook I use is a portable A5 dotted classic. It only has 160 pages, but the paper is thick and ink doesn’t bleed through and there’s very little shadowing. I’ve designed my layouts and pages to last the entire calendar year, but if I run out of room, I’ll just start another one. As it stands, I have plenty of room to calendar events, jot down notes, keep track of tasks, plan and track my habits. Take a look!

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Year at a Glance

Full disclosure – I can’t tiny write. Instead, I print most of my headings, quotes and calendars and glue them in. I love the contrast that kraft paper provides and it comes in a sticker version. I like playing around with different fonts. There are some that are my go tos like KG Sorry Not Sorry and Samantha (script).

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Index – a bullet journal essential

To save pages (remember, I only have 160), I created a 2-column index. One mistake I made with one of my previous journals was that I created all 12 months at once. Not only did I have nothing to look forward to (creating the monthly spread is so relaxing), but over the weeks, I come across new ideas that I can’t try. Now, I wait to a week before the next month before I create the monthly spread. The Index becomes super helpful because I can take notes as I get ideas or have meetings without throwing off the order of the months. 

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Future Log

This is mostly blank. I’m still figuring out if I’ll transfer this to my next bullet journal or just be ok with it being mostly blank. Maybe it’ll get filled up.

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Projects Overview

This page is meant to give me an overview of my year and when major projects begin and end. It also reminds me when I will need to dig deep for energy and grace. 

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Principal Dashboard

This spread was inspired by a Teacher Dashboard I saw on Pinterest. I modified it and made it my own. Using sticky note paper allows me to display key information needed to manage my team and organization all in one location. It’s really helpful because I often get information in pieces and my dashboard decreases the likelihood of something falling through the cracks. The washi-taped edges make access to my dashboard quick and easy.

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Blog Post Ideas

This is a way to quickly jot down ideas that come to me or capture situations that are potential blog post material. Again, sticky notes expand this spreads use.

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Reimbursement Tracker

Pre-shelter-in-place, ordering school supplies and instructional materials, and paying with my credit card was a common occurrence. Writing down every transaction prevents me from taking on an unwanted expense. The symbols in the right columns indicate if I’ve submitted my receipts and have received payment.

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Savings Log

I have a love-hate relationship with online shopping. This spread that I found on Pinterest reminds me to stay focused and put a little of my earnings away for a rainy day or special project. It’s nice to see the bars move up.

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Moon Phases

My moon phase spread was fun to do. I used a circle stencil to create my moons and shaded them in with a gray Zebra Mildliner. There are times when I like to release certain energies and manifest others. Using the power of the moon to do so can’t hurt.

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Thoughts and Ideas

This is my brain dump page. I use these pages to write down random thoughts and ideas that I haven’t connected to anything yet. I also use these pages to doodle and try out new bujo drawings.

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Weight Loss Tracker

No explanation needed. I found these cute Black girl stamps on Etsy. Coloring in the circles is my way of keeping myself motivated and accountable. Obviously, I haven’t started yet. After this shelter-in-place situation, I’m going to have to work my way down to me starting point!

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Bee Wordy Planning

I am the creator of this wonderful educational card game that makes learning to read fun! Although not officially considered my side hustle since I’m not hustling as much as I should, it is a dream that is slowly coming true.

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Books to Read

I surprised myself when I drew this bookshelf. I couldn’t find a stencil that I liked, so I was forced completely out of my comfort zone. However, some simple lines and a few curves were relatively easy draw with a ruler and a white gel pen fixed my mistakes. Some mistakes, like my offset globe, I just live with. Overall it came out pretty good.

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I hope this look at my bullet journal was helpful. As you can see, it’s not perfect, but it’s my attempt at mindfully getting and staying organized. Let me know what you think. Until next time…

Bullet Journal Blooper

I went stamp crazy on these pages. After being annoyed with myself every time I opened up my journal, I needed a solution. Black washi tape to the rescue. I covered nearly the entire page with this cool leather-like tape and called it a day. I like it!