It’s time for a new Bullet Journal

If you’re not sure what a bullet journal is, make sure to check out this post I did talking all about it.

For those of you using the bullet journal method or just like writing in general the start of a new year is EXCITING. It usually means you are going to start a new journal. Before I get to what changes I have made for my 2017 bullet journal I thought I had quickly cover these important questions:

Where do I find out about bullet journals?

• Either read my post mentioned above for my overview or
• Check out the official bullet journal website

Where do I get one of those fancy Leuchtturm 1917 dotted journals from in New Zealand?

• Head on over to www.1917.co.nz for all your Leuchtturm journal needs, from blank to lined to dotted in all sorts of sizes and colours I’m sure there is something there for you. And if you think they are expensive for a notebook then maybe they aren’t for you. To me they are awesome, and worth every cent. They hold up well to the daily abuse they have to up with being with me all the time from bag to bag.
• Some selected stores around the country – check out www.1917.co.nz for all the details (it’s right there on the front page)

DISCLAIMER
I have nothing to do with www.1917.co.nz at all, I’ve just had good dealings buying stuff from them, and they stock a great product that’s all and I like sharing the awesomeness that is bullet journaling.

My Bullet Journal Changes for 2017

New Journal – This year I went from the orange journal to a lime green one, still dotted and still a Lechtturm 1917

New main pen – I was using a Staedtler Triplus Fineliner black pen which was OK, but for me I was finding the tip was wearing out a bit too fast for my liking, so while on a random trip where I found myself at Warehouse Stationery for something else I came across the Sharpie Pen – Fine.

They come in a 4 pack and will set you back around $9.99 and according to their website you get a free neon permanent marker. (Mine didn’t come with a freebie) These are a fine tipped pen similar in size to the Staedtler Triplus Fineliner. I did see someone overseas had found a medium version of the same pen, I haven’t seen those in the wild here in NZ but they may be around.

The sharpie pen doesn’t bleed, so you won’t see it come through the paper, but be aware the Leuchtturm’s does have ghosting where you can see the outline of what was written on the other page, I know this is a deal breaker for some people, but I couldn’t care less about it.

The sharpie to me seems to dry a lot quicker than the Staedtler pens (probably milliseconds) but just enough that when I now draw lines with a ruler I never seem to smudge any of them, now this could have been my gummy hand doing something, or the ruler (I haven’t changed either of those) or down to the ink flow and drying time, I just know that I quite like the sharpie pens now.

Changes within my bullet journal

Moving items – The monthly and daily spreads I’ve kept at the front of the journal, while this year I have put all my topic pages and info stuff into the back of the journal. The back stuff has its own index which I created on the first page that wasn’t one of the perforated ones.

I find this a better way of managing everything for myself within my journal.

Using my monthly tracker differently – Previously I had tried to do everything on my monthly tracker every single day. Now I have changed my thinking to using it more of an actual tracker and to help plan things across a month, things I need to do multiple times but with an interval. I draw the square which gives me a visual indication of what and when I need to do something, once I’ve done it I shade it in.

I played around with some new online things too

There are a lot of tools out there to help you plan things, especially in the world of online apps. One new one I tried out for a while is called Airtable.

It’s like a fancy pants online spreadsheet where you add the columns and also say what the columns are and what they can show or how they show it. I recommend it if you are looking for an online solution to help organise anything. Just make sure to first use the desktop version and look at the examples to get your head around how it works. The mobile app is great, but only once you know what you’re doing.

But after a while I couldn’t justify why I was trying to use the bullet journal and Airtable to do a lot of the same things, sure it was great to play with something cool on the internet, but most people I deal with can barely grasp the concept of email (IT’S CALLED BLIND CARBON COPY, USE IT) let alone try and get them onto a new platform. And all the information I need, use and maintain is just for me, so the bullet journal is still the best thing for me.

I know I was way more productive in 2016 because of the bullet journal, and I know 2017 is shaping up to be another epic year.

If you have any questions around the bullet journal, want to let me know how you use yours or anything else, leave me a comment below.