I honestly think social media has made bullet journaling look much more complicated than it needs to be. You see these perfectly decorated spreads with elaborate lettering, color-coded trackers, and tiny illustrations, and suddenly your own notebook starts feeling inadequate.

But a bullet journal is supposed to be useful. If you abandon a monthly spread halfway through, leave pages unfinished, or switch to a completely different layout because your needs changed, that doesn't mean you've failed at journaling. It means you're using the notebook like an actual tool.

I also love the idea of mixing practical planning with whatever you're genuinely interested in, whether that's plant sketches, observations, random thoughts, or notes about something you're learning. Not every page needs to match, and not every hobby needs to become an aesthetic project.

A messy journal that you actually use is more valuable than a beautiful journal you're afraid to write in.

The whole point is to make your life easier and give your thoughts somewhere to go. If decorating helps you enjoy the process, great. If a pen and a few bullet points are enough, that's just as valid.

I used to spend way too much time trying to make the first page of every month look nice. By the time I finished picking a theme, drawing everything, and lettering the title, I was already tired of journaling lol.

This month I just wrote the month at the top of the page and started filling it in. No theme, no fancy lettering, no pressure to make it look good.

And honestly, I've been using my journal more because of it. I can just open it and write stuff down instead of feeling like I need to keep everything looking consistent.

I still love seeing everyone's decorated spreads, but it's nice realizing my journal doesn't have to look a certain way to work for me.

For those who've been bullet journaling for a while, what did you stop doing that made the biggest difference?

I have so many screenshots of cute spreads saved and somehow my actual journal is just boxes, bad handwriting, and me running out of space halfway through the week 💀

I’ll see someone’s monthly setup and think “okay I’m doing that next month” and then next month comes and I can barely be bothered to draw a straight line.

Still love my journal though. It’s a lot easier to keep up with when I stop trying to make every page look perfect.

I’ll start the month all motivated, make a nice calendar, set up my habit tracker, write out my goals… and then by the middle of the month I’m just scribbling things wherever there’s space.

Sometimes I even forget to open my journal for a few days, then feel like I need to catch up before I can use it again. Which obviously makes me put it off even longer.

I’m trying to get better at just picking it back up without feeling like I have to fix everything first.

If you miss a few days, do you fill in the blanks or just carry on from where you are?

I went from using fineliner to fountain pen and while i do have an ok notebook for it i feel like there are better options. Would you mind sharing what notebooks you're using?

Also, while we're at it, what are your favorite inks for journaling?

I'll start: this year I'm using dotted sakura notebook and pelikan brilliant black ink

Does anyone else do this?? 😭

I got a new notebook because I wanted to get back into bullet journaling, and now I'm just staring at the first page because I don't want to mess it up.

I've been looking at layouts for days, saving ideas, planning what to put where... meanwhile the notebook is still completely empty.

It's so stupid because the whole point is to actually USE it, but somehow I feel like the first page has to be perfect.

How do you guys get over this? Do you just start writing, or do you plan the first few pages beforehand?

Hi! I’m creating themed monthly sticker packs for bullet journals. Right now I’m working on the functional part of the pack and would love to hear your opinion. Here’s what I have so far:

• Date numbers for the monthly calendar and weekly pages
• Weekday headers for the monthly calendar and weekly pages
• “Notes” stickers
• Page titles (monthly goals, monthly wins, monthly review, notes, journaling, habit tracker, book tracker, sleep tracker, mood tracker, finance tracker)

What would you add? What would you personally want from a monthly pack?

Thank you!

Hey friends! This was my bujo from 2019. I am shopping around for next year's journal, and want to see what this company has to offer, but I can't remember what online shop I bought it from. They offered lots of customization options (paper weight, dot grid vs lined, number of pages). There is no branding on the journal itself and I deleted the order and shipping emails long ago in a manic email decluttering phase.

I'm hoping someone here recognizes the cover art and can point me to the correct website. Google image search could have found the answer years ago, but it's absolutely useless now that it's been ai-ified :/

I was wondering if anyone here has recommendations for high GSM bulletproof dotted bullet journals with ivory or cream colored paper? My daughter and I have started using dot journals and graph journals for daily drawing practice. It's helped us both to sketch in these journals instead of blank paper. We focus less on a finished product and more on practice. Plus, the grid has helped my daughter with construction and proportions. It's been great.

We recently purchased the Ohuhu Dot Grid Journal with 195 gsm paper and we've enjoyed it for sketching, alcohol marker, and ink wash, and gouache. There are some issues, but we have liked it overall.

I am hoping to find ivory, cream, or even tan dot grid journals with the same bleed proof quality, so we can draw and color on both sides. I haven't had a lot of luck yet in finding a cream paper journal yet that's bleed proof with a heavier paper. I'd be grateful for recommendations. Bonus if the paper is thick and can take a lot of erasing or handle a sand eraser.

Thanks so much in advance.

YTT is my yoga teacher training…a new start. For those of you who liked my previous spread where I reference to myself my previous journal pages from my other titled journals, thank you 🙏

Hi all,

I’m looking for some ideas and real-world examples of minimalist A5 weekly spreads.

Ideally, I’d like to include:

- Weekly task list
- Meal plan for lunches and dinners
- Food log to record what I actually ate each day
- Habit tracking — or would this make more sense in the monthly spread?
- Exercise plan and log — what I intended to do versus what I actually did

I’m trying to keep things practical and uncluttered, rather than cram too much into the page. I am not an artist in any way.

A couple of questions:

Does this sound like a reasonable amount to fit into a weekly spread, or am I trying to do too much?

Do you draw horizontal lines near the top and bottom of every page, regardless of whether it’s being used for a spread, a daily log or general capture? Or do you leave the pages unstructured unless a particular layout calls for it?

If you draw lines, is this with a pencil or pen?

I’d love to see examples of layouts that have worked well for others, particularly in an A5 notebook.

Thanks in advance for any ideas or inspiration.

Are any of you using a particular symbol to denote on a daily log that today is New Year's Eve or Labor Day or Take Your Dog To Work Day or whatever various holidays you happen to observe? It feels like a basic thing to include, but I'm drawing a blank on what symbol to use, and I've never see a symbol on anyone's key for "holiday", even for people that have specific "birthday" symbols.

Blank spaces will be filled in with important dates like birthdays and appointments. The yellow on the timetable are planned events, more will be added ofc but not for the internet lol

Habits aren't labeled as they've been the same since 2021.

Opinions welcome :)

Hi all,

I’ve been finding my way with BuJo over the last couple of months, trying out different formats, notebooks, pens and highlighters.

I’m now hopefully starting to settle on a setup that works for me, and I’d like to keep a complete record of my journey from the beginning.

What’s the best way to handle the pages from all the formats I’ve previously tried? Do you keep them as they are, archive them separately, or do something else?

I’d be interested to hear how others have approached this.

When do people start planning new spreads for the next month? I want to set up the next month but Im worried I won't leave enough space for the rest of the month.

I've been getting more into bullet journaling lately, and I'm trying to find some nice stationery supplies without spending a ridiculous amount of money.

I'm mainly looking for washi tape, mildliners, stickers, good pens, and notebooks with paper that works well for different types of pens. I like the aesthetic side of journaling, but I also want supplies I'll actually use instead of just collecting them.

I'd love to check out some local stationery shops in Orlando rather than ordering everything online. I'm also open to affordable alternatives to the more expensive brands.