My sister took one look at my bullet journal and said 'this looks like a chore chart'

I spent months making these super complex weekly spreads with color coding and half a dozen trackers. She was right, it felt like homework to fill it out. So I stripped it down to just a monthly log and a daily rapid log with only 3 things I actually wanted to track. Now I actually open the thing every day instead of avoiding it. Has anyone else gotten feedback that made you totally switch up your system?

3 comments

3 Comments

fiona_hunt712d ago

The minimalist approach really unlocked things for me too. I had the same moment when a coworker asked if my weekly spread was a "to do list for my to do lists." That hit hard. What finally clicked was switching to a rolling weekly where I only write tasks on the day I actually plan to do them, not a week in advance. It saved me from that guilt of migrating undone stuff across pages. Now my journal is basically a high level monthly calendar and then just daily scribbles with bullet points. The fun decorations are just for the monthly cover page now, zero trackers.

the_wesley2d ago

The "to do list for my to do lists" thing is so painfully accurate lol. I think what you're describing is actually a bigger pattern I've noticed in life where we try to force structure on things that don't need it. Like everyone's obsessed with having a system for the system instead of just doing the thing. The rolling weekly is smart because it respects the fact that real life doesn't care about your perfectly laid out plan from Sunday night. I've seen the same thing happen with people who track water intake or sleep or whatever, they spend more time logging than actually living. Eventually you realize the best journal is just the one that gets used, not the one that looks good sitting there.

stella222d ago

I gotta push back a little on the "best journal is just the one that gets used" idea. In my experience, having a system that actually makes me want to open the journal matters more than just grabbing any notebook. Your rolling weekly sounds solid for you, but some of us need a bit of structure to keep from forgetting we even have a planner.