Bullet Journaling—My Secret to Productivity, Creativity, and Balance

Five years ago I started my own consulting business—cue the terror, stress, exhaustion, and overwhelm. I wanted to succeed and I was willing to work for it. But professional success at the expense of my family or health wasn’t worth it. I struggled initially to juggle, and sometimes even see, all the balls in the air. I spent a lot of time feeling like I was failing at something, be it working, mothering, friending, or exercising.

I tried all of the productivity and organizing apps, but nothing changed the game for me. And then one day—be still my analog-loving-heart!—I discovered the Bullet Journal® and it changed everything.

What is Bullet Journaling?

Bullet Journaling is hard to define because it’s really whatever you need it to be. Five years ago, I needed a solution that would help keep me productive, creative, organized, and balanced. And the Bullet Journal became that for me.

A Bullet Journal is a means of planning, capturing, dreaming, organizing, tracking, and more. It's also literally just a notebook—any notebook—and a pen.

A Bullet Journal is a means of planning, capturing, dreaming, organizing, tracking, and more. It's also literally just a notebook—any notebook—and a pen. For me, the practice of handwriting ideas helps seal them into my mind in a way a technological capture doesn’t.

Creator of the method, Ryder Carroll, says “It’s helpful to have one source of truth. That’s what the Bullet Journal is for me.”

I rely on this system to help me:

• Get everything out of my head
• Translate big ideas into bite-sized actions
• Keep all of my priorities prioritized
• Capture and curate ideas across any arena I can imagine
• Tackle the big stuff before getting lost in the small

In the game of Bullet Journaling, there are no rules. The key to doing it “right” is knowing what you want to achieve (be it productivity, changing a habit, sticking to a budget, etc.), and then building the journal and a process that supports you in getting there.

There are countless YouTube videos on how to set up and work with a Bullet Journal. My advice is to start simple, see what works, and make changes as you go.

How I set up my Bullet Journal

As I mentioned, five years ago I was overwhelmed and out of balance. Different parts of my life seemed to be competing versus collaborating. And my goal was to find a way to feel productive and successful across them all.

I began by jotting down everything that was bouncing around my brain—every to-do, every anxiety, every ambition...

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