I first heard about Bullet Journaling from one of my best friends while we were riding in her car one day. She had mentioned that a few of her friends loved keeping one. Being an avid writer myself and feeling a little disappointed that I hadn’t been keeping up with my beloved hobby in recent years, I asked her more about it. It took her a minute to collect her thoughts and try to explain this new trend to me, but it seemed a little more advanced than just jotting down little thoughts or inspirational quotes every day, so I decided to do what any millennial would and Googled it.

Immediately the official Bullet Journal website popped up with an instructional video and everything. I was a little caught off guard, you really need step by step directions to keep a journal? I clicked play on the video in the hopes that all of my questions would soon be answered, but I was most certainly not prepared for what would come next. At the end of those four minutes and seven seconds to say I was confused was an understatement.

This was definitely not some “Dear Diary” journal where your write about your feelings and what you did that day, no this was some weird mashup between a calendar, to-do-list, and planner. How could this be the same thing my friend told me about? I clicked back to the Google search page and found pages of articles on people's take on Bullet Journaling. The more I read the more I thought this fad was not for me until I reached an entry written by someone just as skeptical about this journal as I was.

I read through her simple explanation of setting up the journal and how keeping it has really changed her life. Half way through reading I felt myself actually getting excited at the thought of keeping a Bullet Journal. Next, I took to Instagram and Youtube and discovered huge communities of people who keep these Bullet Journals and shared them with the world.

I was shocked at how wrong my first impression of this trend was. I thought it was a dull, handwritten planner meant to store your to-do-lists and nothing else, but it’s so much more than that. it is a way to organize your life in a way that no other journal, planner or calendar can do. When it is explained properly, a Bullet Journal can be set up easily and in no time at all. Here is the basic set up for a Bullet Journal:

1. You need a journal (duh)

You can buy a legit Bullet Journal journal from the official website but honestly, you can use just about any journal you want for this. It is recommended that you use a journal small enough to travel with you, but not so small that writing in it becomes difficult. You’ll understand exactly what I mean after you are done reading about the set-up.

2. Your first page(s) are your Index

Open your journal and the first spread of pages you come to should be your Index. You need to number the pages of your journal as you write on them and keep track of what is where by writing in your Index. When I first read this I thought it was a huge waste of time, but trust me it will help you in the long run!

3. Next is your Future Log

Don't feel intimidated, your Future Log is basically a calendar. Take the next four pages of your journal to create your Future Log. Count how many lines are on each page, divide each page up into three even sections and label each section with a month. This is where you write down your long term goals for the year, special events you know are coming up, people's birthdays or anything else like that. You don't have to fill this out all at once, you can revisit this section anytime to add more.

4. Here are your options of what to put next in your Bullet Journal:

1. You can dedicate pages to big things you want to keep track of over time like books you want to read, places you want to travel, projects you want to complete, stuff like that. This is more than a to-do-list, its kinda like a bucket list that is organized by subject. These pages are called Modules. Whenever you think of a Module you want to add you can put it anywhere in your journal, just make sure to write it down in your Index so you can find it later.

2. You also create monthly spreads in your Bullet Journal. Most people take at least two pages per month, one for a monthly calendar and the other for monthly tasks. There are many different layouts for these pages and it is up to you to decide how you want to display this information. The simplest and most common layout I found was, on the left page, number each line with the days of that month and then, if you want, write the first letter of the day of the week it falls on. Here is where you can keep track of your dentist appointment, a weekend trip to visit friends or someone’s birthday. On the right page is where you can write down your tasks for the month.

i. In order for this journal to be beneficial in helping you stay organized, you need to write with certain symbols. The whole point of the bullet journal is that you write in short sentences, like bullet points, and you use the symbols to take the place of having to write more. The basic symbols include:

. A bullet point means that whatever follows is something on your to-do list.

x An x over a bullet point means you have completed that task on your to- do list.

< Less than sign means something has been scheduled, like a doctor's appointment.

> Greater than sign is used when a task is not completed that month and has to migrate to next months task sheet.

- A dash represents a note or something you want to remember.

ex: - Milk expires on 1/27

o An open circle marks any event.

If you want to expand on the topics you bulleted or just have other monthly calendar pages where you keep track of your exercise, recipes you have cooked, or just things you are thankful for, you can create another module page dedicated to all those things! After a month is over you make a new monthly spread for the next month!

5. Once you have set up your Bullet Journal you can start filling it in!

Like I said before, this is your journal, you can design it however you want. Some people turn their journals into beautiful pieces of art while others just like it clean and simple. Keep in mind that this journal is 100% what you want it to be, you tailor it to your life and what’s important to you. There are no right or wrong ways to keep your journal as long as you number your pages and keep track of it in your Index.

6. Some Bullet Journal tips

1. Do your research before starting one:

There are TONS of Instagram accounts, Youtube pages, Pinterest boards, and online articles featuring Bullet Journals with great advice on how to keep up with them, layout designs and things like that. Take some time to check them out so you can get a better idea of how you want your Bullet Journal to look.

2. Make a rough draft:

If you're like me and need these kinds of things to be perfect then make a rough draft with an old notebook before jumping into your actual journal. Play with designs, figure out your headings and get your spacing right so you can be cool and confident when it comes time to set up your Bullet Journal.

3. Have fun with it:

This journal doesn't just have to be a place to organize your thoughts and calendar, for those of you who are artists, or just like to express yourself, this can be the outlet you need.