Why I Write My Journal
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¶1Before I started writing my bullet journal, I kept asking: "Is it a to-do list, a planner, or a diary?" This was my main question, and I was very annoyed when they told me it was all of these things. But it is all of these things! I like bullet journaling because it's a great way to track my day-to-day activities, as well as my long-term goals. Planners and to-do lists typically only focus on what you're doing in the future, and diaries typically focus on what you did that day. But all of these things give us a complete picture of who we are.
¶2I'm amazed at how many things I left out of my old diaries — I basically just wrote about boys I had crushes on and nothing else. I didn't write nearly enough about my friends, cool things I was reading, or simply what my daily routine was like. Bullet journaling helps you record all of the things that are going on in your life, and makes it easy to keep track of the things you want to do in the future. It also gives me a space to literally record anything else that doesn't fall into any of these categories — I have used my journals to take notes in class when I forgot my subject notebook, in meetings, in info sessions. I've used it to plan essays and presentations. I even used it as an art journal, where I would draw or just stick random things onto the pages.
¶3However, many might think that journaling is too time-consuming. "How do you keep up with it?" — this is the question that I get every time I show someone my journals. Yes, it can be time-consuming — if you make it to be. Like the general consensus, I realised quickly that setting up the planner layout at the beginning of every month was too time-consuming, and resorted to use the journal to record all of my random thoughts and ideas before they float away into nothingness. I used it as a combination of a diary, planner, and to-do-lists — where I could write whatever's in my mind and whatever's necessary. Pay attention to the key word: necessary. Don't feel pressured to keep up with a structure and to set aside a time to journal when you don't actually have the time. The journal is yours and it's meant to help you!
¶4The only reason why I've kept up with it for so long is that I've forgotten how to function as well as I do now without one. I honestly need it to sort out all the projects I'm involved in, and to keep myself sane. It's a productivity tool as well as therapy. But I don't always "keep up" with my journal. If I've set aside a page to track my spending, and suddenly I don't feel like that's useful anymore, I'll just abandon it. It's your journal, your rules.
¶5Personally, I write literally everything. I've shamelessly recommended journaling to many people over the past year and many people have told me that they are too scared to write. Some mention that they don't know how to make their pages look pretty. I always say the same thing: it really doesn't need to be pretty for it to be useful. I try to make mine nice to look at because I wanted to be creative with it. It was one of my goals when I started a journal. But if you aren't into aesthetics, feel free to use a pen and a blank journal.
¶6You also don't have to write that much. Why force yourself to write pages and pages if you have nothing to say? Just write down things that you find interesting, and things that you need to write down — like... a grocery list, or, the homework problems given in class. And if you make a mistake, just turn over to a new page and start over. After all, that's the beauty of a blank journal.