One of the moments that sold me on Gilmore Girls and the Type-A Rory was when she goes to Doosey’s Market for school supplies. Lorelai and Rory have a list and they are going through the aisles picking up the items. They get into a small debate about purple notepads. Rory wants a traditional color (not purple) because she is doing serious work at her serious school. If you can relate to that scene, then you’ll appreciate how you can use a journal to get organized.
Daily Log
Most bullet journals have a daily log. The layout can be as simple or complex as you like. Personally, I take a streamlined approach to my daily log. I start with a simple format for the days that leaves a lot of room for tasks. Then, I add colors and a theme sparingly.
The example above, with the hand-drawn floral trim on the sides, is one that I really like. It balances my artsy side with the practical need for a lot of notes.
This helps me stay organized because I keep all of my work and personal tasks in one place.
Monthly Goals
Setting monthly, achievable goals can really encourage organizational habits. By continuing to reference your goals throughout the month, you can actual learn to focus your energy and cut back on tasks. Whenever I consider adding a new task (really an obligation), I think about how it fits with my long-term goals.
A lot of things just don’t fit. The journal makes it easy to organize my day around what is most important.
Trackers
Personally, I’m not very good with keeping up with trackers. I love looking at them on Instagram and Pinterest. Usually, I end up going back and making a tracker to calculate things that I did. For example, I go through my work from each quarter and categorize it by type (writing, design, photography, or web). Then, I use that to plan my next quarter. The example above is a mood tracker. I love this idea, even if I haven’t done one yet.
Lists
Some things just need to be done even if they aren’t assigned to a particular day. I sometimes label these as “notes” or “remember.” Usually, they’re bigger projects or things that may cause me to wait on someone else.
They carry over for multiple days and are easy to forget. I’ve experimented with different ways to put these together. In general, I like adding them to my weekly log. It helps me remember to work on them whenever I’m done with the tasks of the day.
Appointments and Dates
In a world full of texts, facebook alerts, and email invites, I actually enjoy jotting all my appointments and dates down in a handwritten calendar. It helps me remember them.
Also, it really makes me think through how to manage my time. Just because you can fill every hour of a day with meetings, doesn’t mean it’s an effective use of your time.
Notes and Outlines
Recently, I’ve started leaving space for notes and outlines in between the weekly spreads. The example above is from a sermon when I was visiting a church on vacation. Often, I log notes in meetings or appointments for later. I used to keep them on a loose notepad and throw them away. However, I find that I’m more likely to reference them if I keep them in my journal.
Show Me Yours
Do you use a journal to stay organized? Tell me about your tips and tricks. I’d love to hear about them in the comments.
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