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“I’m a recovering perfectionist and an aspiring good-enoughist.” - Brené Brown

Starting a new bullet journal always makes me a little nervous, but this very form of journaling has made me less of a perfectionist.

I share my enthusiasm for bullet journaling with anyone who is willing to hear it, or read it. The most common response I’ve heard is that they’re too scared of messing up, the spreads are too intimidating, or it “just won’t look as pretty.” My response is always the same: I mess up all the time. The mistakes make me more creative and the practice makes me better.

Bullet journaling can also be as simple or as complicated as you want it to be. All you have to do is commit to starting, then keep going.

Through trial and error, I’m finding the right balance of creativity and simplicity that works for me. For 2020, I’ve taken three years of learnings and created a yearly system that I think will suit me quite nicely.

If you still need inspiration (and supplies) to start your bullet journal, I hope you find some here!

The Essentials

Grid Guide:

Although I couldn’t find the original creator, the grid guide is one of my favorite tools of the bullet journal community. The first time I created one, I placed it on a right-hand page which wasn’t the easiest to reference. Learning from that mistake, I now plan out my yearly spreads with the grid guide in mind first. For maximum efficiency, my grid guide needs to be on a left-hand page so I can reference the guide while I plan my newest spread.

Pro Tip: If your notebook has perforated pages, make a second grid guide and keep it in your notebook’s pocket. Whenever you need to divide your pages into quarters, thirds, or halves use your portable grid guide for ease instead of counting the boxes.

Yearly Calendar (a.k.a. Year at a Glance):

This is another left-handed page, so I can easily reference the monthly calendar when needed.

Something New

Yearly Themes:

This year, I’m trying something new. While I had a Word of the Year for 2019, it wasn’t well incorporated into my bullet journal’s yearly spreads. For 2020, my Word of the Year has a dedicated place, along with a manifesto, goals and intentions, and a list of 10 things before 2021.

I kept my Yearly Themes right next to my Yearly Calendar so that I view it frequently. I can’t wait to see how my themes transform my year and how I can make the spread better next year.

Something Updated

Moon Phases:

I love Ezzie Spencer’s free lunar calendar and her book, Lunar Abundance. I’ve never created a perfect spread for the moon phases and it takes a handful of planning, but it fills me with a sense of accomplishment and joy that is always worth the effort.

I kept my version’s calendar the same as Ezzie’s, but I added Pacific Standard Times to the new and full moons for 2020 since I’m based in California. I also included the astrological sign of each new and full moon for easy reference when partaking in my new/full moon rituals.

Can you point out my mistakes? If not, that’s because Sakura White Gelly Rolls Pens are amazing, especially on Archer & Olive’s bright white paper.

Quarterly Log:

This is my second year trying out a quarter-based future log—a system for tracking your future events, like birthdays and travel days, in one place. I found that last year’s had too much blank space, but it was also a perfect amount of space for recording a busy month’s key events before, or after, they occurred.

This time, I plan to use the empty space for quarterly goals to keep me on track to crushing my goals. If I see my goals juxtaposed with actual events planned throughout the year, I think I’ll have a better chance of ensuring that my year is in alignment with my aspirations.

Experimenting With

Content Ideas & Management:

One of my intentions for 2020 (and my 20’s in general) is simplification. In the process of starting this blog, I’ve used three project management websites and four notebooks in addition to a ton of sticky notes. In an effort to minimize the minutes spent flitting between sites and notebooks, I’m hoping this one bullet journal spread will be just right.

My yearly spreads range from simple quotes to complicated calendars, complete with corrected mishaps and things I wish I did instead. Now that I have my spreads ready, I want to keep creating the year ahead.

What spreads are you going to try in your bullet journal? Share a comment down below. Happy journaling, my friends!

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