You Canʻt Pour From an Empty Cup (But You Can Bullet Journal Until You Get a Refill)

It is the third day of the eleventh month of the year 2019, and in five days I will be celebrating the one year anniversary of the bullet journal.

It just so happens that with the new month, I have to start a new journal. My third journal of the year. As artifacts of my journey, theyʻre pretty nondescript, but this new oneʻs a little sassier than the last two.

Iʻm celebrating the occasion by sassy-fying the entire thing with a facelift and a few new additions.

Monthly Spread

The thing with bullet journals is that you can pull out or zoom in, depending on what your focus is and your goals are. A yearly spread might be useful if youʻre looking more long-term-- like planning a wedding or completing a manuscript. Iʻm not doing either of those things, so a monthly view is better suited to my needs. At a glance, I know what shows are coming up at the Theatre, whoʻs having a birthday, and when I can sleep in because school is out.

It also helps me to assess my goals on a mid-range level. This is especially helpful because I canʻt always tell if the goals I set are realistic or relevant. Setting goal and tracking it monthly gives me enough time to see if itʻs doable and worthwhile. Monthly goals also help bring an overall theme or unity to my weekly and daily goals-- do my plans connect me to my purpose?

Weekly Spread

Also a new feature, the weekly spread narrows the scope of vision even further, breaking down my monthly goals into smaller, manageable tasks. Youʻll notice I added color and form to the template, which I hope I can keep up. Being more creative through my daily journaling is just as important as the tasks and goals I set for myself. Itʻs a bonus!

I accidentally wrote the wrong dates this week. Strangely, I live.

Daily View

This oneʻs not so new, but it did get a facelift. There were __ that I wasnʻt using on a regular basis (like the Affirmations section), and the beautiful thing about bullet journaling is that you can change the format anytime you want. Have I stressed that enough?

Mistakes are opportunities

So, I got rid of the Affirmations section and turned it into a place I can celebrate my Accomplishments (which could be as small as paying a bill on time or as significant as winning the Nobel Prize for literature). Iʻve also retitled certain sections (like "My Purpose" and "Self-Love") to reflect a change in perspective. Itʻs still mostly about setting my intention and being kind to myself, but for me the word choice also represents growth and strength. Itʻs the word nerd in me, perhaps, that such a small change can make such a significant difference.

Self-Love

Bullet journaling has been an act of self-love and self-care. You know how you can know something in your brain and yet know nothing of it in practice? That was me and self-care. I made lists, you know, of ways I could take care of my mental and physical health. "Meditate for ten minutes. See a movie by myself. Get a massage." I just never felt connected to the concept. I could do those things and still not feel any less stressed or any more important.

Journaling everyday, though, is good practice in looking after my needs. It is a deliberate habit that I created to manage my mental health. I create, process, think, and research. I figure out what I want, what I need, and how to get there. It forces me to carve out time for myself and set a boundary around this one thing that even I am forced to respect. 

(Now, a big part of bullet journaling is Tracking. You can look this up. Folks track everything! Water consumption, hours slept, pages read, Instagrams posted, the list goes on and on. And people get really creative about how they track their progress. Iʻm not a tracker. Not yet, at least.)

Self-love is a skill that I never learned to appreciate or develop, and Iʻm still not sure I could even describe what it is to you. People say that everyday, "Make time for yourself or youʻll feel depleted," as if itʻs as easy as going to see a matinee movie on a hookey day off of work and feeling recharged afterwards. A healthy, deliberate new habit of regular check-ins, introspection, motivation, and forgiveness? I just might learn yet.