A work colleague recently tipped me off to bullet journaling. Ok, truth be told, she tipped me off to it a year ago when it transformed her life. My work environment was pretty well organized at the time and remains so; thus, I passed on her tip. About one year later, she brought it up in another context, but this time I bit the bait because I have felt the need to get my personal life in better order. Therefore, I bought this book along with one bullet journal to get started. Ryder Carroll’s book gives any reader the tools and inspiration to get started for whatever purpose they need to bullet journal.
I’m a writer by nature, but journaling has never played a huge place in my life. At times, I’d write my emotional thoughts down just to get them expressed, but it’s never been a daily discipline. Now, however, I find that many lives depend on mine, whether at work, in my family, or in charitable opportunities. Being organized so that things aren’t dropped has become crucial. Electronic planners don’t work as well outside of work because I want to get away from screens on weekends.
Enter bullet journaling. I’ve started to keep a list of big tasks that I want to get done in the next three months and divided them up in achievable chunks. Not only will this give me a running log of my life, something Carroll highlights, but it also allows my mind to become unburdened by repetitive items. Thus, my energy can be freed up to approach new tasks instead of remembering older ones. Carroll explains all such potential benefits in the book.
Carroll doesn’t just explain how he personally uses it; rather, he explains how all sorts of people have been using it through seminars he’s led. Thus, the message isn’t just from one person’s brain but from a chorus of people gaining benefit. Befitting today’s world, bullet journaling is highly customizable and personalizable. It also expedites entries so that those journaling don’t have to write expansive prose to register their thoughts. In fact, I found the myriad of shorthand techniques one of the most helpful parts of the book!
Almost anyone has some domain in their life that they can improve. Most of the time, no one book, class, or expert can fill in all the gaps for a given task. Life is complicated and requires a customized approach from each individual. Bullet journaling offers a method to begin to prevail over complex problems. In our age of too much information, overcoming complexity is something we all need. I certainly do. That’s why I’ve started to record my diverse but rich life in my own journal.
As an postscript, the official bullet journal (a separate item) isn’t required for Carroll’s work. It’s nice but much more expensive than generic options. Other bullet journals fit the bill for a much lower price. Carroll himself admits such in the Frequently Asked Questions. Save yourself a few bucks, and buy someone else’s version.
The Bullet Journal Method: Track the Past, Order the Present, Design the Future
By Ryder Carroll
Copyright (c) 2018
Portfolio
ASIN B07B7C4F9C
Page Count: 320
Genre: Self-Improvement, Business
www.amazon.com