Bulletjournaling: what is it?

Bullet journaling is a notetaking method developed by Ryder Carroll (in 2013). The method is unique due to incorporating planning, brainstorming, tracking, to-do lists and other organizational tasks into one notebook. It comes with a set of terms, like (rapid) logging, collections, index, key, spread and others. The method does not require any fancy tools, just pen and paper. You can adapt any notebook to bullet journaling, but the most well-known is the dotted notebook (for example, Leuchtturm1917 Medium).

Today, bullet journaling is one of the most well-known journaling methods. It is designed to enhance productivity, but it can also help us to reduce anxiety and live more mindfully in general. In fact, Caroll developed this method as a tool to help with his attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). In addition to staying on top of tasks and recording ideas, you can set up a mood or wellness tracker, or create a gratitude log in your journal. There is a spread for almost every occasion, and you can always devise your own collections, spreads and trackers.

Main components of a bujo are:

• Index - usually located at the beginning of the notebook. It lists page numbers and titles of various sections and collections in the notebook, helping to locate sections of the journal more easily.
• Key - also usually located at the beginning of the notebook, listing various symbols used to denote different tasks or entries (and their status)  in the journal.
• Daily/Weekly/Monthly Logs - used to plan (and/or record) your days, weeks and months. Monthly and Weekly logs often include a month/week view to help plan the week/month ahead on one double-sided page.
• Future Logs - similar to monthly and weekly logs, but used to plan more long-term goals and future plans.
• Collections - thematically organized sections of a journal,
• Spread - a double-sided page in collections or logs is often called a spread, and they have different layouts. 

Read more about the Bullet Journal method here.
Read how to set up your first bujo here.


In Jonna Studio, we have several different dotted journals available (see here). Many of our rubber stamps, transfer stickers and tapes can also be used to decorate or set up your bullet journal. 

Thank you for reading <3 Stay tuned for the next post on how to set up your bullet journal.