One of my favorite tools for organizing my business is my bullet journal. Not only can I create trackers for goals, projects, and tasks, I can create templates for ANY type of organization I need! And today I’m sharing tips and ideas on how to stay organized with bullet journaling. From setup, pages, monthly and weekly spreads, budgets, calendars, and more, I organize it all within my bullet journal!
How I Stay Organized with Bullet Journaling
I love the flexibility and versatility of bullet journaling for organizing all the things, but especially for organizing my business!
I can design any layout I need for any purpose, and I can pivot quickly if a change is needed. Everything I need is conveniently located in a single notebook, and I can fill my bullet journal with all of the random business thoughts and ideas that pop into my brain.
Here’s how I stay organized with bullet journaling!
Everything in One Place
By keeping everything in my bullet journal, I don’t have to waste a single second searching for those notes I took the other day or that list I brainstormed or the post ideas I outlined.
All of my important information is corralled and organized in one place, so I can focus on the business of running of my business!
Brain Dumps
I love completing my weekly brain dumps in my bullet journal, because I can refer back to previous brain dumps to jump start my thought process.
Also, it’s easy to flip back and check out the key I created for categorizing and prioritizing the items in my brain dumps.
I no longer waste time trying to remember what didn’t get moved from my brain dump to my other task lists. I can refer to previous brain dumps any time I want or need to, so there’s no confusion or wasted time or energy.
Master Task Lists
Master tasks lists are just a list of all tasks that I want to complete. Each month/week/day I look at my master task list, prioritize, and migrate tasks that require immediate action or move me closer to accomplishing my goals to my planner page for that day or week.
My task lists are broken down by areas of my life (or life roles). I have a master task list for my:
- online business
- client work
- household tasks and projects
- family goals, tasks, and activities
- personal development
I love having master task lists that are constantly evolving. I don’t have to remember tasks or whether I completed them. And because I have master task lists for the different areas of my life, I can insure that I’m making progress on goals, habits, and routines in all areas of my life.
And on those days where I feel like I haven’t gotten anything done or taken any steps forward, I can look back and see the progress I’ve made over the previous months.
Monthly, Weekly, & Daily Planning
This is one of the biggest areas where I stay organized with bullet journaling. All of my appointments, meetings, and tasks for the week are conveniently located in one place, so with just a glance I know what I need to work on and complete. These layouts also give me a good indication of my progress for the week.
I like having my weekly planner easily accessible in my bullet journal, because I know exactly what I need to get done from one day, week, or month to the next.
Trackers
One of the things that helps me to establish solid habits and routines and to accomplish my goals is to track my progress. And where better to complete this tracking than in my bullet journal?!
I’ve tracked everything from daily habits and routines to actions toward my goals to project steps and more. Since I look at my bullet journal multiple times a day, the habits, routines, and goals I’m trying to accomplish are always front of mind.
Project Planning
Setting aside a couple of pages in my BUJO for project planning is one of my favorite ways to stay organized with bullet journaling!
Everything I need for my project is together in one spot. I include notes, sketches, budget information, products I want to purchase, and steps I need to take to complete the project and the deadlines associated with each one.
Any information you need to plan your project can go right into your bullet journal!
Travel Planning
Travel packing and planning is so simple now, because I’ve been planning my travel in my bullet journal for several years!
All I have to do when preparing a packing list for an upcoming trip is to look back at the previous packing lists I’ve created and migrate appropriate items forward. So quick and easy!
I forget items much less frequently now and packing takes less time. Not to mention my decreased stress level (I’m not a seasoned traveler)!
Notes
I don’t know about you, but I’ve wasted countless hours searching for random bits of paper on which I scribbled notes….
Now, instead of grabbing the first blank bit of paper I see, I put all of my notes into my bullet journal.
No more searching for notes.
No more wasted time.
And no more hair pulling when ultimately I can’t find the notes I need!
Collections
Most of my collections are personal, but I do have a few business related collections that I like to organize in my bullet journal.
I maintain a “business books I want to read” collection, collections of blog post ideas generated during brainstorming sessions, and a collection of business wins for when I need a little pump up session.
Again, the sky, your business, and your imagination are the only limits here. Whatever you need for your business, you can create and add to your bullet journal (hence why I seriously {{heart}} this system)!
Important Considerations
In order to stay organized with bullet journaling and make it convenient, there are a few important things to remember.
You want to make sure that you maintain your index, establish a planning routine, and make an intentional decision about whether your bullet journal leaves the office with you.
Here’s more on each of these important bullet journaling considerations.
Maintain Your Index
Make sure you stay caught up on your index. You don’t have to add every single page in your bullet journal, but if it’s something you’ll refer to more than a couple of times, make sure you log it in the index.
You don’t want to be wasting time flipping through your bullet journal trying to find that business project you planned last week. That’s counter productive!
Establish a Planning Routine
Establish a planning routine and build time into your schedule for it.
Keep your planning routine simple, at least in the beginning. You can always add to it.
My planning routine is basic. I create a couple of monthly layouts at the beginning of each month (cleaning and month-at-a-glance with goal tracking). Then I complete a brain dump every week or so, update my master task lists, and migrate top priority tasks to my weekly planning pages. Easy peasy!
Take Photos & Leave Your BUJO at Home
It’s a personal choice whether your bullet journal leaves home or the office with you.
As someone who came too close to losing hers, I’m strongly in the “keep my BUJO at home under lock and key” camp. :\
If you don’t want your bullet journal to go with you, you can always take photos or scans of layouts you’ll likely need to reference. Then take notes in a regular ole notebook and transfer them to your bullet journal when you get back to the office.
How I Stay Organized with Bullet Journaling
These are just a few of the ways I stay organized with bullet journaling! Not only does bullet journaling help me stay organized at home, it helps me keep my business running smoothly.
I love how flexible and versatile this tool is, because I can set it up exactly how I need it, and I can create any layout or template I require.
Related Posts
If you enjoyed today’s post, you might find these related posts helpful:
- 16 Practical Lists You Need to Organize Your Business
- My Favorite Bullet Journal Supplies
- 10 Ways to Make Your Planner Work for You
- 9 Things I Learned in My First Year of Bullet Journaling
I love to talk BUJOing! How do you stay organized with bullet journaling?
Pin It
Don’t forget to pin it!
Thanks for joining me today! Here’s to staying better organized and enjoying it with bullet journaling!
[…] How I Stay Organized with Bullet Journaling […]