If you’ve read any of my posts at the beginning of the year, you know that one of the BEST things I did for myself this year was starting a bullet journal. It has been a huge creative outlet, a newfound passion, overall a great time! It keeps me organized and allows me to draw, color, stick stickers, write memories… I seriously can’t recommend it enough!
So if you’re thinking of starting a bullet journal, you’re in the right place! Here is how I outline a month in my bullet journal: it’s really easy, so it’s perfect for beginners!
What you’ll need
You will, of course, need a bullet journal. It doesn’t have to be a dotted paper journal, but that is what most people prefer. You can pretty much find notebooks everywhere, but I found some cheap, dotted notebooks at Michael’s, in case you want to check them out!
You’ll also need at least a pencil, an eraser and a pen. I like to trace things with a pencil so I can mess up all I want in the creative process. Then, once I’m happy with a design, I’ll trace everything again with a pen.
Cover page
The cover page can be as simple or as complex as you’d like to make it. That is true for both the journal cover page and all the monthly cover pages you’ll set up at the beginning of each month. Lots of people in the bullet journal community enjoy drawing or crafting beautiful monthly covers, but you can totally keep it simple, too!
Month At A Glance
The month at a glance is your monthly spread. Usually, people will annotate holidays, birthdays and big events here. This looks exactly like a month spread does on a regular planner. The only difference is that since this is a bullet journal, you get to customize the size, the format… anything really!
Monthly Tracker
I think the monthly tracker is what makes a bullet journal really fun. It’s an excellent way to track old and new habits, and it’s what you’ll be updating everyday. It’s also a great tool to get to know yourself: with the tracker, you’ll be able to see on paper your workout habits, your productivity and more!
Weekly Pages
Weekly pages are your typical “planner-like” pages. This is where the opposite-of-the-magic happens. These pages are for the reminders, for the boring stuff, for the plans. Visually, these are the worst looking pages of the bullet journal, but they’re also the most helpful! Use them to write evvvverything down so that you never miss an appointment!
Monthly Recap
These are totally optional, but super fun to look back at. You can create monthly recap with photos, quotes, things you loved from each month. At the end of the year, you’ll have captured so many memories in your journal!
I hope you’ve enjoyed this quick overview of my bullet journal monthly setup! Do you have any questions on how to organize it or decorate it? You can let me know in the comments below!