Don't get me wrong! I loved bullet journaling and still do, but keeping up with it just became too complicated. Do any of you feel like this? Like your bullet journal isn't helping you to be more productive?

My bullet journal spreads started to get simpler and simpler. I started dreading opening my bullet journal, knowing how far behind I was on all of my trackers and spreads and how many days I would have to try to remember to try to catch it all up.

This probably seems obvious to you, that the bullet journal system isn't going to work for you if you don't use it! But I did use my bullet journal every couple of days.

It was just that whenever I opened up my bullet journal, I had to play catch up on all of the trackers and collections I was forcing myself to use.

Did I need to track my sleep, when I woke up and went to bed at almost the same time every night? Obviously not!

Back then, I thought that if I made a page, I had to fill it in. So I made myself fill in that bullet journal layout, even if it wasn't working for me. I was afraid of wasting pages in my bullet journal, and I wanted everything to be PERFECT. This is totally not necessary!

Now, if I find a bullet journal layout that doesn't work for me, I simply stop using it, and it's okay. I don't try to keep up with every tracker and collection layout I make. You know, it's okay if you make a bullet journal layout and never use it.

Whenever I thought of something I needed to write in my bullet journal, I wouldn't have it. Then whenever I sat down to write in my bullet journal, I would end up having a blank mind, and not remembering what I wanted to write in my journal.

Now, I always keep my bullet journal on my desk, and I try to write in it around twice a day, but if I don't, I don't stress about it. I can always try again tomorrow. I also have a mini backpack with the specific purpose of holding my bullet journal just in case I want to take it anywhere!

I can't stress this enough. If you are starting a bullet journal, please keep it simple, and don't do very much research. I thought I had to read every. article. out. there. before I started setting up my bullet journal because it had to be "perfect".

I ended up going way over my head because I thought I had to track everything, which is so not true. It's better just to do you. Start out slow and find what works for you. Nothing else matters!

I created my first bullet journal in a composition notebook. It was tough. I wanted to make amazing bullet journal layouts, but then because the layouts weren't dotted, I had to measure each page.

If you want to use a composition notebook for your first bullet journal and you are going to make simple layouts, then I say to go for it! But I dreaded using my bullet journal because I knew how much time it would suck out of my day just setting up one new layout.

Last of all, I tried to make my bullet journal perfect, which lead to perfectionism paralysis. It took me so long to create even one layout that it wasn't fun anymore.

Leave perfectionism behind. If you make a mistake, it doesn't matter. In a year will matter to you that you made a mistake? In two years? Three? I don't think so.

Let go of perfectionism, and just have fun bullet journaling! Plus, please don't compare your bullet journal to anyone else's. You are probably comparing your first bullet journal to their third, fourth, or even fifth bullet journal. That isn't fair to you!

How did I fix all of this?

Okay, let's backtrack a little bit so I can start this all from the beginning.

I used a planner before I started bullet journaling and I felt like I couldn't add enough creativity to it. After a few months of that planner, I didn't use anything.

Then I found the idea of a bullet journal on Pinterest (Feel free to follow me! I would love it if you would. 😊). I started pinning all of the bullet journal ideas I found. I created my bullet journal and added a ton of collections and trackers. In my opinion, the more bullet journal trackers I used, the better it would be, and I obsessed over finding perfect bullet journal designs.

It really wasn't worth it! I struggled to use this bullet journal for around four months and then I dropped it. 

Now for the moment, you have been waiting for! 

How did I fix it and what organization system do I use now???

I bought the Rose Gold Recollections Planner from Michaels, and I loved it!

It has just the right amount of creativity and structure I need. It is a binder so I can add and remove pages whenever I want. I like to think about my new planner as a bullet journal and a planner combined because I make all of my own planner pages online and then I print them out. 

So that is it! I now use the Rose Gold Recollections Planner and I add my own pages. I combined a bullet journal with a planner.

Eventually, things came full circle, and I started using a bullet journal again! As of 2021, I've been using the bullet journal system for more than a year and a half. Of course, as my life changes, I might need to adapt my planning system again! You can see what my bullet journal layouts look like now, here.

Those are the reasons I stopped using a bullet journal. In 2020, I started using a bullet journal again because I figured out how to solve all those problems! I hope you are able to figure out what planning system works for you so you can have the productive life you deserve! :)

As of 2024, I'm still bullet journaling!

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Do you use a bullet journal or a planner? Have you ever stopped using your bullet journal?