Productive Pixie: July 2021

Some people when they find bullet journaling, jump on the bullet journal bandwagon right away. But there are other people who are skeptics. They wonder if bullet journal actually works so they read every article they can find on bullet journaling before they decide to start (if they do). I mean if you have to draw every. single. layout. by hand isn't it going to take up more time than it is worth?

Is Bullet Journaling a Complete Waste of Time?

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Updated for 2024

This post is for those of you who are skeptical about starting a bullet journal. I'll be telling you why I think bullet journaling isn't a waste of time.

But... who am I to be telling you why bullet journaling isn't a complete waste of time?

I'm probably just a little bias. *cough cough* 😂 As you can see, I blog about bullet journaling regularly, so I probably love it. In fact, I make money talking about bullet journaling, so essentially, I could just be making the layouts and then posting them online to make the money. Maybe bullet journaling doesn't even work, and the whole thing is a scam!

Well, if you are skeptical about bullet journaling, and thinking that all the above is true, then today, I'm going to prove you wrong. No apologies! And at the end of this post, if you still aren't convinced that a bullet journal is worth your time, then no hard feelings. I hope you find a planning system that will help you to be productive, and that you love!

Let's get right into why I think bullet journaling is a valuable tool you can use to create a life you love! Pretty exciting, am I right?

Is Bullet Journaling a Waste of Time?

And just a side note, for those of you who saw the title of this post, and clicked on it because you were intrigued, even though you have no idea what bullet journaling is, you can read Bullet Journaling: What Is It? so you aren't reading this entire post wondering what in the world I'm talking about.

1. Increase Productivity + Manage Your Time

This is the obvious one but bear with me. Whenever I use my bullet journal, I am always more productive. I get more done. I work on my goals. I feel like I have a more fulfilled life.

The weeks I go without my bullet journal, I feel busy, rushed, and stress, though that's a confession for another post. Yep, the bullet journal blogger, that sometimes goes weeks without opening her bullet journal. I'm going, to be honest. Sometimes, it's a struggle to keep up with my bullet journal, but as I experiment with new bullet journal layouts, I've been getting better about using it regularly.

Sometimes, you just need a break from your bullet journal, and that's okay!

I also just started using my bullet journal for time management because I always wonder where all the time goes. Please tell me I'm not the only one! I'm going to be diving into how I use my bullet journal for time management and how it's working out in another post.

By the way, currently, I am reading I Know How She Does It by Laura Vanderkam, and I'm finding it to be an interesting read about how successful women who work and raise kids use their time. So far, I wouldn't say I'm getting a lot of tips from it because I don't work full time and I don't have kids, but it is an interesting read. A book with more helpful tangible tips is The Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod.

After that tangent... the main point is bullet journaling can definitely help you to be more productive if you use your bullet journal wisely.

2. Setting Goals

Okay, I'm going to be completely honest here. If I didn't have a bullet journal I wouldn't reach my goals. Most likely, I wouldn't even set goals!

You can write down your goals on a little sticky note, but the chance of you reaching your goals without having a plan are very very slim. It's not going to happen people!

Of course, you can use a planner to help you reach your goals, but most planners don't have layouts dedicated to helping you track and reach your goals. Because bullet journals are so customizable you can create layouts that will help you stay accountable so you'll be more likely to reach your goals.

If you are setting and reaching your goals, then it shows that you are on your way to creating a life you love, and hey, a bullet journal can help you with that!

3. Tracking New Habits + Being Organized

This one is similar to #2. You can use a bullet journal to track new habits you are creating. Your bullet journal also can be used the other way. Kick your bad habits to the curb with a bullet journal habit tracker.

This is where it really gets good!

You know how you never know your passwords for that site you created an account for years ago, and now you want to use it again?

You can create a layout for your passwords. Be careful that you don't leave your bullet journal lying out anywhere though!

Or what about when you can't remember the last time you visited the dentist?

You can keep track of that too! A bullet journal can basically be used to organize your entire life. I use my bullet journal to track my goals, my blog earnings, my blog growth, the books I've been reading, my passwords, my fave podcasts, my habits, my to-do list, and more.

4. Increase Creativity + Reduce Stress

Bullet journaling is fun! It brings out the inner artist in all of us. Your bullet journal can be minimalist or it can be very artsy. You get to decide.

Some people use their bullet journals only for creativity. You can write about what you are grateful for, or you could journal about how your day went.

Along with this, bullet journaling has benefits. Being creative can help you reduce stress, and unplug. It can help improve your mental health.

Will this be able to fit into your busy schedule though?

Of course it will! Bullet journaling can be very time-consuming, but it doesn't have to be. You can manage a bullet journal in under 10 minutes a day so even if you are super busy, it can still fit into your day.

5. Low Cost

This is taking a little of a different view on whether bullet journaling is worth it, but this one is for the skeptics that argue bullet journaling costs too much.

The skeptics are partly correct. If you are a stationery addict hehe then you probably buy a lot of new pens and journals to use, but for the rest of you who are not stationery addicts, all you need to bullet journal is a notebook and a pen.

Let's get real here. Say you choose to use a different planning system. Well, some planners cost upwards of $90 bucks. Dishing out $10 for a bullet journal isn't going to break your bank.

I even started out using a composition notebook for my first bullet journal, and I used pens I already had lying around my house. It was really cheap.

6. Doesn't Take Much Time

This point also has two sides to it. Bullet journaling can be very time-consuming. You know those exquisite complex bullet journal layouts you've seen on Pinterest? (By the way, if you aren't following me over there, now is a great time to do so!)

For example, the layout above I made just to be creative. It took a pretty long time to make.

Here is what those layouts probably took to actually make...

First, they found inspiration online
Then they used a pencil to sketch in the general idea of the layout they wanted to make
Next, they started adding ink to the page
After that maybe they got fancy with watercolors
Maybe they ripped up scrapbook paper or printed out photos online to glue to their layout
Maybe they added washi tape and stickers
Then they whited out any mistakes
Once it was perfect, they took a picture, thoroughly edited it, and then posted it online

It's not fair to yourself, to compare your bullet journal layouts to layouts you see online.

Those layouts took a long time to make and for some people who are just using their bullet journal to be creative, that's fine. For those of us who are on a time crunch though, bullet journaling doesn't have to take very long.

You can manage a bullet journal in less than ten minutes a day. It might not be a beautiful Pinterest-worthy bullet journal layout, but hey, who cares? It's for your eyes only, and as long as it works, it doesn't matter how imperfect you may think it is.

7. It's Completely Customizable

Now, we get to one of my favorite parts of the bullet journal system. It's completely customizable!

So for me, the bullet journal system is perfect because I am always able to adapt it to my needs. People are always coming up with new ideas for bullet journaling, and so there is always something new you can learn to make your bullet journal better.

As your life changes, your bullet journal can change too!

Store-bought planners don't offer this option. If you buy a planner, you might end up only using half of the pages in it because you want some of the options, but not others. With a bullet journal, you don't have any of that.

You don't need to have weekly layouts if you only like using monthly layouts. It's all up to you! Plus, if you change from using weekly layouts to wanting to use daily layouts, you won't need to buy a new planner. You'll only have to turn the page!

Is Bullet Journaling a Complete Waste of Time?

Those are my seven answers for the people that argue bullet journaling is a waste of time. Have I convinced you to start or keep using your bullet journal yet?

I hope so, but if not, no hard feelings! Let me know in the comments why you still think bullet journaling is a waste of time, and I'll see if I can find a solution for you. I'm always up for a challenge!

If I have convinced you to start a bullet journal, you can read Bullet Journaling: What Is It? to get started.

If you liked this post, you can also read...

I wish you good luck on your planning journey! :)

If you liked this post, make sure you share it or pin it so you can read it again! Thank you!

July 31, 2021 No comments

One small habit can drastically change your day whether that be a good habit that does wonders for your day or a bad habit that is a stumbling block in your path. Good habits for the most part are hard to create, and bad habits are hard to give up. When you create a good habit it has the power to entirely change your day. Today, I'll be telling you small habits you can create that will dramatically overhaul your day!

Small Habits to Create Now to Overhaul Your Day

Updated for 2024

I've been thinking a ton about habits lately. I myself, have been trying to create better habits that will improve my day. Plus, I've been reading personal development books, which (no surprise! 😂) contributes to my interest in creating a better life for myself.

I just finished Better than Before by Gretchen Rubin, and now I'm reading The Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod. I highly recommend both of these books!

To create a better life for yourself, you need to start at the daily level. Your day is almost entirely built up of habits. These habits might be good. These habits might be bad. Whatever sort of habits you have, determines what sort of day you have.

Think about it.

Why do you wake up at the same time every day and hit snooze on your alarm? Why do you eat dessert after lunch at the same time every day? Why do you get stuck scrolling on your phone at the same time every day? Why do you always turn on your TV "to relax" at the same time every day?

Okay, I hear you groaning and trying to think of plausible excuses. I would feel called out too!

The point is: if you change your habits, you change your life.

I get it. I hear you. Habits can be really really really (Yes, the repetition was necessary) hard to create. The best way that I have found so far to create habits is to start small.

So for today, I put together a list of tiny habits you can create now that will dramatically overhaul your day! Each habit will take fifteen minutes or less to create so you don't have any excuses.

And just a side note, some of these habits might be kind of cliche things you already know you should do, but I'm going to add them anyway because I might have some tips on how you can better incorporate them into your day. Let's get right into it!

Small Habits to Create Now to Dramatically Overhaul Your Day

1. Wake Up 15 Minutes Earlier

Starting off with this habit because you might be telling yourself that you really don't have any time to create new habits. (In that case, why are you even bothering to read this post if you have no intention of actually creating new habits? You could be using the time you are spending right now on your phone or laptop to literally create a new habit.)

If you wake up fifteen minutes earlier, that is fifteen minutes you can use for yourself to create a new habit of your choice.

Please be aware though that you need a sufficient amount of sleep. If you wake up in the morning and you feel dead tired because you went to bed crazy late the night before, you should probably sleep in for fifteen minutes and go to bed earlier tonight so you can have a better day tomorrow.

And before you get started with telling me that you aren't a morning person, let me tell you that waking up just fifteen minutes earlier than you already do will not make you a morning person. If you consistently wake up at 8 AM in the morning, waking up at 7:45 AM is not going to make you a morning person.

When I wake up at 6 AM or earlier, I feel like I am getting a head start on my day so it automatically makes me feel more productive and accomplished. You can feel the same way at the start of your day!

2. Plan Out Your Day

This is a cliche tip for sure, but everyone says it because it actually will make your whole day better! It's up to you, what planning system you decide to use. You could use a traditional planner, a bullet journal, or a to-do list on a sticky note. It just needs to work for you.

I use a bullet journal myself, and I love it. If you don't know what bullet journaling is, you can read Bullet Journaling: What Is It? to get started.

Whatever system you use, you should change it up every once in a while because it will be hard to stick to your planning system, if it is the same all of the time.

In fifteen minutes or less, you can plan out your entire day, so you'll be able to get a lot more done and you'll be able to hold yourself accountable. I like planning my day out in the morning, but you might want to plan out your day the night before. Experiment and see what works best for you.

3. Read a Personal Development Book

You know how people always say that they don't have time to read books? You might use this excuse too! It just means that you aren't making reading a priority, because hey everyone has the same amount of time in the day.

But, you could find time to read just a few pages because you only need a few minutes. I like to read a few chapters of a book during lunch every day. I'm going to be posting a list of the best personal development books I have read pretty soon, but until then, you can read the books I recommended above, which are Better than Before and The Miracle Morning.

4. Clean for 15 Minutes

Think how clean your house will be if you declutter for fifteen minutes every day. That's an extra 105 minutes of cleaning every week, and it will go by super quick! People usually underestimate how much they can do in fifteen minutes.

So if you think you don't have any time to clean, just try doing fifteen minutes of cleaning every day.

5. Unplug Intentionally

This habit will give you extra time in your day to create more good habits. Here's the plan. You decide on a time during the day when you are going to intentionally unplug and savor the moment. You pull your phone out of your pocket or your purse and you stick it in another room. Then you don't look at your laptop or your TV.

This might be the first fifteen minutes in the morning. This might be the last fifteen minutes in the evening. Doing this will help you relieve stress, feel better about yourself, and you won't be able to become distracted. You can use this extra time in your day to do something for yourself!

6. Recite Positive Affirmations

This habit will only take a few seconds or minutes of your day, but it can improve the quality of your whole day! Spoiler alert, I haven't actually tried this out myself how it's supposed to be done, but I am going to incorporate this habit into my day soon.

Currently, my favorite affirmation is "let's do this thing", but I don't recite in the morning when I get up, which is when people usually recite affirmations.

I'm a dancer, a pianist, a former gymnast, and I've done acting so I've performed on stages countless times. Before I perform, I've gotten into the habit of reciting my affirmation to myself, and sometimes I even think affirmations while I am performing.

It really helps me perform better, and so I'm going to start reciting affirmations daily and see how that goes.

7. Watch a TED Talk

This is a new habit I am currently creating, and wow is it a good habit to create! Every morning, I watch a different TED talk on YouTube and it's an easy way to get some motivation and inspiration for the day.

Plus, each TED talk is only 10-20 minutes long, so even if you don't have much time in your day, you could listen to a TED talk during breakfast, while you are driving to work, or while you are on break at work.

There are tons of TED talks to listen to so there is a very slim chance that you will run out of TED talks to watch!

8. Listen to a Podcast or an Audiobook

There is tons of free educational information out there on the internet that you can take advantage of. Professionals from all walks of life, and backgrounds give free information on podcasts!

You can find podcasts about almost anything. Need motivation? Listen to a podcast. Need tips to improve your life? Listen to a podcast. Just want entertainment? Listen to a podcast.

The amazing thing about podcasts is that you can do anything you want while listening, so you can't say that you don't have time to listen to a podcast. I am going through tons of podcasts right now and listening to episodes in each, so I can give you recommendations for the most helpful and inspirational podcasts to listen to.

9. Do a Quick Workout

Whenever I exercise, my day always goes better. That is just how it is. No exceptions. Adding just fifteen minutes of exercise can improve your day so so much. Besides, you can listen to a podcast while you exercise so you can create two habits at once.

If you find that you never have the motivation, to exercise you can read How to Find Time to Exercise + Stay Motivated to see how I stay motivated to exercise two to three hours daily.

10. Practice Gratitude

Practicing gratitude for just a few seconds can improve your mood. Imagine that you wake up in the morning, and you start your day off on the wrong foot.

You wake up late, you didn't sleep well, you can't find the outfit you wanted to wear today, and you end up being around fifteen minutes late out the door. Sounds like a pretty bad day, am I right?

But then, once you drive to your destination, whether that be school, the office, or the grocery store, you take a few moments to think of something you are grateful for, and maybe you even write it down. All of a sudden the day takes on a new perspective and you can see how your day could have been much worse. Hopefully, you'll go on to create a better day for yourself, because a bad minute in your day doesn't have to define your whole day. It only will if you keep thinking about it.

11. Be Creative

Even if you don't think you are artistic, everyone has a creative side. Maybe you just haven't found your creative hobby yet. It doesn't have to be in a traditional creative way. Many people think of artistic things when they think of being creative, but it doesn't have to be artistic.

Just find something that you love to do, that you can be creative with, and doing it for just fifteen minutes every day will help you to be happier.

12. Practice Self-Care

Tying into the last habit, it is so important to take some time out of your day for yourself. Find something that you find calming and stress relieving. It may be the same thing you do to be more creative. It's all up to you!

13. Learn a New Language

It will only take a few minutes to learn a day! As a bonus, it always sounds smart when someone says they are learning a new language. 😂 You can be one of those people too!

I use Duolingo and it's free (What's not to love about that?). It will only take a few minutes every day, and there are stories to read as well as lessons, and practice lessons. For those of you who are curious, I'm currently learning French.

14. Take a Course

Advancing your education is never time wasted. It might be a course that you pay for or it might be free. There are lots of free courses on the internet you can take.

If you do one lesson a day, you can learn a ton in a month. Instead of scrolling on social media, put that time into something that will actually help you have a better life. No need to thank me!

15. Read an Article

You know how you are always scrolling on Pinterest and saving pins to boards so you can create your "dream life"? Well, how many times have you actually gone back to one of your boards and read one of those pins?

Yeah... it's almost never. I'm guilty of this too.

There is a simple solution to this! Have a Pinterest board called "To Read". Whenever you see a pin you want to read, and it's not related to a specific project you are working on, you can pin it to the "To Read" board. Then every morning, evening, afternoon, whenever you want, you read one article.

Boom! You can learn so much every day by just reading one little short article and now you have an excuse for scrolling on Pinterest for longer. By the way, if you aren't following me over there, you totally should. I pin to Pinterest almost every day so you won't want to miss out on that fun stuff!

16. Get Ready for Tomorrow

Talk about being productive, you can create a better tomorrow for yourself if you start today. Take fifteen minutes to prep your breakfast for tomorrow, or to pick out what you want to wear.

Then see how much more excited you are to get up in the morning when you know that some of your morning choices have already been made! What an incentive to get up in the morning! I know I like having a shorter to-do list and you probably do too.

17. Go to Bed 15 Minutes Earlier

The last one on this list and we are done! You deserve to get the amount of sleep you need.

Instead of binge-watching that last TV show, which isn't going to give you a better quality of life, you should just go to bed. You deserve to go to bed. If you are reading this article late at night, this is your wake-up call to literally do just the opposite of waking up and go to bed.

If you go to bed earlier, you will be better rested in the morning. You will be able to be more productive and you will have a better day!

Small Habits to Create Now to Dramatically Overhaul Your Day

I hope you found at least one or two of these tips to be helpful for you. If you did, leave a comment below and let me know which habit you are going to be starting. Just remember that your day starts with your habits. Build better habits, and you will build a better life.

If you liked this article, you might also like these ones as well.

Thank you so much for reading this post! I hope you have a happy and productive week!

Please pin and share if you found this post helpful because it helps me keep my content free for you. Thank you!

July 24, 2021 No comments

We have all heard that multi-tasking will not help you to be more productive. In fact, it will help you to be less productive, and in the traditional sense of the term "multi-tasking" that would be correct. But what if I told you that I found some secret sneaky ways that you can actually multi-task? Sounds pretty good, right? Well, I'll share these ways you can multi-task right now!

Secret Sneaky Ways You Can Actually Multi-Task

Updated for 2024

A little while ago, I was listening to a podcast while on a run. One of the great benefits of running is that you have a ton of time to think so I was thinking about the topic of multi-tasking.

I had the thought, "I'm multi-tasking right now because I'm listening to a podcast while running! Technically though, multi-tasking isn't supposed to exist" and that got me thinking... since I had found one way to actually multi-task, what if there were more ways to multi-task?

Well, guess what?

There are more ways to multi-task, but they aren't in the traditional sense of what people think of when multi-tasking is mentioned.

The Common Way of Multi-Tasking

Going back to the beginning of this article, I'm sure we have all been warned against the dangers of multi-tasking.

"It will take longer for you to do the work"

"Your brain will just have to switch back and forth between the tasks"

"You'll become distracted easier"

"It will be harder to focus"

I'm not saying that any of these views are wrong because they probably aren't. The main thing is that what people are generally referring to isn't actual multi-tasking. It's starting one task and then switching to another one before you finish the first task, and then going back to the first task when you are tired or bored of the second task, etc. You could do this all day.

This isn't multi-tasking. You aren't doing two tasks simultaneously. You are mindlessly switching back and forth between two tasks!

I definitely would warn you against doing this because it will make you less productive. But I thought of some real ways to multi-task. The trick to real multi-tasking is to do something that doesn't take brain power while doing something that does take brain power.

For example, eating breakfast doesn't take brain power. You don't have to think about eating breakfast. Hopefully, I have convinced you that there is such a thing as multi-tasking so let's get into the ways you can actually multi-task!

Secret Sneaky Ways You Can Actually Multi-Task

For each of the times below, I have listed multiple ways you can effectively multi-task. Some ideas of things you can do to multi-task are listed multiple times because they can be done while doing almost anything.

Brushing Your Hair

First up, everyone brushes or combs their hair. (Unless they don't have hair, and in that case, this won't apply to you. Lucky you! You'll have an extra five minutes in your day!)

For everyone else, who does brush or comb their hair, this is a valuable five minutes that you can use for something else because brushing your hair is pretty automatic and you don't have to think about it unless you are styling your hair in a certain way, and even then you might be able to effectively multi-task.

So what can you do during this time?

You can recite affirmations. It's the beginning of the day, so it's good to start out on a positive note! You can print out a list of affirmations like "today's going to be a great day" or "no matter how many times I fall, I will succeed in the end" and print them out on a sheet of paper. Tape it to your mirror and recite a few every morning to help boost your confidence!

If affirmations aren't your thing, you could also use this time to memorize something. There is tons of useful information out there that you might want to memorize, but as a school student, this can be especially helpful because you have to memorize things all of the time!

You could also listen to a podcast or an audiobook during your entire morning routine, but I'll get more into those two later.

Brushing Your Teeth

Again, everyone does this... hopefully! That's around an extra four minutes in your day if you brush in the morning and at night.

You can't exactly recite affirmations while you are brushing your teeth, but there are other things you can do. Now is a great time to do a yoga pose or a stretch. Obviously, some yoga poses and stretches will be off-limits! Please don't send me your horror stories, if you decide to break this rule!

You can even just practice balancing on one leg. Just standing on one leg for two minutes every day can help you improve your balance. You could also practice memorizing something or listen to a podcast or audiobook as earlier mentioned.

Another way to multi-task is to think about the number one task you need to complete for the day, so you don't have to spend time deciding what you are going to do later.

During Meals

Three to four meals a day is three to four extra hours of valuable time. Of course, during dinner or another meal, you may want to socialize with the people you are eating with and that is great because it is always important to spend time with those you love!

If you don't want to socialize, then you have extra time on your hands that can be used for something else. For example, when I wake up in the morning, I make my breakfast, and then I sit down at the table and turn on my laptop.

Now, I could get stuck in a social media loop, and sometimes I do. Usually though, I will check my emails, and delete any emails that I no longer need. After that, I will practice French on Duolingo. Just think! You could use your mealtimes to practice a new language too!

Then, if I still haven't finished my breakfast, I will move on to doing any task that I need to do or read the news. It's always important to stay informed! This morning, I started outlining this post, while I ate breakfast, and it got that out of the way before I had officially even started my day.

You might think that you don't have enough time to use a planner, but what if you plan your day while eating breakfast? Now you might think that this will take longer because you will have to switch between your spoon/fork and a pen, but you have to do something while you chew, so why not write down one of your to-do's.

But there are many other ways you can multi-task during meals. During the school year, I will often do homework during lunch. Keep in mind that it is important to allow yourself breaks and that some of these ideas might not work for you. You might need your mealtimes to just rest and relax.

Currently, I have been reading a book during my lunch time. I have a goal of reading twelve personal development books this year, so I am working towards this goal daily by reading two chapters during lunch time. The book I am reading right now is Better than Before by Gretchen Rubin, and I would absolutely recommend it if you are looking for personal development books to read.

Some other books I would recommend can be found below.

You can also take an online course and complete a segment of the course every day during lunch or watch educational videos, as long as you don't get sucked into watching one after the other.

Mealtimes are times you can use to increase your education, which is always a good thing to do! :)

While You Exercise

This is one of my favorite times to multi-task and I was exercising when I thought of how to effectively multi-task in the first place. Besides thinking about what I am going to do for the day, and just thinking about random things while I run, which I find to be very calming and a good form of self-care, I started listening to podcasts.

Depending on what you prefer, you can listen to a podcast or an audiobook. Currently, since I go running and walking for a total of two hours every day, I listen to podcasts until I get bored, or I need to get some energy. Then I will listen to music for the rest of the time.

Podcasts can be such a valuable source of information and they can be extremely motivating as well! If you don't listen to podcasts, give it a try! I'll be posting a blog post with my favorite inspirational podcasts to listen to pretty soon.

Plus, there are podcasts available about pretty much anything, so you'll be sure to find something you will enjoy listening to! :)

Pick Something up When You Go to the Next Room

When you stand up to walk into the next room, take a moment to look around the one you are in and pick something up that doesn't belong before you start moving to the next room.

If it will take less than a minute to put away, you should just put it away right then, and then you save yourself time because you won't have to do it later.

It might not be much, but it will help you to have a more organized house, which is always a win for me!

Secret Sneaky Ways You Can Actually Multi-Task

If you made it all the way to the end of this article, thank you so much for sticking around with me until the end. Now that you know these secret sneaky ways you can multi-task, you just need to create a plan to actually put what you just learned into action because let's face it, you can read all the productivity articles you want, but until you actually take action, it's just a waste of time.

Pick out right now, one way you are going to try out effective multi-tasking, and then make sure you follow through and actually do it. Good luck!

If you liked this post, here are some other ones you might also enjoy!

I hope you have a productive week!

Save this post for later, so you can come back and read it again. Thank you! :)

July 17, 2021 No comments

We all want to make gorgeous bullet journal layouts. Sometimes though, it just seems like everything goes wrong and the layout turns out looking ugly. None of us want that! So whether you have zero design skills or you have horrible handwriting, today, I'm going to share with you simple ways you can make your bullet journal layouts more aesthetic! Gorgeous bullet journal layouts here we come!

How to Make Your Bullet Journal Layouts More Aesthetic

Updated for 2024

I know the bullet journal system first and foremost is to help you be more productive, and it is amazing for doing that, but sometimes we just have extra time on our hands. And pretty bullet journal layouts can help motivate us to use our bullet journals, right?

So now we have the perfect excuse to go out and buy more stationery because it will help us to be more productive!

Even if you don't think you have design skills, or you think that you can't create layouts like mine, I'm here to tell you that you can. It just takes some practice, and these tips will help you. Let's jump right in!

Oh, but before we do that, if you haven't read my top tips and tricks for bullet journaling, you definitely should.

Don't know what bullet journal layouts to make? Here are 36 bullet journal layout ideas for when you are bored. Okay, now we will jump right into the ways to make your bullet journal layouts prettier!

How to Make Your Bullet Journal Layouts More Aesthetic

1. Use a Ruler

Straight lines are a must, at least for me. Sometimes, I go with a more messy bullet journal style, and that can look cute too, as long as the lines are intentionally "crooked". If you are going for straight lines, then they should be STRAIGHT.

Straight lines are a must because it makes your layout look cleaner, and thereby more aesthetic.

If you just can't stand using a ruler, or you don't even have a ruler in your bullet journal supplies stash, then Amanda Rach Lee has a helpful video you can watch with bullet journal hacks. One of them is how to draw straight lines without a ruler.

But you know, if you aren't great at drawing lines, you can always just have a ruler in your stash.

2. Use the Washi Tape Colors

No, this isn't a tip telling you to use washi tape and stickers on your layouts to make them more aesthetic, though you can do that if you want.

You might not know anything about how to mix colors and color psychology, but washi tape designers (How fun would that job be???) probably would. I mean they have to be able to create cute washi tapes, and they are pretty cute. Am I right?

So... you can take their knowledge of colors and apply it to your layouts. The next time you create a layout, you can grab your washi tape, pick one washi tape you like, and then find markers or pens of the same colors and use them on your layouts.

You don't even have to use the washi tape on the layout, but if you do, it will look pretty aesthetic because it will all be matching!

You can do the same with stickers as well! :)

3. Go Minimalist

Sometimes adding a lot of different colors to your bullet journal layout, can make your layout look very cluttered. Okay, the easiest way to cut back is to go all the way. Enter minimalist bullet journal layouts.

This is easy peasy!

You only have to use black pens on your bullet journal layouts from now on. After you have gotten the hang of creating beautiful minimalist bullet journal layouts, you can start adding the colors back in.

4. Use Pastels

So you don't want to go all the way minimalist because you like having color in your layouts. I don't blame you!

Black and white bullet journal layouts can become a little boring after a while. Using pastel markers, you can create beautiful bullet journal layouts.

I mostly stick to pastel colors in my bullet journal.

You can also try sticking to one color. For example, if you pick blue, you could use all shades of blue in your bullet journal.

Try making a bullet journal layout only using different shades of the same color and see how it turns out!

5. Stick to Two Colors

This is one of my favorite ways to create bullet journal layouts that are beautiful. If you only use black and one other color on your layout, the colors never clash, so you have a better chance of creating a Pinterest-worthy bullet journal layout.

If you look at many of the bullet journal layouts on my blog, you will see that I do this in almost every one of my layouts.

Of course, one of your colors doesn't need to be black, but it is easier if you do use black as one of your colors.

6. Learn to Layer

Maybe you think you can't draw, and you wouldn't consider your lettering to be very good. You might just be doubting your abilities, but if you want to create aesthetic layouts using washi tape, stickers, and images you print off the internet, then you should learn to layer.

It's not very hard.

All you have to do is arrange your washi tape, stickers, and images, on your page. Have these elements overlap each other in varying degrees so it doesn't look too uniform. It's best to go with an odd number of elements so it doesn't look too matchy-matchy. If your bullet journal layout is too matchy-matchy it will be boring and we don't want that!

Just by sticking two overlapping pieces of washi tape in the corner of your layout can make your layout look prettier!

7. Use Pencil First

Okay, okay! I hear you. If you don't have very good design skills, how will using a pencil first make your bullet journal layouts prettier?

It will eliminate mistakes. Not that I am saying mistakes will make your bullet journal layouts uglier. Sometimes a bullet journal mistake leads to a new creative style and that's great! But for the most part, you want to eliminate those small mistakes, especially those ones you make in your lettering.

Yeah, I'm talking about when your weekly layout has "Fryday" on it instead of "Friday" because you were hungry and you wanted to finish your layout quickly! 😂

Plus if you use a pencil first, then you can decide how you want the entire layout to look, and so it will be more aesthetically pleasing.

8. Improve Your Calligraphy

Improving my calligraphy was one of the best things I could have done to make my bullet journal layouts prettier.

You don't have to buy fancy calligraphy pens! Sometimes I do calligraphy with my regular Sharpie pen. You could even do your calligraphy with a pencil!

I even have a whole post on guaranteed ways you can quickly improve your calligraphy and hand lettering, which will tell you everything you need to know to start calligraphy. Doing calligraphy and hand lettering is also very fun! What's not to love?

9. Use a Max of Three Fonts

Before you go crazy learning new fonts, here is another helpful tip. Only use a max of three fonts if you want to make your bullet journal look prettier. More than three fonts and your bullet journal layout will probably look slightly cluttered, and all over the place.

In fact, I will let you in on a little secret. In my current bullet journal, I have only used three fonts in total. I have a lowercase font, an all capital letters font, and a calligraphy font. I just change up the styles (ombre, backlit, drop shadow, etc) and colors!

10. Learn to Doodle

Your doodles don't need to be intricate. In fact, it's always good to ere on the side of caution when adding decorations to your bullet journal layouts. Less is more!

Start out with simple doodles, and then when you become more confident in your abilities, you can create more intricate drawings.

11. Use Scrapbook Paper

Going along with #6 and using washi tape, stickers, and images you print out and glue onto your layout, you can also use scrapbook paper.

I'm a big fan of printing out pages of sheets with words, and then "ripping" it before gluing it onto my layout so it gives my layout a scrapbook look.

The nice thing about using scrapbook paper is that it is very easy. Just rip up some paper and glue it on.

How to Make Your Bullet Journal Layouts More Aesthetic

Those are the ways I came up with to make your bullet journal layouts more aesthetic! I hope you found this post helpful. Just some real talk right here. It doesn't matter if your bullet journal is pretty. It doesn't matter.

Your bullet journal could be the ugliest in the world, but as long as it works for you, then you don't need to change a thing. All these tips are just for the people who like to use their bullet journal as a creative outlet as well as a productivity system.

If you liked this post, you can also read these ones...

Have a productive week! What are your favorite ways to decorate your bullet journal layouts?

Please share this pin to help support my blog. Thank you! :)

July 10, 2021 No comments

I'm sure you've seen them. Those absolutely gorgeous bullet journal layouts with exquisite calligraphy. I know I have. It can be easy to compare your own calligraphy, and think that you will never be able to write like they can. You are wrong there though because today, I will tell you how you can quickly improve your handwriting.

Guaranteed Ways to Quickly Improve Your Calligraphy + Hand Lettering

Pretty soon, you'll have your gorgeous bullet journal layouts right alongside the ones you admired, and you'll be on your way to being a pro! Oh, you don't believe me?

Trust me, my calligraphy might not be the best, but I used to not even know how to do calligraphy... and my normal handwriting? Let's just say, it looked like chicken scratch. It was barely even readable, and sometimes it still isn't readable! 😂

When I started bullet journaling back in 2018, (I've come a long way since then) I saw tons of bullet journal layouts online that had absolutely amazing calligraphy on them, and you guessed it. I wanted to create calligraphy just like them!

In 2019, I made a calligraphy binder to help me practice my calligraphy. This helped me improve my calligraphy and hand lettering immensely.

Today, I want to share with you the simple ways I have improved my calligraphy and hand lettering. Plus, it's guaranteed! If I can use these tips to improve my calligraphy, and I have, then so can you!

Guaranteed Ways to Quickly Improve Your Calligraphy

First of all, as with most things that you learn, the supplies you use are important. Especially when you are getting started, if you use the wrong supplies, it might ruin your experience. Imagine, if you started training to run a marathon, but you bought the oldest cheapest shoes you could find at a thrift store, and you went the same route and bought uncomfortable itchy workout gear.

Surprise! Surprise! You probably aren't going to be running that marathon.

Now, this might be an extreme example, but I'm sure you get might my point. You are not very likely to be successful at reaching your goal of running a marathon if you don't have the correct supplies.

The same goes for learning how to create beautiful calligraphy. If you want to succeed, you need to have the right supplies. This does not mean you have to purchase the most expensive supplies on the market. Definitely not!

If you buy an expensive set of calligraphy pens and then you decide that you don't like hand lettering, it will be a complete waste of money. I'm all for saving a few bucks and I even have a post about 15 hacks for shopping online and in-store.

Plus, if you buy an expensive set of calligraphy pens, and you are a beginner, you might ruin them, and that would also be a waste of money.

If you decide you like calligraphy and you are into this hobby for the long run, then you can buy a nice set of calligraphy pens, but not before then.

Hand Lettering Supplies Recommendations

First, I'll share my hand lettering supplies recommendations for beginners, and then I'll share some other more advanced options you can put in your back pocket, for when you get there.

1. Tombow Fudesonuke Hard + Soft Tip Brush Pens

The main pens I used when I learned how to do calligraphy, were these two pens. These two pens were the backbone of my calligraphy journey and if you are a beginner, then I highly recommend them.

They usually come in a two-pack. One has a soft tip (this means the tip is more bendable) and the other Tombow Fudesnuke Brush Pen has a hard tip.

If you only buy one set of calligraphy pens, then these are the ones to go for and they are fairly inexpensive too!

2. Sharpie Pen

If you read a lot of my blog posts, then you know that I am a big fan of using a Sharpie Pen in my bullet journal. Sharpie pens are cheap, and they have nice, dark, smooth ink, which is ideal for hand lettering.

Sharpie pens cannot be used for calligraphy because they can't be used to create thick and thin lines. They are great for practicing making the shapes of letters. They can be used for cursive and hand lettering though, so what pen you should use depends on what type of lettering you want to do.

I use a Sharpie pen in my bullet journal the most out of all of my other pens.

3. Tombow Dual Brush Pens

These brush pens are for when you become more advanced. The great thing about these brush pens is that they are dual-tipped, meaning each brush pen has a different tip on either end.

I love that these brush pens have juicy ink that blends well. Beautiful ombre calligraphy here I come!

These brush pens are on the more expensive side, but they come in a tremendous amount of colors. I've had mine for over a year and they still all work great!

I have a full review of my Tombow Dual Brush Pens here.

4. Ecoline Brush Pens

My other favorite brush pens to use are the Ecolline Brush Pens. These brush pens are also for people who have had experience with calligraphy before as the tips are very bendable so it is harder to control the ink in the pen.

I won't get into the details on these pens as I also have a review on them, and I want to get onto the tips you can use to quickly improve your hand lettering. You can read the review on the Ecoline brush pens here.

Other Supplies

Other than your pens of choice, there are a few other supplies you will need.

A Pencil (always handy to have one lying around)
An Eraser (to go along with the pencil of course!)
Paper
A Thick Piece of Cardstock (this is to put under the piece of paper you are writing on just in case any of the ink goes through the page)

I've seen some bloggers recommend paper other than regular printer paper because smoother paper will help your pens last for longer. The tips won't fray as fast. I have not tested this out myself, so I can't say that this will help your pens last longer.

I use regular printer paper myself unless I am doing calligraphy in my bullet journal, which I believe contains paper that is smoother.

Guaranteed Ways to Quickly Improve Your Calligraphy + Hand Lettering

Now, it is time for the fun part! Grab your supplies and let's get started!

I hope you took my above advice because #1 should really be about having the right supplies. I already went over that above, so we'll get right into a different tip. Having the right supplies though will help you improve your calligraphy and hand lettering quicker!

1. Find Font Inspiration

Okay, so this might seem a little bit like cheating but hear me out.

This is one of my favorite ways to improve my calligraphy. Actually use a font for inspiration!

You can try it out and see how it works for yourself below.

Go to Creative Market and click on the fonts section
Click on the type of hand lettering or calligraphy you want to do
Find a font you like, and then click on it
Right below the header image, there should be a box that says "preview text" on it
You can type whatever you are trying to write in the box and then you can see it in your chosen font!
Write it down in pencil first on your paper to practice it if you want
Then trace over the pencil using a calligraphy pen

Voila, now you have an endless supply of new fonts that you can try out, and a great way to practice calligraphy is by writing out quotes! Go get yourself one of your favorite quotes and then find a font you like so you can practice it.

Because you can type anything in the box, you will be able to memorize whole new fonts to add to your calligraphy collection.

2. Use Practice Worksheets

This is the biggest way I improved my calligraphy, and how I learned how to do calligraphy in the first place! I probably should have started with this tip, but I was excited about the first tip because it is my favorite and I feel like people don't know about it.

My favorite website for getting free printables is By Dawn Nicole. She has tons of free printable practice worksheets, and this is a great way to start out your calligraphy and hand lettering journey. If you are a beginner, I recommend heading over to her website to read some articles and print out some worksheets.

As a beginner, it is a good idea to practice your hand lettering by tracing letters and doing strokes for a while before moving on to doing it on your own. It can be scary and intimidating looking at a bright, white piece of paper!

3. Practice Daily

What? This made it onto the list of guaranteed ways to improve your calligraphy and hand lettering?

Okay. You got me. I know this is a very cliche tip, but it is important to practice daily when you want to improve at any skill, and learning calligraphy is no exception.

Plus, I have an idea that you might want to try. When I started learning calligraphy, I made a calligraphy binder that I keep all of my worksheets in so I can see improvement and have all my supplies in one place.

Basically, all you need is a large binder, a hole punch, a pen holder, and some tab dividers to make one. You can read how I made my calligraphy binder here.

Every day, you can simply grab your binder, and then sit at your table and practice your calligraphy. If you think you might forget, you can even store your calligraphy binder on your table!

Practice daily for just 15 minutes for two to three weeks, and you should see some improvement in your hand lettering. The more you practice, the better you will become!

4. Use a Pencil

You've filled out practice sheets diligently for around a month and you are ready to take the plunge into writing on a blank sheet of paper. Congratulations!

If it seems kind of intimidating to do cursive on a blank sheet of paper, you can start out by writing using a pencil and then going over it with a calligraphy pen. This should help eliminate errors, and you won't forget what letter comes next in the word you are writing. Eek! That has happened to me before.

After you write it, and your ink has dried, you should go over your calligraphy with an eraser to make sure no pencil lines are showing.

When trying to center a word on a piece of paper, you should start by marking or writing where the middle letter should go in pencil, and then add in the other letters on either side.

5. Use a Ruler

Do you struggle, making your words go across the page in a straight line?

Don't worry, you are not alone. You just need more practice. Lined paper is usually pretty thin, so the ink would bleed through if you used it. You can make your own lined paper though with just a ruler.

Add a line on your paper for every row you need. After you do the calligraphy, all you have to do is erase your "lined paper".

After a while, you should try to not look at the line while you write, and pretty soon, you will be able to do calligraphy without it.

You can also use dotted paper. Most bullet journal notebooks have dotted paper in them, and dotted paper printables can be found online for free. This will help you with creating bounce lettering that "bounces" the right amount as well.

6. Experiment

Once you start learning different fonts and calligraphy styles, you should start experimenting and doing these fonts without any guides or "helps". No ruler, no pencil. Just a calligraphy pen and a piece of paper.

It may be scary, but you will probably surprise yourself with how well it looks, and doing freehand calligraphy can help you to be more creative.

Along with experimenting, you should also try out different methods of doing calligraphy. I like doing ombre lettering sometimes. Then even if your lettering is not so perfect, the beautiful blending will draw the eye away from the crooked lines.

7. Find Your Calligraphy Style

After doing calligraphy for a while, you should be familiar with a variety of fonts and styles. Memorizing different fonts that you can write well is great, but you should make it your own.

Don't be afraid to try out new ways of connecting letters or of writing your letters.

I recommend picking one font that you like. First of all, you should of course learn the font. After you can do that "fluently", you should memorize it, so you can write using that font perfectly whenever you want without any sort of guides. Then make it your own. Change it up, and design your own signature calligraphy font.

Use this font as much as you can. You don't need to be using a calligraphy pen. I practice my cursive in my bullet journal all the time. You can practice it while making a shopping list, or while making your to-do list for the day.

Guaranteed Ways to Quickly Improve Your Calligraphy + Hand Lettering

Those are all of the tips I have! I wish I could tell you some special way you could use to quickly improve your calligraphy, but there isn't one. Mostly it comes down to practice, practice, and yes, more practice. The tips above should help you improve your calligraphy a little bit faster, but it still will take practice and hard work.

That is the beauty of calligraphy and hand lettering, I can look back at my calligraphy from when I started, and see the improvement. It's all about finding joy in the journey. I hope these tips help you on your calligraphy journey!

I would love to know, what helped you improve your calligraphy? Have a productive week!

Sharing this post helps keep my blog running. Thank you for supporting me! :)

July 03, 2021 No comments

Is Bullet Journaling a Waste of Time?

1. Increase Productivity + Manage Your Time

2. Setting Goals

3. Tracking New Habits + Being Organized

4. Increase Creativity + Reduce Stress

5. Low Cost

6. Doesn't Take Much Time

7. It's Completely Customizable

Is Bullet Journaling a Complete Waste of Time?

Small Habits to Create Now to Dramatically Overhaul Your Day

1. Wake Up 15 Minutes Earlier

2. Plan Out Your Day

3. Read a Personal Development Book

4. Clean for 15 Minutes

5. Unplug Intentionally

6. Recite Positive Affirmations

7. Watch a TED Talk

8. Listen to a Podcast or an Audiobook

9. Do a Quick Workout

10. Practice Gratitude

11. Be Creative

12. Practice Self-Care

13. Learn a New Language

14. Take a Course

15. Read an Article

16. Get Ready for Tomorrow

17. Go to Bed 15 Minutes Earlier

Small Habits to Create Now to Dramatically Overhaul Your Day

The Common Way of Multi-Tasking

Secret Sneaky Ways You Can Actually Multi-Task

Brushing Your Hair

Brushing Your Teeth

During Meals

While You Exercise

Pick Something up When You Go to the Next Room

Secret Sneaky Ways You Can Actually Multi-Task

How to Make Your Bullet Journal Layouts More Aesthetic

1. Use a Ruler

2. Use the Washi Tape Colors

3. Go Minimalist

4. Use Pastels

5. Stick to Two Colors

6. Learn to Layer

7. Use Pencil First

8. Improve Your Calligraphy

9. Use a Max of Three Fonts

10. Learn to Doodle

11. Use Scrapbook Paper

How to Make Your Bullet Journal Layouts More Aesthetic

Guaranteed Ways to Quickly Improve Your Calligraphy

Hand Lettering Supplies Recommendations

1. Tombow Fudesonuke Hard + Soft Tip Brush Pens

2. Sharpie Pen

3. Tombow Dual Brush Pens

4. Ecoline Brush Pens

Other Supplies

Guaranteed Ways to Quickly Improve Your Calligraphy + Hand Lettering

1. Find Font Inspiration

2. Use Practice Worksheets

3. Practice Daily

4. Use a Pencil

5. Use a Ruler

6. Experiment

7. Find Your Calligraphy Style

Guaranteed Ways to Quickly Improve Your Calligraphy + Hand Lettering

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