Perhaps you find yourself in a tough situation, or feel caught in a dilemma, possibly you feel that there are thoughts you can’t share with anyone. There’s something you need to get off your chest, but haven’t found a way to express it coherently to another person. You have trouble remembering dates, have too many things on your To Do list, and you feel overwhelmed and paralyzed. 

The solution to all these issues is very much at hand. Journaling is one of the oldest and probably the most efficient way to translate all that chaos in your mind into words or art. 

What Is Journaling?

The oldest known diary is a papyrus logbook that describes the construction of the great pyramid at Giza, about 4500 years ago. 

Down the centuries, diaries were kept by statesmen, home-makers, politicians, writers, philosophers, soldiers, farmers, poets. Some of them described historical events, wars, discoveries and adventures. Others were explorations of the inner workings of the mind, or bland descriptions of daily life. It means consistently and regularly recording your ideas, thoughts and emotions in a designated space – either a journal, note-book or your computer. 

Whatever the nature of the writer or the writing, journals and diaries play a crucial role as a platform for self-expression, emotional catharsis, clarification of issues, and finding and working towards a goal. Most people remember keeping a diary during those tumultuous years filled with teenage angst. Your deepest, darkest secrets were safe within the covers and you probably dropped the habit as you grew older. 

Today, journaling is a powerful tool to maintain mental and emotional wellness, self-improvement and even physical health. 

Types of Journaling

There are several important types of journaling:

• Daily routine where you set aside a certain time and place

• Text or words

• Graphics or art 

• Bullet

• Gratitude and Reflection

• Travelogue

• Specific Topic: Food, Nature, Exercise, Reading, Dreams or Hobby

• Short lists or One-Line-A-Day

• Epistolary or Letters that you may or may not send

• Emotional: Grief, Love, Anger, Negative or Positive thoughts

• Planner

Each one of these fulfills a certain need in you, helps clarify your ideas, manage anxiety, prioritize, connect events, reduce stress, enjoy life and more. 

Bullet Journaling

Known as BuJo by buffs around the world, this method of journaling was conceptualized by a graphic designer Ryder Carroll who found it the perfect way to cope with his attention deficit disorder. It gained enormous popularity on Instagram when it first debuted in 2013. What’s great about this format is that it combines several other methods such as reminders, planner, diary, to-do lists, where you can record creative brainstorming, aha moments, schedules and more. 

BuJo has its own templates, accessories, notations, symbols and shorthand. It has its own customized format that you can create yourself, rather than writing on blank pages in a diary or notebook. It usually has templates such as daily and monthly logs, a future log to record long-term goals and ideas and certain accepted symbols for quick journaling. There are a few must-haves such as an index and calendar. 

The rest is up to you – splurge on glitter or gel pens, crayons, markers, pens, fine-liners, highlighters, Washi tape, rulers and more. You can also buy special BuJo stickers to decorate your journal, or mark important notes. Post-Its and Sticky Notes are another great way to flag reminders. 

While these cute and quirky accessories are great to have, they’re certainly not essential. If your personality is spare and spartan, you’ll go for the minimalist, uncluttered look.

Is Bullet Journaling Your Thing?

You may wonder why you simply can’t use a regular planner, scheduler or diary or paste sticky notes on the fridge? You could get reminders on your phone, smart watch, or on email. 

If you’re the kind of person who likes things organized, but in a unique, completely personalized way, then BuJo is for you. 

Bullet journals combine a slew of other methods and that’s why you get the advantage of all of them in one place with this single method of journaling. 

As they say, a picture speaks a thousand words, and with BuJo, you can get as creative as you like, and these graphics and colorful images are what stick in your synapses a tad sight better than boring appointment diary notes. Studies show that representing something graphically enables better memory skills. If you love doodling, sketching or scribbling bullet journaling is something you’ll enjoy. 

All kinds of journaling promote self-expression and wellness, and BuJo is no exception. The bonus is that you get to record your long-term goals as well in the same place as your short and immediate term ones. If you’re a person who gets bogged down by details and forget to look at the big picture, you will benefit enormously from your bullet journal. It helps with your own self care and mental wellness. To read more about self care see the self care ideas blog on the Rest and Digest website

Bullet journals keep you motivated and in sync with the myriad things going on in your life. They’re also a lot of fun!