I read that the original bullet journal method doesn't actually use fancy pens or stickers, and it kind of blew my mind.

Found this out in an old interview with Ryder Carroll, the guy who made the whole system. He basically said the core idea is just rapid logging with a pen and any notebook, and all the art and decoration came later from other people. I've been in this hobby for about two years and always felt pressure to make every spread look perfect for Instagram. My journal costs more in washi tape than it does in actual pages. Knowing the real point is just to get your thoughts down in a simple way makes me think a lot of us, me included, have been missing the forest for the trees. Does anyone else feel like the fancy stuff sometimes gets in the way of actually using your journal?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_beth6d ago

Seriously, it's just a notebook. If the fancy stuff makes you happy, use it. If it stresses you out, use a cheap pen. The whole point is that it works for you.

clairec785d ago

Oh man, that's so true. My friend bought this super expensive journal and then never wrote in it because she was scared to "mess it up." She finally just grabbed a drugstore notebook and now she uses it all the time. Totally get what @the_beth is saying.