✔️📓The Bullet Journal: A planner ... or a lifestyle?

The humble paper to-do list dates at least to George Washington and his cadre of [almanac-loving co-founders](. The humble paper to-do list with [rules]( a curated series of [how-to blogs]( inspiring [mindfulness-oriented]( YouTube videos, and [branded merchandise]( is a distinct product of our era. Behold: the Bullet Journal. Forget typing notes with your thumbs. Lose the rigid assumptions of over-designed productivity apps. The Bullet Journal method is almost radically minimalist. It’s endlessly customizable, meant to be a paper container for your mental clutter. And that’s perhaps the key to understanding why analog planners of its ilk have gained such a fervent following: They ask us to examine our priorities. Every day. By hand. And in addition to reminding us of the things we have to do, they can also remind us that we [aren’t]( [in this](. 🐦 [Tweet this!]( 🌐 [View this email on the web]( Sponsored by [Quartz Obsession] The Bullet Journal September 25, 2018 Check it (twice) --------------------------------------------------------------- The humble paper to-do list dates at least to George Washington and his cadre of [almanac-loving co-founders](. The humble paper to-do list with [rules]( a curated series of [how-to blogs]( inspiring [mindfulness-oriented]( YouTube videos, and [branded merchandise]( is a distinct product of our era. Behold: the Bullet Journal. Forget typing notes with your thumbs. Lose the rigid assumptions of over-designed productivity apps. The Bullet Journal method is almost radically minimalist. It’s endlessly customizable, meant to be a paper container for your mental clutter. And that’s perhaps the key to understanding why analog planners of its ilk have gained such a fervent following: They ask us to examine our priorities. Every day. By hand. And in addition to reminding us of the things we have to do, they can also remind us that we [aren’t]( [in this](. 🐦 [Tweet this!]( 🌐 [View this email on the web]( Unsplash/Green Chameleon By the digits [2013:]( The year Bullet Journal was launched [3:]( Types of bullets per official Bullet Journal conventions [8.6 million:]( YouTube views on the original Bullet Journal video [2.5 million:]( Instagram posts tagged #bulletjournal [€145 million:]( Revenues for Moleskine notebooks in 2016 [€60 million:]( 2017 sales goal for Leuchtturm, Moleskine’s main competitor [7:]( Items on Jay Gatsby’s to-do list for September 12, 1906 How it works Bullet journaling 101 --------------------------------------------------------------- A Bullet Journal is [simple by design](. There are three kinds of bullets: tasks, events, and notes. Tasks are indicated by dots, events by circles, and notes by dashes. That’s right: The fundamental idea here is that you write everything in your list—stuff you want to do, as well as random observations and notes to self. Once you’ve made your list, you can modify those bullets: Place an X over the dot of a task when it’s done (satisfying!), turn it into an arrow if you move it to another place in your journal, or cross out the whole thing if it becomes irrelevant (sooooo satisfying). A star means it’s important, and an exclamation point means the idea was a stroke of inspiration—this will help you find it easily later. Those are the barebones of daily journaling, but the system doesn’t end there. Bullet Journal creator Ryder Carroll, a Brooklyn-based designer, categorizes types of journaling into “collections” of notes, which could be an index for your journal, a schedule of your month, your daily logs, and a page for events past the current month. They’re modules that you mix and match to make your own perfect system. At its core, the journal is mainly geared towards taking quick, short notes—called [rapid logging](. Acolytes say the technique keeps your head clear and lets you spend more time actually getting things done. But evidently, the minimalist mantra doesn’t inspire everyone. Sponsored by SAP Can a data platform bring new financial opportunity? --------------------------------------------------------------- For millions of Latin Americans in remote communities, it's difficult to get to a bank. But one bank, Compartamos, is bringing banking to the people. With SAP mobile solutions, Compartamos is delivering financial products and opportunities to underserved Latin American populations.[Learn more at SAP.com]( Performative productivity --------------------------------------------------------------- To keep journaling interesting, and as a kind of performance art, Instagram is bursting with people showing off their [#bulletjournalspreads](. They’re highly-designed, artistic spin-offs of the Bullet Journal. Instead of quick lists, these journalists have reversed the equation: Instead of spending as little time as possible on your journal, spend as much time as possible. Make it your life. Giphy Quotable “Using Bullet Journal made me more aware of what I was postponing or deluding myself about. I’ve finally concluded I’m probably never going to get around to deleting idiotic pictures from my photo library stretching back three years. It wasn’t the thought of actually doing the task that eventually put me off. It was rewriting it on a new page.” [— Leo Mirani at 1843 magazine]( Bullet list Beyond BuJo --------------------------------------------------------------- There are a lot of ways to skin a calendar. Here are just a few. - [Filofax:]( The granddaddy of them all, it began as a conveniently small option for technical engineers (the name is short for “file of facts”) and blew up in the 1980s with clever marketing, customizable inserts, and the rise of yuppies, who were not put off by the $130 price tag. [It’s still around]( still [pricey]( and still [recommended]( by the obsessives at The Wirecutter. - [Day Runner:]( A more economical alternative to the Filofax, the vinyl-bound Day Runner was its main competition in the go-go ‘80s, and attracted [a more high-tech audience]( as well as the high-school and college students who were growing up to become them. - [Hobonichi Techo:]( A Japanese planner with a cult following as obsessive as that of the Bullet system, it’s the work of [Shigesato Itoi]( a former ad copywriter famous for his My Neighbor Totoro voiceover work… and his essays… and his Nintendo bass-fishing game… and his EarthBound video-game series. - [Getting Things Done:]( Created by consultant David Allen in 2001, it’s like Bullet Journaling in that it’s a flexible, analog time-management system (and one dubbed [a cult of the last tech boom]( it’s also [compatible with bullet journaling proper](. - [Hipster PDA:]( The original Blackberry backlash. In 2005, San Franciscan Merlin Mann, a GTD devotee, put a binder clip on some index cards—and in doing so, prefigured the analog renaissance. pop quiz Which Filofax insert is actress Diane Keaton credited with inventing? A detachable protractorAn insert for carrying cash and credit cardsA field guide to North American birds Correct. Incorrect. If your inbox doesn’t support this quiz, find the solution at bottom of email. Fun fact! The loopy, weighted script that’s popular among BuJo masters and wedding invitation designers is called “modern brush lettering.” Giphy Million-dollar question Why bite the bullet? --------------------------------------------------------------- To some, the bullet journal is a [“glorified to-do list.”]( To others, it’s positive psychology in action. [Decision fatigue]( is a contributor to daily stress. Instead of making tiny decisions, we push them to the back of our minds, where they nag at our attention and drain our energy, almost invisibly. The solution, original bullet journalist Ryder Carroll says, is found in writing all those thoughts down to declutter the mind. He’s not alone: There’s plenty of science backing the idea. A 2011 [study]( found that just writing down a plan alleviates anxiety about completing a task, and makes us more effective at doing it. “The ability to plan ahead may be crucial for enabling the wide variety of pursuits that define human life,” [psychologists E. J. Masicampo and Roy F. Baumeister]( submit. (No biggie.) Why paper? Well for starters, it’s a healthy break from the glowing, vibrating infohose. But there are other advantages to analog. A paper list demands deliberation: Items on it are more likely to be important. It’s permanent, so you can’t delete the things you didn’t do. It’s [“a method, not an object,”]( so it’s adaptable, and journalers learn what’s best for them rather than relying on a one-size-fits-all app or trying to train an algorithm. And there’s [evidence]( that writing things down, as opposed to typing them, means they’re more likely to be retained in the brain. [It also retains the past]( so recent steps in your journey are just a flip away. Watch this! Is there such a thing as too organized? If you have a spare 25 minutes, watch this video and let us know. take me down this 📓 hole! New York magazine’s [guide to this year’s best paper planners](. Giphy Poll What's your journaling style? [Click here to vote]( Minimalist BuJoMaximalist doodlerPost-its everywhere 💬let's talk! In yesterday’s poll about [sardines]( 80% of you said they’re “so important, so delicious.” 📧 Joana wrote: “My favourite fish in the sea (and in my plate.) The picture you shared, though, is what we call ‘sardine with a tie’ in Portugal—when they have blood like that, they are not good to eat. Don’t buy them.” 📈 [Dive into the archive]( ✏️ [What did you think of today’s email?](mailto:obsession%2Bfeedback@qz.com?cc=&subject=Thoughts%20about%20the%20Bullet%20Journal&body=) 💡 [What should we obsess over next?](mailto:obsession%2Bideas@qz.com?cc=&subject=Obsess%20over%20this%20next.&body=) 🐰 [Discuss or suggest a topic on r/ObsessionObsessives]( 📬 [Forward this email to a friend](mailto:replace_with_friends_email@qz.com?cc=obsession%2Bforward@qz.com&subject=%E2%9C%94%EF%B8%8F%F0%9F%93%93The%20Bullet%20Journal%3A%20A%20planner%20...%20or%20a%20lifestyle%3F&body=Thought%20you%27d%20enjoy.%20%0ARead%20it%20here%20%E2%80%93%20http%3A%2F%2Fqz.com%2Femail%2Fquartz-obsession%2F1401247) Today’s email was written by [Dave Gershgorn]( edited by [Whet Moser]( and produced by [Luiz Romero](. The correct answer to the quiz is An insert for carrying cash and credit cards. Enjoying the Quartz Obsession? [Send this link]( to a friend! 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