Over the last few posts, you have learned about the Monthly Spread and Monthly Task List, plus the Weekly Spread. Today is all about the Daily Log. This is when you get even more detailed about what needs to be done each day.

If you have been following along with the Bullet Journal for the Absolute Beginner series, you know that the calendar spreads are a big part of the bullet journal. While this is just the tip of the iceberg of what is included, it is good to start with them, because they become your main calendar, task list, and planner for the coming days, weeks, and months.

The Bullet Journal Daily Log

There are a few benefits of adding in a Daily Log into your bullet journal. The more obvious benefit is being able to dedicate more space in your journal for each day of the week or month. This lets you create more detailed to-do lists and task lists. I am a huge fan of to-do lists. I will admit, that I sometimes do not include a daily in my bujo, and just keep a running list of “next actions” in my planner–but as a beginner, it is really good to start with utilizing a daily log.

The great thing about the Daily Log is that you can customize it as needed for what you want to keep track of. This may include adding your diet and fitness information, working on a daily to-do lists, or adding in details about appointments you have. Here are some things you might want to include in your Daily Log:

• Daily to-do list
• Tasks for the day
• Notes
• Health logs – diet, fitness, weight loss
• Food or meal planning
• Moods or triggers
• Appointments

You can either use one type of template or layout for each Daily Log, or switch them up each day depending on what you need to record and keep track of. There is a lot of room for customizing these helpful pages.

I recommend that the absolute beginner–that’s you–start with a very simple daily spread. The more simple that you keep things, the more likely you are to keep up with your bullet journal. I tend to use mine as part diary, part daytimer, and part tracker.

I don’t plot out my dailies in advance (though some prefer to do this). What I do is on each new day, I turn to a fresh page–or use half of a page from the previous day. I will list my appointments for the day, as well as my mood, things I want to remember, and, usually, my meal plan for the day.

In the new year I plan on keeping a food journal and I will likely keep it within my daily pages. Some days I will write up a specific to-do list, but as I mentioned earlier, I tend to keep a running “next actions” list and keep that going until a whole page is filled up and/or I complete all of my next actions on the page. (I’m praying to actually finish all of the tasks on my current list by end of year!)

I don’t plot out my dailies in advance (though some prefer to do this). What I do is on each new day, I turn to a fresh page–or use half of a page from the previous day. I will list my appointments for the day, as well as my mood, things I want to remember, and, usually, my meal plan for the day. IN the new year I plan on keeping a food journal and I will likely keep it within my daily pages.

Some days I will write up a specific to-do list, but as I mentioned earlier, I tend to keep a running “next actions” list and keep that going until a whole page is filled up and/or I complete all of my next actions on the page. (I’m praying to actually finish all of the tasks on my current list by end of year!)

My bullet journal is very fluid, and that is the joy of this type of planner. Some weeks I really rely on my daily log, and some weeks I am happy to work within my weekly and next actions. Make your bullet journal work for you.

Don’t get too hung up on making it pretty. I like color and I am a terrible doodler, so I do keep stickers and washi tape in my desk to spice things up when I get bored!

I’ve set up a handy Amazon list of some of my very favorite things! Let me know if you find something that is super that is not there and I will check it out and add it!

Here are Some Great Examples of Daily Logs:

Thank you so much for joining me with Bullet Journal for the Absolute Beginner series. You are just about halfway through the series, guiding you through the essential steps to take when you are starting your very first bullet journal.

Here is a look at what we have covered so far:

Buying Your Own Bullet Journal and Supplies

Deciding What to Include in the Bullet Journal

Writing Down a Future Log

Creating Your Monthly Spread

Working on a Monthly Task List

Now that we have covered the basics of a bullet journal, and gone over the monthly spread and task list, it is time to learn about the Weekly Spread. This is the part of my journal, outside of the future log, that I refer to the most!

Continue reading

Welcome back to the Bullet Journal for Absolute Beginners series! Last time, you learned about creating a monthly spread – one of the most popular page layouts for this type of journal. Today, I want to go over the monthly layout one more time, but delve into the Task List a little more.

This page is one of my very favorites. It helps me keep all of my may spinning plates spinning! It is a great place for me to put a quick note when my husband calls to remind me of “one more thing” to remember to do. I refer to this page in my journal nearly every morning as I plan my day. Here are some tips for working on that handy Monthly Task List as part of your Monthly Spread.

Have you heard of a future log in a bullet journal? By the end of this post, I hope you will be motivated to set up your own future log (share photos in the comments or on the Facebook page!)

Welcome back to the ‘How to Start a Bullet Journal’ series. Last week, you made a list and various notes about what you want to include in your bullet journal. You don’t need to have a full list just yet, but this will help you move along when creating the bullet journal and keeping it organized.

Today is all about starting actual pages in your journal. You are going to start with writing down a future log. If you’re not sure what that is, here is a brief
explanation:

The Future Log is a way to quickly and easily reference what important days or events are coming up in that month. Where you place it in the journal is up to you, but it typically at the beginning of the journal, or in front of each monthly log that you have in the bullet journal.

The purpose of the future log is to see what events you have coming up all on one page, but not necessarily tucked into one of the calendar pages just yet. This is a good page to start with when you are brand new to bullet journaling, as it is a quick reference page for when you are setting up weekly or monthly layouts later on.

Not sure what to include in your future log?? Here are some ideas:

• Family appointments, such as for the doctor or dentist
• Business-related meetings and appointments
• Birthdays or holidays coming up
• Trips you plan on taking that month
• Days when you need a reminder about something, such as jury duty or paying a certain bill

To get started on your future log, start with the month after this one, and start listing anything you know going on during that month. This is a quick and easy way to get started with the log, which is also going to be used during this series when setting up your calendar pages.

Here are some great examples of future logs:

And, as always, you can find all kinds of inspiration on my How to Start a Bullet Journal Pinterest Board!

Photo by Estée Janssens on Unsplash