Rusty McKie
2 min
Updated: Nov 23, 2021
I've practiced bullet journaling for over two years now. At this point, I can't imagine life without it.
Over the next several weeks, I will write a series covering how I bullet journal, but today I want to talk about why it's been so helpful.
If you've never heard of bullet journaling, here's a short video to give you context.
Without any further ado, here are three reasons I bullet journal.
Pastoring is a never-ending job. There are always more to-dos.
Before bullet journaling, I'd regularly and unintentionally not follow through on tasks. I worked hard to be faithful, but my life grew into a people-eating task-monster.
Now, I can tame the beast by accessing all my responsibilities and seeing where I'm at in the process.
Also, as I watch undone tasks migrate around my bullet journal, I'm forced to ask hard questions like:
Is this task necessary?
Is it the best use of my time?
Am I the best person to do this?
Should I delegate this?
Bullet journaling moves me away from urgent demands and helps me space out tasks in a more sustainable way.
Before bullet journaling, I would keep track of work tasks in one app, jot down family plans in another, and review my rule of life in a Moleskin.
No matter how hard I tried, I double-booked, lacked margin for anything other than work, and lived a fragmented life.
Bullet journaling brought my whole life into one place. When I plan out my weeks now, I consider all my responsibilities and desires for life.
Put another way — bullet journaling reveals my limits. I see what I have time for on the page, and I get to choose what's most important to me.
Over time, I've gained self-awareness, and I possess more precise knowledge of what I'm capable of in a given week.
This method not only helps you plan out your week, but it also creates a built-in assessment tool.
Before bullet journaling, I always felt like I wasn't doing enough.
Guilt ran me ragged, kept me working, and shaped my view of my life.
Now, when guilt starts accusing, I look at my past week. Often I'm surprised when I see I work too much, not too little.
Bullet journaling frees me to stop working. I know what's left undone, and I possess a plan to tackle it later.
I love this tool.
It's added loads of value to my life and ultimately helps me live more intentionally with God, myself, and others.
I think bullet journaling is worth a shot if:
You feel you've lost agency in your schedule.
You drop balls and feel constant guilt over not doing enough.
You get overwhelmed by life's responsibilities.
You desire to steward your life more holistically.
If you resonate with any of this, then join me next week as I began to share my simplified version of bullet journaling.
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