Week 34 2020 Update and Bullet Journal Spread

I honestly can’t believe I’ve been back home for less than a week! The feeling of finally being able to relax, after weeks of displacement, is amazing. On the other hand, coming back to stage three lockdown is quite odd. With restrictions tighter than anything I experienced in the UK during spring (with good reason,) it’s a strange return. It’s in an odd mindset that I enter week 34 2020 with then; extremely happy to be home, but fully aware of the restrictions we need to follow.

To start with, if you leave your property you have to wear a mask. Full stop, no ifs or buts. It’s very weird walking along the main street and only half recognising people as they go past. Masks also make walking up hills more of an effort than normal- making me glad it’s not summer! There’s also, obviously, no meeting up with friends. You can do something outside with one person outside your household, but that’s your limit, so there’s no chance of group catchups.

I just want to clarify here that I DO NOT oppose these measures. They are the most sensible things to do in the current situation and demonstrate that our state government is striving to put health first. Every leader has a difficult balancing act at the moment, but I believe putting health first is the right call.

Right, enough personal stuff, onto the Bullet Journal for Week 34 2020!

As you can see, my mountainous theme continues this week. I’m really happy with how the simple sketches have worked, and they’ve given me a lot of confidence to keep trying new ideas.

The layout itself is very straightforward, seven 5.5×5.5cm squares, and two 10x5cm rectangles. While not as simple as the spreads I used at the start of the year, it can be outlined in five minutes. I think that as long as the essentials of a spread can be drawn up in that time, you’re doing well. While I’ve really enjoyed some of my more detailed spreads, my journaling space is kept quite simple. That way, if I’m pressed for time, I can set up what I need on Sunday evening and then come back and do the fancy stuff later!

Of course, this only works if you don’t mind restricting your space for daily logs. If you prefer longer form journaling- or have a busier schedule than me, you may want more room. However you approach a weekly spread is a personal preference, but I think it’s important that you can set it up and get tasks or events entered in less than fifteen minutes. With a quick setup, there’s always a time to get it done, and you don’t end up procrastinating until the week is half over! Never forget, your Bullet Journal is a tool to help you stay organised first and something to share on Instagram second 😉

Halfway through the month!

As we’re now halfway through August (how did that happen?) I’m starting to think about my September setup. I’ve already decided my theme (no spoilers, sorry!) but I need to do some thinking about monthly trackers. This month I’ve been using a big spread to track my blog work, but it hasn’t worked. My feeling is that while I need an overview in my Bullet Journal, I’m going to set up a separate journal to track everything in detail. I’m also only tracking my blog stats at the moment, so I need to add trackers for my social media platforms and get things more organised.

I’m also going to do some spreads regarding job hunting. Tracking what you’ve applied to is obvious, but I also want to track response times and other details.

At the end of the day, that’s what I love so much about using a Bullet Journal. I’ve tried some things and they haven’t worked. Others have. Some months you need to track something specific, others have holidays to plan. It doesn’t matter. With a Bullet Journal, you can just start on the next blank page and add it to your index!

That’s all from me today! I’d love to hear what random trackers you keep- whether in a Bullet Journal or elsewhere- so let me know in the comments. Until next time, all the best, Helen.