The Bullet Journal Method Ryder Carroll
Questions for outcome reading
What are the limitations for bullet journalling?
How can it help bring change & focus in my life?
How do you get the most from it?
What are the assumptions when bullet journalling?
What are five really useful techniques for me to achieve my goals?
Which techniques are quite different or new to how I currently do things?
How do I manage my bad habits?
GOAL
Identify key techniques in bullet journaling that will be useful for me
Leap words :
Fusion of philosophies
Valuable resources
Intentionality
Appreciate fruits of your labour
Artificial constructs
Decluttering your mind
The system
Subtasks
Events
Let it sink in
Migration
Weed out distractions
Migrating mental inventory
Reflection
Know thyself
Reactivity
Choice, agency, purpose
Radiance
Break sprint
Functionality
Sustainability
Small steps
Impact bias
Intentionality
The System
BuJo = way to champion intentions & keep you organised
Regular habit introspection
Define what’s important
Why it’s important
Figure out how to best pursue
Reminded of these insights each day
Power of mind to direct itself toward that which it finds meaningful
Worked hard on something to discover it leaves you feeling empty
Steady cultivation of self-awareness
Keeping your actions aligned with your beliefs
Mental Inventory
Decluttering your mind
3 columns
1) Things presently working on
2) Things should be working on
3) Things would like to be working on
Dig deep. Get it out of your head and your heart
The Test
Does this matter to you (or someone you love)?
Is it vital?
What would happen if this didn’t get done, ever? Would there be any real repercussions?
Any item that doesn’t pass the test is just a distraction
Be ruthless
Left with...
Things you need to do
Things you want to do
Task List
Journal
Planner
Rapid Logging
Collections
Migration
Monthly Migration
Review state of last months tasks
Ask why each task might still be incomplete
Does it matter?
Is it vital?
What would happen if you didn’t do it?
If it is irrelevant, get rid of it
Enjoy feeling of reclaiming time
If still relevant migrate to next month
Monthly tasks
Custom collection
Future log
Taxes, job, rent, etc
Migrate mental inventory
Decide what things want to work on for next month
Ensure everything listed is worth the time & energy it will take to rewrite it!
Filter out meaningful from meaningless
The Practice
Action
Belief
Better > Perfect
The obstacle is the way
Reflection
Daily reflection of daily log
Active introspection
Morning
Time to plan
Afternoon / evening
Time to review
Monthly & yearly reflection
Through migration
Meaning
Impact bias
Chronically underestimate our ability to adapt
As we race towards our goals we learn new things & our circumstances change
The harder we try to be happy the more elusive happiness becomes
A tale of two lives
The well worn path
The path less travelled
Take 15 mins, write obituary for each path
Postmortem
Write letter
Select the life you liked best
Identify accomplishments most proud of
Migrate in Goals collection
What excited you?
What realisations, emotions, questions, positives or negatives came up?
What saddened or scared you?
Goals
Break down goals into Sprints
Sprint requirements
Fixed relatively short time-frame for completion
Goals
Sprints
Tasks
No barriers preventing start
Keep Sprints focused, actionable & manageable
Brainstorm What & Why of Goals
What about this goal sparked my curiosity?
What motivated me to invest my time & energy here?
What am i trying to accomplish?
What will it require?
What is my definition of success with this goal?
Plan sprints into calendar
Will then have better idea of goals requirements, scope, milestones & why it's important to you
Lock in time to work through Tasks
Longer goal takes to accomplish, more it taxes your motivation
Sprint projects reduce the load
Daily Reflection after each Sprint
What am I learning about my strenghs, my weaknesses?
What's working, what isn't?
Small Steps
Ask small questions
Actionable steps, or Tasks
why do I want to do it?
What small thing can I do right now to get started?
What do I want to do?
Also suitable for standstill in project
What small step can I take now to move this forward?
What could I improve now?
When run into issues
What exactly did not work?
Why did it not work?
What small thing can I improve next time?
Iteration
Plan
Do
Check
Act
Better day
What tiny thing could I do tomorrow that would make my life a little bit better?
Beginning
Daily log to capture thoughts
tendency to overestimate intensity of future feeling states
Clearly defined actionable tasks
Create tasks through the lens of curiosity rather than giving yourself commands or ultimatums
Time
Gratitude
Control
Radiance
Endurance
Deconstruction
Inertia
Imperfection
5, 4, 3, 2, 1
5 years
4 months
3 weeks
2 days
1 hour
Defining amount of time & energy (perseverance and passion) your goals require
Timeboxing
Awareness of the things that make life more enjoyable
Responding vs Reacting
Nature of our radiance is a reflection of what is going on inside
Manage process to complete tasks
Identify what is outside of our control & letting go, we can reclaim our attention & reinvest into things that are important
Daily Log & Gratitude Log = evidence to contrary of faults & criticism
Radiance is a 2-way street
Who you surround yourself with will shape you
What is impact of those who you spend time with?
What am I learning?
What lesson have they taught me, or inspired me to learn?
What do I want to know more about? How will I go about learning it?
What
Why
How
Context helps us understand how some unpleasant or painful responsibilities actually benefit us
Clarity Log
Challenge
Purpose
Observant patience
5 Whys
Tasks completed = successful blow landed in the battle with your dragon
Rubber Ducking
Write a letter to "Dear Duck"
Your problem
What's not working
Why it isn't working
What you've tried
What you have not yet tried
What you want to happen
Importance is to get it out of your head
Break Sprints
Self-contained micro-projects
Purpose of helping your mind get unstuck
Rules
Unrelated to problem /project that is troubling you
Have a defined end (clear beginning, and middle too)
Exposed to something new, used your mind in a different way, have thoughts you would have not had otherwise
Regain some purpose, disengage your mind by focusing on something else
Take 2 weeks or less to complete
The Art
Custom Collections
Examine your motivations
Sources
Goals
Challenges
Tasks
Brainstorm
5 Why
Sustainability
Ensure maintaining a collection doesnt feel like chore
Learning what you're curious about & naturally gravitate towards
Evaluating collections during migrations quickly reveals kind f things that hold your attention & what you struggle with