Bullet journaling mistakes are discouraging and can lead to the discontinuation of your bullet journal. You might have made a mistake in your spread or you don’t have a purpose behind bullet journaling. Whatever it is, those mistakes can become hurdles in your journey.
However, you are in luck! Those mistakes don’t have to be the end of your bullet journaling career. There are ways to fix your mistakes and to get back the love you have for bullet journaling. It can be tough, especially at first, but to stop is the biggest mistake!
Not Feeling Dedicated
Bullet journaling isn’t something you can just do every once in a while. lf you don’t keep with it, you will likely not do it at all. It is more of an organizational tool than anything. When you don’t use an organizational tool regularly, how is it supposed to help you?
When it comes to bullet journaling, you need to stay dedicated. I won’t lie; It’s a hard hobby. Creating spreads is difficult. It takes time and effort to make a bullet journal work, which is exactly why you have to stay motivated. You won’t keep up with your bullet journaling if you do not dedicate yourself to getting it done.
How to Fix It: The best way to combat a lack of dedication is to find a reason why you want to bullet journal. Some people might have picked up bullet journaling simply because it looked fun or they enjoyed the idea of creating their own spreads. However, those aren’t great motivational factors.
Bullet journaling can stop becoming fun when you have no time or when the spreads don’t come out the way you want. If you truly want to stick with bullet journaling, you need to have a purpose behind it.
Some people bullet journal to track their habits while others like to have one place to write down all of their to-do lists. Whatever it is, you need to have a reason for bullet journaling. It makes it easier to stick with it in the long run.
Too Complicated
A common bullet journaling mistake is when you make your bullet journal too complicated.
I get it! You want to create all of those amazing spreads you see on Instagram but those spreads aren’t achievable for everyone. The people who created those spreads have years of practice. And those spreads probably took them hours to create. As much as you want to create those amazing pages, you might not be there yet. That’s okay!
When you try to create spreads that are too complicated for your skillset or for the amount of time you have, it can be a source of discouragement. You won’t want to continue bullet journaling if your spreads never work out.
How to Fix It: The simplest way to fix this problem would be to create spreads that are more your speed. I’m not saying you won’t one day create those pages you admire, but it will take some time. Give yourself some credit! You’ve already gotten this far. You need time to grow into your bullet journaling skill.
Simple spreads can be just as beautiful as the intricately designed ones. Try keeping your spreads simple at first. You can always start to add more detail as you go along.
Keep your head up, Darling! You’ll get there.
Copying Others
Similar to the mistake above, the spreads you see on Pinterest or Instagram aren’t always meant for you. There are plenty of bullet journalers out there sharing their spreads and how they use them. Yet, their spreads might not be applicable to you.
For example, I have tried a playlist spread before but I never added anything to it. I tend to stick with the same songs over years instead of finding new ones.
You might find a spread that looks amazing and sounds fun but that fundamentally doesn’t work for you. Copying others’ spreads just leads to discouragement when you don’t use them.
How to Fix It: To fix this mistake, you need to take some time to figure why it is you want to bullet journal and what you want to work on.
You are most likely going to try plenty of spreads that don’t end up working for you long-term. That’s okay! Keep trying!
You will find some spreads that work for you once you get to know yourself a little better. Other people’s spreads are designed for them and their needs. It’s your turn to figure out how to customize your journal for yourself.
Stopping After a Mistake
When it comes to motivation, a mistake can be one of the biggest bumps in the road. Everyone desperately wants their bullet journals to look beautiful and perfect. Sorry to say that no one’s journal is perfect.
I can’t tell you that you will never make mistakes. That is unrealistic. You will likely make hundreds of mistakes. What matters is how you deal with them.
A mistake is not a good reason to stop bullet journaling altogether.
How to Fix It: The only way to truly fix this mistake is to change your mindset. Your bullet journal doesn’t need to be perfect and neither do you. A mistake here and there only helps you to learn and grow. If you make a mistake, that’s okay. It doesn’t ruin the entire spread like you think it does. If you let the mistake ruin the spread, your bullet journal will stop working for you. Mistakes are inevitable but not destructive.
(Wite-out can also be a saviour. Bullet journaling mistakes be gone!)
Not Getting Back to It After a Break
Here’s where a lot of bullet journaling mistakes come to play. You might have stopped because you didn’t have the time, you made a mistake, or you had nothing to write. There are plenty of possible reasons. However, the biggest mistake is not trying again.
People are always saying that when you fall you need to get back up. The same goes for bullet journaling. However, when a lot of people stop bullet journaling, they never get back into it. They give up. Almost every bullet journaler has gone through a phase when they stopped journaling. The difference is that the bullet journalers you admire got back up.
How to Fix It: The answer to this is obvious. When you stop bullet journaling, you need to try, try again. No matter how many times you stop, you can always start again.
Bullet journaling is rewarding but only if you stick with it.
There you have it! The mistakes that bullet journalers make that stop their bullet journals from working for them. You might have stopped bullet journaling, made mistakes, aimed too high, or done something else, but your bullet journaling journey isn’t over. You can always start again! I hope you are able to get past your mistakes and work on how to fix them. Let me know in the comments the mistakes you’ve made while bullet journaling!
