Bullet Journaling for Musicians

 The Bullet Journal concept was created by a New York graphic designer.  It is a method of customising a reflective journal to fit your individual needs.  It’s a way to keep track of daily to-do lists and to track progress towards habits and goals.

Here’s a video from the creator. 

This post gives you and your students some suggestions for how to make it work for musicians. 

The best thing about the Bullet Journal is that you can make it your own.  I use my own modified version to track my writing projects and another version to track personal goals/habits.  I don’t like using other people’s systems for things, so while I take inspiration from the thousands of Bullet Journallers on the internet, I experimented with it until I found a system that worked best for me.

Once you get going it’s a very simple process.  You can make it as fancy or as utilitarian as you like.  Encourage your students to do whatever works for them.

What you’ll need:

A notebook.  A pen.  Pretty much that’s it.

What kind of notebook?

A lot of people seem to use the Leuchtturm (apparently pronounced LOISH-term) 1917 or a Moleskine journal.  Me?  I use one from the dollar store.

Do make sure the notebook is attractive to you, otherwise you’re not going to want to use it.

Depending on what kind of pen/s you use, you might want to think about the thickness of the paper, so the pens don’t bleed through.

Decide on whether you use lined/unlined/graph paper.  Graph paper is really good for creating tracking charts.

There are four main parts to the Bullet Journal system: (i) Index (ii) Year Log (iii) Month Log (iv) Daily Log.  It’s completely up to you how you structure your journal, but do use an index.  It’s invaluable.  Most people put theirs at the front of their journal, but if the back works for you, then do it.

Index:

I save the first two pages of my journal for the index.  You will eventually number the pages of your journal, so the index is where you will write a description of whatever’s on the respective page.  There are loads of ideas online for how to decorate this page.  Mine is pretty plain.

                                

Number the pages of your journal.  I usually number about 10 pages at a time, or just as I go.

You’ll add to the index as you keep going.

                                 

Yearly Log:

This is where you have an overview of your entire year.  Again, how you do this is up to you.  I like having a 2-page spread, with 6 squares on each page.  Each square represents one month.  In each month’s square, add any musical things you know you have e.g. performances, exams, competitions.  If you also include things like the school basketball tournament or your family trip to Australia, it gives you a better idea of your time and commitments.  Just set it up at the beginning of the year and fill it in as you go.  Don’t forget to note it in the index.

                                 

Some people do set aside a couple of pages here for goals/ideas that they want to explore, e.g. list of pieces you want to learn, recordings you love, everything you need to learn for your Grade 8 exam etc.

                                   

Monthly Log:

Set up a page with the dates of the month down the side of the page (days are also really useful too).

                                                      

Beside each date, note what you have on that day e.g. lesson, school assessment, English essay due, doctor’s appointment.  This gives you an idea of how much time you need to set aside for your practice routine, or if your routine might be disrupted by things like assignments/projects due, camps etc.  Also, this way, there are no surprises creeping up on you!

                                                       

An alternative/additional way of setting up your monthly log is a tracking chart.  I use this method to track my writing projects and personal habits.

                                   

I set this up at the end of the previous month, and it’s a really good visual way of seeing how I’m doing.  It takes two minutes to set up and about 30 seconds to fill in each night.

Remember to note this in the index.

                                      

Daily Log:

Most Bullet Journal users use this for their to-do lists, e.g. vloggers for when they’ll record and upload posts.  Here’s a way of structuring it for a musician.  At the top of the page, note the date and your goal for the practice session.

Leave a blank space in the middle for notes, questions, observations.  Jot these down as you practice so (a) you don’t interrupt the flow of your practice by stopping to google, or text your teacher, and (b) so you don’t forget them after you finish.

Then write the answers to these questions:

·         What went well?

·         What could I have done better?

                                                  

And that’s it.

Using this system doesn’t have to be onerous.  Customise it so it fits you and the way you operate.  Use as much or as little colours/decorations as you wish.  Write in inspirational quotes.  Or not.  Use it to keep track of notes or thoughts as you practice.  Add notes from books you read.  Create a listening log.  It’s totally up to you.

The best part?  Hand writing is slower (as opposed to using an app or other digital device), so you have more time to reflect on your playing.  And reflective players are better players.

There’s heaps of Bullet Journal inspiration online.  Try this site to get you started.

Just don’t go down the rabbit-hole of getting so excited about setting up your journal that you forget to actually practice!