Setting Up a New Bullet Journal | Mid-Year Setup

This post was originally going to be a combination post of new bullet journal setup and the August Plan with Me post, but yikes, this was too long for one blog post. Here’s the new bullet journal setup:

Since I am starting a new bullet journal this month, I wanted to share with you my new bullet journal spreads that I will use through the remainder of 2020.

For this journal, I decided to use the Artist Loft journal again, which is the same exact one that I just finished. I picked this one because I had previously intended on using it for all of 2020 but I went too far ahead of myself and gave up on it before the year even started.

I had planned a future log, monthlies, weeklies and dailies for January 1st-February 23rd, 2020, and then decided I wanted to try something else. Planning too far ahead was one of the main reasons why I struggled with sticking to bujo a few years ago. The pages are now scrap paper and then remaining empty pages should hold me over for the rest of the year.

Here are my spreads that I will take through the rest of 2020:

“Quote” Page 

It’s not exactly a quote, but with everything that has gone on this year, I thought it was fitting. “The rest of 2020” shows that this is the start of the actual bullet journal and away from the planner mess that was before. And with the whole COVID pandemic taking up the first half of my year, I decided to add the “I hope this is better than the 1st part.”

Key

The key is one of the most important spreads for anyone just starting out with bujo or who wants to refresh themselves on what their key looks like. My system follows Ryder Carroll’s system very closely. I think the only thing I add is a countdown tracker which I added to know how many days I have before a big assignment is due, like an essay or project. I started this while taking one of my music history courses because my professor would let us know how many days we had until an essay was due and I started keeping track in my bujo. If you know your system well, you don’t have to include it, but I always like to have it there as a reference.

Future Log

This 4 page spread is one of the best spreads for me because it lets you record things that are happening in the next 12 months but that need a place to go until it can go into a monthly log. Since I do not plan the next month until anywhere from one week to one day before, I need a place to write down important dates such as doctor’s appointments, essays, tests, etc. so I do not forget them. I prefer a vertical layout over the horizontal one that the Ryder Carroll recommends because it gives more space to write down events, something that works well during the school year because I am able to write down important dates from the syllabi into my future log, giving me a good overview of what my semester is going to look like.

Hours

This one is just a list of local places on and off campus at BW that I wanted to make a note of. This includes places like the conservatory, library, gym, yoga studios, churches and other places of notable interest to me. When scheduling my day using the calendar blocking system, I often need to look up the hours for certain places so I know the time frame that I can schedule certain events like the gym, grocery shopping and how early I can schedule practice time.

Birthdays at a Glance

I am terrible at remembering birthdays, I used to try to go on Facebook and post everyday when someone had a birthday. That didn’t really work out and I feel terrible when I last minute send a happy birthday to someone. This is why I decided to make a future log inspired spread to note all the birthdays.

Grid Spacing Cheat Sheet

This spread was inspired by Plant Based Bride’s grid spacing cheat sheet that she makes at the beginning of her journals. This spread makes it easy for making future spreads because it helps you determine the spacing for halves, thirds and quarters in the horizontal and vertical directions. I recommend checking out Elizabeth’s video, she does a great job showing and explaining how she does this. It is definitely a great spread to have on hand whenever you’re setting up a new spread!

Bookshelf

This is a very minimalistic bookshelf, and I love how easy it is to make. I am hoping to transfer the books over from the last journal and see how many books I can read (or listen to!) in 2020. Over the past year, I have been listening to audiobooks and they have really gotten me back into reading books, even if they are being read to me! 

Subscriptions

Recently, I have realized that I needed to keep track of my subscriptions so I know where my money is going. This is especially helpful for those subscriptions where they only renew once a year, which usually surprises me when they pop up. 

This spread is very minimal, with a column for monthly and a column for yearly. I can then list out the service, the amount per month or per year, and when it renews or expires (in the yearly column).

Budget

This spread is still in the “to be determined” phase. Since most of this spread is going to be used during my fall semester, I wanted to wait until I’m settled in at school to determine my budget. With so much uncertainty at this time with school and work, I am not sure what my income is going to look like for this semester. I am hoping that by the time that classes start, I will know how I am going to budget my money.

I will post on my Instagram story towards the end of August for an update on how I create this spread.

Cleaning

This spread is also partially in the “to be determined” phase. On the left is more of a brain dump page where I can put down things that need to get done by room. The next page is the cleaning routine page which I have not started yet because I am waiting to fill it in when I get back to school. Since I have a roommate this year, I will not have to complete all of the chores on the brain dump page. I will wait until I move in to determine what I need to get done and when. 

Also, I included in the misc section: “find stuff I don’t need.” This is because I want to occasionally reassess what I am actually using and get rid of the stuff I do not actually need. I am hoping to identify, collect and donate or sell the items that do not “spark joy” so that I can limit the amount of items I have and at the end of the year, take home the items I actually feel like I need to have.

Meal Prep Ideas

This is the final spread, and it is more of a brain dump page for my favorite meals and recipes. This is mostly an inspiration spread for those days where I do not feel like cooking and I just want to order take out.

I hope you enjoyed my “yearly” bullet journal spreads! Before we know it, it will be 2021 and time for another “yearly” set up so let me know in the comments what are some things you would want to see in my next bujo setup.