Bullet Journal Terminology

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Every word you ever wanted to know concerning Bullet Journaling. If you want to put this list to use, I have a 5 minute Bullet Journal post that will get you using this terminology in just 5 minutes!

  • Migrate forward to next daily log

< – Migrate Backward to monthly or future log

/ – Thread, used to show the continuing page e.g. “55/” (Continues page 55)

2 Bookmarks – This refers to a notebook with 2 ribbons for bookmarking

Alastair Method – A method for Future Logs and Todo Lists created by Alastair Johnston

Blank paper – Notebooks with blank paper have no lines, squares or dots.

Bleeding – When ink seeps through the paper and can be seen on the other side

Brain Dump – The act of writing ever idea that comes into your mind onto the page

Bujo – A shorthand term meaning Bullet Journal

Bullet – A dot, used to denote an incomplete task

Calendar – Usually laid out by days and months, a simple calendar can be made with only the days of the month listed on a page

Checklist – A list of tasks, projects, goals or events that can be checked off one by one when complete

Circle – An O, used to denote an event

Collection – A spread on a topic other than the basic logs, e.g. habit trackers, travel plans, project brainstorming etc.

Cover Page – The first page of a journal, part of a journal or collection, usually contains a heading and decorative elements

Cross – A cross X, used to denote a complete task

Daily Log – Tasks, events and notes along with anything else can be written in tis log which refers to this day only

Dash – Used to denote a note

Dashboard – A collection that shows all the information you need at a glance (tasks, goals, habits, appointments etc)

Dotted Paper – Paper with dots instead of lines, this makes drawing easier

Dream Log – A place to record your dreams before you forget them

Dutch Door – A small page that can be turned within another spread

Event – Something that has or will happen, denoted with a O

Feathering – When your ink spreads out a little as it is soaked into the paper

Future Log – A 12 month spread, usually over 4 pages for loggin future events/tasks

Ghosting – When your ink can be seen through the page

Goals – A list of your goals, things you want to achieve

Goal Tracker – A collection to help track your progress toward a goal

Graph Paper – Paper with a grid instead of lines or dots

Gratitude Log – A place to write what you are grateful for

Grocery Log – A list of grocery items, a shopping list

GSM – Grams per Square Meter, a measure of paper quality (higher is usually better)

Habit Tracker – Track your consistency with a new (or old) habit. “You can’t improve what you don’t measure”

Health Tracker – Track some factor of healthy living, such as hydration, fruit & veg intake, cardio etc.

Index – An index of everything in your notebook, consisting on spread name and page number

Key – A list of symbols used in bullet journaling, usually written in the start of a journal

Leuchtturm1917 – A brand of notebook, they also make the officially licensed Bullet Journal

Lined Paper – Paper with horizontal lines, this is the most common paperstyle in notebooks

Log – A place to put tasks, events or notes

Meal Tracker – A way to record your meals, perhaps to see correlation with energy/stress/discomfort levels

Memory Log – A place for your most important memories

Migration – Moving incomplete actions from the daily log to the future, monthly or tomorrow’s daily log

Mind Map – Brainstorm using a mindmap to let your mind make connections between ideas

Moleskin – A high quality brand of notebook

Money Tracker – A place to track spending/savings

Monthly Log – A spread with a calendar of the month and an associated task list

Mood Tracker – Record your mood, use in conjuction with other trackers to see what effects your mood most

Nesting – Creating an embedded list, a list within a list

Note – A non actionable item such as what you ate for lunch, denoted with a dash –

Pain Log – Tracking pain over a long period can be useful in rehabilitation, use it in conjunction with other trackers to see whats increasing your pain

PAPERIDEAS – A less expensive brand of notebook

Penmanship – Writing in an aesthetically pleasing way

Pocket – Some notebooks have a pocket, usually located inside the back cover

Rapid Logging – Logging events, tasks or notes as the happen in the daily log

Ryder Carroll – The creator of the Bullet Journal and author of The Bullet Jounal Method & bulletjournal.com

Spread – A spread describes the content of any two open pages

Stickers – Use stickers as a quick and easy way to interact with your bullet journal or just for fun

STM – Scribbles That Matter, a brand of notebook often used for bullet journaling

Theme – A consistent style of decoration that runs through your bullet journal (or a part of it)

Threading – The act of using a / to denote the continuing page

Tracker – A spread to track the progress of something, including:

Travel Tracker – Track the places yo9u have visited with a tracker like this

Traveler’s Notebook – A brand of notebook used for bullet journaling

Washi Tape – Easily removable tape, add it to pages as a book mark or just for asthetics

Weekly Log – A seven day spread to plan the week with

Weight Loss Tracker – Track your weight over time with a weight loss tracker