I’ve always been one of those people who has to write everything down; that need has become even more vital since I became a mom and all my brain cells were sucked, zapped and fried out of me. So when I thought of a blog post I wanted to write, I jotted down a note in a to do list notebook.
I got more ideas. And more ideas. And soon enough, my ideas were so cluttered that the blog post list wasn’t helpful. The disorganization took a toll on my productivity.
When I actually had a chunk of time to write a blog post, I didn’t know where to start. I’d sift through messy list of ideas or click on the many drafts in my WordPress dashboard to figure out what I needed to do to complete a post.
By the time I actually got to work, I’d have wasted a half-hour. Busy moms and bloggers feel me: We do not have a spare half-hour to waste.
So when I started bullet journaling a few months back, I knew I wanted to keep track of my blog posts: ideas for future posts, posts in progress and scheduled posts. (Don’t know what I’m talking about? Read this beginner’s guide to bullet journaling. You might get hooked, too!) So I started to organize my blog with a bullet journal spread.
Voila: my BuJo blog post page.
How to organize your bullet journal blog post page
Here’s how I organize it. I make columns for each of the following:
- topic
- words (have I written it yet?)
- SEO (have I filled in keywords, metadata, etc.?)
- images (have I taken or sourced photos?)
- pin (have I made an image for Pinterest?)
- Twitter (have I made an image for Twitter and scheduled a tweet?)
- date (when is the post scheduled?)
These are the categories that work for me. Depending on your blog or your process, you may have different columns—one for Instagram, say, or posting to link-up parties.
How I use my bullet journal blog post page
As blog post ideas come to me, I jot them down on my BuJo blog post spread. I don’t need a long description or full post title; a few keywords is enough to jog my memory. I feel better knowing that I won’t simply forget about an idea I had—they’re all in one place.
What’s more, I have a ready list of inspiration when it’s time to write. So instead of sitting down to brainstorm a handful of post ideas, I can jump right into writing for my blog.
Then as I accomplish each of the components of a complete blog post, I fill in the little rectangle (with pretty colors, of course!).
Now I know—at a glance—what needs to be done before any given post is ready to go live.
That’s a little different than my previous “system.” (Air quotes!)
BuJo for blogging productivity
Since starting to organize my blog with a bullet journal, I’m much more productive with the limited time I have to blog.
- I don’t waste time thinking of what to write when I have some uninterrupted time: The list is ready with plenty of ideas.
- I don’t lost posts in my WordPress drafts queue. Instead of letting a half-written post languish, or never posting a story because I don’t yet have a pin for it, my works in progress are always visible on my BuJo spread.
- I can take care of low-hanging fruit. By glancing at my bullet journal page, I can see which posts are almost ready to publish. Then I can bust out a series of pins or batch schedule a ton of tweets and—just like that—a bunch of posts are ready to go.
Then I feel the productivity rain down.
Do you have a way of tracking your works in progress, your blog posts or your day in general? Please let me know!
That is ONE impressive journal! I’m a pen to paper person too when it comes to calendars, dates and to-do lists. I just can’t give it up.
Perhaps, though it has its fair share of cross-outs and water smudges and false starts! Also, long live pen and paper!!!!
Love this! You have super neat handwriting! I love the colors that you use in your bullet journal. I know some people like black and white only for theirs, but I am so visual I need the color distinctions in my lists. I have large notepad sticky notes and I use individual stickeys with bullet journal-style lists for each sponsored post that I then stick above my computer… and I have a separate section in my journal for keeping track of them in more detail, too. I’m a nut: I have to write things down three times 🙂
I juggle so many things—family, professional freelancing, a long-term contract gig and my blog—that I go insane without writing everything down. I think it’s a mark of busy, multitasking women today! As for the color, most of mine is black and white with little hits of color, but I, too, get bored if it’s all monochrome. I’d *love* to see the details of your system, Marlynn!
I’ve not yet heard of bullet journaling, but it sounds like a great concept. I may have to pick up a fun journal, bright pens and make my organizing a whole lot more fun! Thanks for giving us a sneak peek into yours!
The fun of my beautiful pens is definitely a motivator to stay organized! Join us! 😉
Wow. I’ve never heard of a bullet journal, but I also have to have things written out in paper. I actually just bought a notebook like that yesterday without knowing what I was going to do with it and I’m totally going to try this out. I need a better way to organize my thoughts and ideas and this seems up my alley! It reminds me of when I was in college and color coded all of my thoughts and notes 😉
I’m that kind of a thinker too!
Color coding is the greatest! It really helps to have boring and sometimes stressful things written in cheerful colors. Let me know if you try out bullet journaling!
I love this concept! I don’t do as much promotion as you (yet!) but I definitely have a haphazard though/creation process that could use some structure like this. Thanks for the tip!
The structure is super helpful for me. And it’s so satisfying to color in those little boxes! 🙂
How do you manage future meetings etc? I love this idea but my diary fills up months in advance so creating spreads a week at a time seems limiting. Do you manage this through a larger future log?
Great question, Vicki! I usually have a section of “do not forget” where I jot down reminders for the future. Many other bullet journal junkies have the current and next month calendar on a page so you can see the whole month at a time and jump to scheduling things in the next month, too.
You have inspired me, a life organizer (!), to go through my manila file folder of blog ideas to see how I might reignite and re-organize future writing urges…
So glad the post was helpful, Deb!!! I find that when I look back over old ideas and inspirations, I can see how some ideas can merge and some need more room to breathe. I hope the re-organization continues to help!
oh Catherine, you have opened my eyes to a new and wonderful way to stay organized! A little more reading on the topic and I found this post that offers some additional tips for successful bullet journaling: http://www.thelazygeniuscollective.com/blog/how-to-bullet-journal
Thank you for writing about your bullet journaling experience!
I may have to try this one for 2018
I hope it works for you too! It really has helped a ton. Let me know how it goes!