Minimalist Weekly Bullet Journal Spread (Hobonichi Weeks)
Why talk about setting a weekly bullet journal spread at the end of July? In the middle of the summer heat? And in the middle of the year? It is 2020, that is why! Nothing makes sense anymore. And that fact can open us to endless possibilities!
Summary
Hobonichi Weeks design
For the past 2 years, I have been using a planner line from a brand named Hobonichi. They are a lifestyle company from Japan, selling pens, journals, to bags and pouches. The one planner I am using today is a Hobonichi Weeks. The most significant benefit of this planner is because it comes with pre-printed designs on Tomoe Paper, perfect for lazy people like me.
“What is Tomoe Paper?” you asked. It is a particular type of paper made in Japan. The paper is thin, yet durable to ink and watercolors, though you can see some ghosting due to my writing pressure. Despite having 69 pages, my Hobonichi Weeks is very light and can be carried around in my pouch (at the time before COVID).
As you can see, everything in the planner is in Japanese, a language I am desperately learning and yet to make headway. Besides, the spread seems boring, with no bold colors. This did not bother me before, due to my crazy schedule at school. But now, since I am home all the time, I decided to use the free stickers from thenumber5.co to add more colors and English, so the planner appears less intimidating.
My current weekly bullet journal spread
As you can see above, I divide my Hobonichi Weeks into the left and right sides. The left side of the Weeks is dedicated to each day’s to-do list. With every day blurred together, having a small checklist to anchor my day is beneficial.
The right side is busier on purpose. The page splits into 3 blocks—each with its own purpose, quote of the week, events, and habit tracker. The quote of the week is on top of the page. It serves as my motivation to get better. I am frankly a perfectionist. Having a quote to live by is much easier to position me to get better while not beating myself up to it.
The most significant part of the page is for events. Despite being at home, I still have a variety of online events that are scheduled. The left column of the table has each date of the week. The activities are on the right, corresponding to the date by small dots. This setup allows me to visualize how much I have to go on in the week and how busy each day is.
Lastly, I also have a habit tracker on the bottom. The Hobonichi Weeks does come with a habit tracker. Still, I find it easier and more effective to track my progress in shorter periods. The table is a reverse from the Events table. My habits are the left column, and I check each day off on the right. By tracking my habits in shorter periods, I can be more flexible in which I choose to pursue, and which to ignore.
The habit tracker mainly has my mood and exercise sessions. It is amusing to look back to understand how I felt each passing day. I often get caught up in the heat of the moment and would not realize how lucky I have it. I strive to exercise for at least 4 days a week. Tracking them and knowing what I did in a day help with my planning for later. I want to know if which session is working and which is not. For more on how I structure my exercise session, check out my post earlier this month.
Summary
This is my weekly current bullet journal spread. I love having bold colors added to my day to stimulate creativity. I do not want to spend much time designing the spread. I find it hard to keep sticking to journaling if I have to add additional tasks to my day.
Overall, my weekly bullet journal spread is very minimalist. All of the spaces have purposes that serve my needs. With this chaotic time going on, it is assuring to have some normalcy. My Hobonichi Weeks planner has been a great reminder to improve and keep going.
