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5 Bullet Journal Ideas For Your “Must Have” Pages

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There are SO many different Bullet Journal page ideas out there. SO. MANY. When I started my BuJo, it was overwhelming to find out how many there were. I, of course, wanted to do them all! You can only imagine how many I tried to do at once.

As you may be guessing, this leads to two things: First, I ran out of pages in my first journal in a measly 3 months. Second, I spent WAY too much time doing pages, which resulted in complete burnout when my Bullet Journal became a chore more than a productivity tool.

That’s why I have made some changes in my approach. I decided to take it slower and chose the pages I wanted to do more carefully.

I know I’m not alone in this struggle, so I want to share with you what I think are 5 essential pages to have in your Bullet Journal.

There are a lot of pages we have already covered in my Bullet Journaling for beginners series. The list is simply too long to post here, so be sure to check the end of the post for more ideas.

The problem is that this has a negative side as well – when you start, and you have all these options, and you are given a chance to do anything you want, it’s very difficult to decide which one to choose or even where to start.

This certainly happened to me, and pretty soon, it was obvious that the less is actually better. Having ALL the pages in the world really takes away from the main purpose of Bullet Journaling, which is to be organized and productive.

Don’t get me wrong, I still love to experiment, and I have lots of fun with different collections and other creative pages. But after 4 journals, I think I finally cracked down on which pages are essential BuJo core and can be called must-haves.

I don’t mean, by the way, the usual pages like a future log or weekly spreads. No, the pages I want you to pay attention to now are a bit more personal, and maybe they aren’t something you’ve tried before, but they definitely should!

Oh, and be sure to scroll until the end to get FREE printables to help you start using these pages and more!

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Stationery Recommendations

Before we look into different pages, let’s talk supplies, since you’ll need some to create those in your Bullet Journal.

Of course, you can use whatever supplies you already have. But if you want to add something special to your stationery collection, here are some of my recommendations:

  • Fineliners. A good set of fineliners is a total must-have. It allows you to create any type of Bullet Journal page, and having a set of pens with different nib sizes will help you add more variety. My go-to are Sakura Pigma Micron pens.
  • Markers. I always recommend Crayola Super Tips, since they are pretty affordable and come in so many different colors. But my personal favorites are Zebra Mildliners since I absolutely love the colors.
  • Brush pens. These are great for adding color to your pages, but also for brush lettering and creating beautiful headers. Tombow Dual Brush Pens are some of the best, and they come in so many different colors!
  • Small Tip Brush Pens. I think these are a must-have since they are so multi-functional! You can use them to add little brush lettering accents to your pages, add headers, and draw. I would recommend you get a set of Tombow Fude Brush Pens.
  • Stencils. Stencils are a great way to speed up your Bullet Journal setup process, and there are stencils for both creating practical elements of your pages, as well as decorative elements. I love this set of Bullet Journal stencils from Etsy, but if you’re looking for a more budget option, you could check these stencils from Amazon.
  • Photo printer. This is really an extra item, but I wanted to add a recommendation here since photos are great for pages like memory-keeping pages, monthly reviews, and gratitude logs. I love and use HP Sprocket.

With all the supplies ready, time to look into a few page ideas to use in your Bullet Journal.

Must-Have Bullet Journal Page Ideas

I’m glad to see you decided to read through these pages, and these are absolutely my favorite ones that had a huge impact on my life and how productive and happy I was.

However, here is the important part – you might not need all of these, or maybe even none of these might be a good idea for you.

Every time you sit down to think about how to use your journal – think of something you need help with and go from these.

That being said, I’m sure some of these will be a good fit for you, so let’s get into it!

Annual Goals

Hands down, this are the most impactful spread in my Bullet Journal.

I started my BuJo to get myself together, to become more organized, and to start living to my full potential, and none of that would’ve been possible without a goals page.

Bullet Journal Icons & How To Use Them To Increase Productivity: In Goals Page | Masha Plans

I like to make my annual goals very visual, so I usually go with a mindmap, where I first choose areas I want to work on and then get into specifics on what I want to achieve in each one.

I also like to go a little goals audit with my Level 10 Life spread, which, in essence, is also a list of annual goals since I personally do it just once a year.

This is also a fun way to have a little check on where you’re developing and how it’s all going.

The important thing about annual goals is to keep them flexible. During the year, a lot of things can happen, and sometimes your goals might change.

There is no reason to keep working on something if it isn’t what you want anymore. Treat your annual goals as a general direction of your life.

In the video below, you can hear me talk a bit more about the goals page and watch setting up the more detailed kind of goals spread.

Monthly Review

A monthly review is really a must-have page in your Bullet Journal.

By taking a moment to flip through your last month and think back on how it went, you might be able to get some powerful insights that will, in turn, help you make adjustments to your life and improve it.

Maybe you worked too much and realized you’re actually pretty tired, or maybe the month flew by, and you didn’t call your mom. Note this all and make the changes.

Moreover, why not use your monthly review to audit the pages you had?

I did that when I was just starting. Take a look at which pages worked, which ones didn’t, and what you might have missed. This is very useful when you’re building your own planning system.

If you’re still in doubt, be sure to check my detailed post on why you need a monthly review and how to use it the best, including tons of ideas on what you can include there, which you can find at the end of this post.

For my monthly reviews, every month, I answer the same 6 questions: what did I do to further my goals? What’s the general monthly outcome? What events took place? What made me happy? What lessons did I learn? What am I grateful for this month?

You can check out the video below to see how I set up my monthly review for October in the Blackout Book.

Memory Keeping Page

My favorite pages to make and definitely the ones I love to look back on the most.

Ever since I started doing memory pages, I realized how much we actually forget. Every time I look back at these I’m surprised at the good of times I actually had because in my mind, they are completely different.

After all, in a way, your Bullet Journal is your very own Autobiography. Why not keep our best and happiest memories there as well?

They’ll really bring you so much joy and make you so grateful when you revisit them and discover experiences you had forgotten.

For my memories pages, I like to do a combination of doodles and some text. How would you approach creating your memories page?

A great way is also to add some pictures. I personally use my HP Sprocket printer to do that, since it already prints out your photos on sticky paper.

Just check the video below to see me setting up my October Memories Page.

Brain Dump

Brain Dump is definitely one of the most useful pages in my Bullet Journal.

It helps you to offload all your worries and feel less overwhelmed, no matter how busy life gets.

This is a super easy page where you dump all your tasks, to-dos, and anything else that might burden your mind. Just start writing everything that comes to your mind, and don’t stop until it’s all done.

It’s not on your to-do list for today or even for this month. It’s your reference point – all the things you need to think of or do. I love this exercise because it helps me to unload my head, so I don’t have to be thinking about all the things I have to do all the time, and instead, I can use this energy to complete them.

I always go extremely minimalistic with this one, since it’s more about filling it out with the content. It’s also not something I do every month, but whenever I feel overwhelmed or lost in all the things happening.

Gratitude Log

This is a great spread for mental health and generally for a happier life.

Making an effort every day to find something to be grateful for is a very powerful practice.

This spread will help you to recognize and be actively grateful for a lot of little things you’ve been blessed with but took for granted.

You’ll be happier, and more mindful, and that will definitely reflect in a positive way on your relationships with people around you.

That’s what the gratitude log did for me, and that’s why I stuck with it.

You won’t see it on my latest BuJo setups, though, because I moved it to my separate diary, where I do my Miracle Morning journaling. But it’s always with me.

This page is usually pretty easy to set up. Since the main point is in filling out the page with text, it really only need a header.

But, of course, i needed more, as you can see from the images above! And you can check my video below for a doodly examle of the gratitude log.

How To Find Your Own Bullet Journal Essential Pages

These are 5 essential spreads that I’m sure you’ll find useful as well. But we are all different people and you might need your own different set of spreads.

First of all – think about the purpose of your Bullet Journal: Do you need to be productive? Or maybe take better care of your health? Maybe you just want to be more mindful? Knowing your “why” is always the first step to creating your own perfect system.

Second – keep experimenting! Try out different pages and see how they work out for you. Don’t try them all at once, but add one page and see how it worked during your monthly review.

Most importantly – don’t forget to have fun with it! Your Bullet Journal is your little happy place as much as it is your organization tool. Don’t feel obliged to limit yourself to just one thing, play around with it as much as you want.

Free Bullet Journal Printables

You can start using a t of these pages right away if you use some FREE printables already in the Resources Vault.

If you don’t have access yet, you can always sign up in the form below.

Once you confirm your subscription, you’ll get the password to get 50+ free Bullet Journal printables, stickers, and worksheets to use right away.

If you’ve never used printables before, be sure to check my post How To Use Printables In Your Bullet Journal.

It’s pretty basic, and you can find all the supplies you need in my post Supplies For Using Bullet Journal Printables.

More Resources

Are you looking for some more ideas or information for some of the pages we’ve discussed in this post? I’ve got you covered.

Check out these posts next:

>>> What pages do you consider essential for your Bullet Journal? Let us know in the comments!

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And remember: Keep Bullet Journaling, and Don’t Be A Blob!

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4 Comments

  1. I enjoy reading these helpful ideas, but I am still having trouble getting the photos to open. Perhaps there are so many ads that it slows it down. Perhaps it is my internet speed.

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