Talked to a librarian about my messy weekly spreads and it kinda wrecked me

So I was at the downtown branch last Tuesday picking up a hold and this librarian noticed me doodling in my bujo while waiting. She asked if I did rapid logging or full art journaling and I said somewhere in between but mostly chaotic. She laughed and told me she uses a single thin notebook with no colors or stickers and just dates everything down the page. She said the whole point is to not let the system become the work itself. I sat there holding my $35 notebook with all these failed layouts and realized I had been spending more time making it pretty than actually tracking anything useful. Has anyone else had someone totally outside the bujo world say something that made you rethink how you do yours?

2 comments

2 Comments

eva_hayes15d ago

Haven't you ever had that moment where someone says something so simple it just cuts through all the noise? I was at a coffee shop years ago and this older gentleman saw me flipping through my planner with all its little drawings and color coded sections. He just shook his head and said "I use a pocket calendar from the drugstore with a single pen. If it takes more than ten seconds to write something down, you're doing it wrong." I sat there thinking about the hours I spent making headers and borders that nobody would ever see. He was right in a way but I still like the pretty stuff, just not as much anymore.

angela_kelly14d agoProlific Poster

That guy would probably have a heart attack if he saw my phone with like 47 partially filled notes apps and a calendar that looks like a conspiracy theory board. Ten seconds to write something down? I spend ten seconds just deciding which shade of blue highlighter matches my mood that day. Honestly though he's not wrong about the shopping lists, I once spent twenty minutes making a grocery list with little drawings of avocados and titled it "journey to the market" like it was a novel. But you know what, I still do it because it makes me feel like I've got my life together even if I'm just buying cheese.

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