January 2023 is just around the corner friends and my bullet journal is ready to take on the new year. I’m excited about this new beginning, the opportunity to start fresh after rejuvenating over winter break and taking the time to rest, recover, reflect and grow. The beginning of the year is always a special time and I wanted my journal to reflect my happy vibe with a celebratory setup.
I kept the setup simple with a vintage firework theme, and some very basic line drawing. I’m not a natural born artist so my bullet journal setups are always a cross between minimalist and aesthetic. I enjoy the balance between both concepts and how multiple facets of my personality can show up on the page.
Quote
“Approach the new year with resolve to find the opportunities in each new day”, a quote by Michael Josephson. Josephson is a former law professor turned ethics public speaker who has written extensively on the topics of ethics and humanity. In my search for a quote to begin the new year with positive insight I stumbled upon his words and felt that they were so suited towards my approach for 2023. Every day is brimming with the chance to make new discoveries, about myself and the world, that is the plan for this year.
Spreads
The beauty of the bullet journal system is the absolute joy you can find in conforming it to serve your needs for any given month. Needs will change from season to season, and it is fair to expect that the notebook that serves as your daily companion can adapt to that change.
For January 2023 my spreads are as follows:
- A Monthly Calendar – this will allow me to track events, appointments and upcoming tasks. Sort of like an overview of the month at a glance. In this spread I have also created a space for my monthly measurements and three major goals that I wish to accomplish in the month.
- To Do/Brain Dump/Corrently – this spread is designed to hold a running task list for the month where I can add in tasks as they come up, I can refer back to this section when I create my weekly spreads allocating tasks accordingly. The brain dump section is simply that, a place to dump my thoughts; I don’t know how often I will turn to this so I’ve kept it small. Finally the currently section is a space for me to note down anything that I currently enjoy or am experiencing; book that I’m reading, podcasts that I’m listening to, favourite meal etc.
- Monthly Check In – this is a concept that I learnt from Pick Up Limes, taking time at the beginning of the month to check in with my emotional, physical and spiritual self. In past journals I have loved seeing the transformation throughout the year and this spread has allowed me to build more insight into who I am as a person.
- Spending Tracker – this simple spread is pretty self explanatory and its a space for me to track down where my money goes throughout the month. I try to be diligent with this and note down every single expenditure so that I can have a genuine idea of things.
- Trackers – this month I decided to put all of my trackers together, everything related to health and fitness as well as habits and mood. I’m tracking my workouts, my water consumption, my sleep, my steps as well as various habits from reading to timely prayer. I would love to complete this spread and see how the tracker looks by the end of the month.
- Gratitude Log – this space is designed for a quick one line journal everyday where I can jot down anything that I am grateful for throughout the day. One of my favourite quotes in life is “everyday may not be a good day, but there is good in everyday” by Alice Morse Earle. a gratitude log is a great way to remember the good.
- Week One – finally my first weekly setup in my January spread is inspired by @simplebujos on Instagram. The setup covers everything from high priority to low priority tasks for the week, along with workout plan, meal plan, daily task list and events. On the right hand page I have created a menu section for my own meals as well as my kids school snacks. I loved how packed with information this spread is and I think that it will serve me well.
Final Thoughts
I love how beautifully this setup came together and how it required little effort on my part. I got my therapeutic scrapbooking aesthetic in, while giving myself the chance to relax and enjoy a past time that brings me so much joy, and laying aside the undue pressure that can come from overly elaborate and complicated spreads.
How many of these spreads will carry forward with me in the months of 2023 I do not know, but like I said at the beginning of this post, the beauty of a bullet journal is how it evolves with your needs. For now I’m happy and excited for the new year to begin.
Are you ready for 2023? More importantly is your planner and journaling system ready for the new year? Let me know!
Check out my YouTube channel with a full chit chat and flip through of these spreads and how they will help make my January better
Mums The Word 