Debate: messy bujo vs aesthetic spreads, which actually works better for you?

I've been bullet journaling for about 4 years now, and I keep going back and forth between two styles. On one hand, I love scrolling through Instagram and seeing those perfect layouts with washi tape and calligraphy headers. They look so nice and feel motivating. But every time I try to maintain that level of polish, I get overwhelmed and stop journaling for like 2 months straight. My last attempt was in March, and I spent 2 hours setting up a gorgeous monthly spread with watercolors. Then on day 3, I spilled coffee on it and just abandoned the whole thing. On the flip side, my plain rapid-logging pages from last year where I just scribbled tasks and notes in a cheap notebook actually got used every single day. So which side are you on, the pretty spreads that maybe get abandoned or the messy functional system that actually works?

2 comments

2 Comments

walker.rowan11d agoMost Upvoted

There was a study I skimmed once about how making things "aesthetic" can actually lower your productivity because you're spending all your time on setup instead of the actual work. Sounds about right based on my experience with a fancy washi tape layout that took me an hour to make and then I never wrote in it again. The coffee spill story hits hard too - my cat walked across a half-finished watercolor spread and that was the end of that notebook. Messy and functional wins every time, even if it doesn't get Instagram likes. The pretty stuff is more about the hobby of decorating than the actual journaling.

amy69211d ago

Think about how this applies to so many things in life honestly. I notice the same pattern with people who buy fancy gym clothes vs people who just show up in old t-shirts. The aesthetic stuff feels good in the moment but the messy consistent habit is what actually gets results. My most functional bujo phase was just a spiral notebook with a pen I stole from work, no fussing over lettering or layouts. Pretty things are nice to look at but they can actually get in the way of doing the real thing.