Bullet Journalling on the Remarkable 2

Creating a Bullet Journal, also known as a Bujo, on the Remarkable 2 can be rewarding, relaxing, productive and simple.

What is a Bullet Journal

The bullet journal system was created by Ryder Carroll, a software designer, who wanted an analogue (think old school paper) way of organising his life.
It is brilliant in it’s simplicity and flexibility.

The bullet journal method is a way to record or log what’s happened, or thoughts, or note upcoming events and action items.
In reality, with a few cornerstone ideas you can make your bullet journal anything you want it to be.
A quick youtube of ‘bullet journal’ or ‘bujo’ and you will see what some people have come up with. Some are artistic on another level, though this is not by any means necessary.

You can buy a bullet journal (hard copy) direct from the creator or grab a dot journal diary or even just use a blank notebook.

The brilliance is in the index and future log.
Instead of mapping out 12 months, like a planner would do, you have an index that you fill out as you go (so quick navigation) and you use a future log (yearly and monthly) to note things that will come up, when you get to that month.

Then the system of a ‘key’ helps you to make the bullet journal functional. You can use > for pushing something forward or a cross for task done or whatever you like.
I highly recommend watching Ryder’s videos on how he does it. After all, he came up with the idea and has been perfecting it (at least what works for him).
I use a dot for a task, a line for an event, an arrow forward or back if I need to take further action and a tick for done among others.

Bullet Journal v Digital

Digital is great. You can set reminders or plan something for 5 months out. There are endless apps to journal or note to do items. Many sync up from one device to another. I use google calendar for my mowing business. It just doesn’t work using a paper planner or bullet journal for 70+ lawns (though I did start with a bujo).

On the other hand, digital can be distracting and hard to do deep thinking. Physically writing can be calming and even help you to remember/internalise what you are writing. With paper you think clearly, don’t get distracted and keep on task.

The problem with paper, is that you have to carry it around with you and if you make a mistake you can’t easily fix it (well you can just cross it out). If you have multiple bullet journals, do you bring them all with you or just your latest one.

Here’s where the Remarkable 2 brings the best of both together.

Bullet Journalling on the Remarkable 2

The Remarkable 2 can’t sync with other apps, or send you a reminder 15 minutes before the meeting, but it does solve two of the main problems with having a paper bullet journal.
The Remarkable 2 has all your notes, files and PDFs with you, so you most likely are going to bring it with you anyway. And it means you are not carrying something extra around with you. It’s just another file (notebook) on your device.
Add to that the ability to erase, select and copy and paste, means you can be free to write, draw, think deeply and still move your ‘heading’ around if you didn’t center it properly or delete with the eraser or even use the double tap option to undo.

The problem with the Remarkable 2 as a bullet journal however, is the inability to quickly navigate through your notebook when it gets large (think 50-100 pages or more). Though the swipe up from the bottom feature does help.
Also a small problem for me was the lightness (visibility) of the dot template built into the reMarkable 2.

That’s why I made the Dot Journal Template for the reMarkable 2.

Remarkable 2 Dot Journal Template

The solution for me, was to create a PDF template that had the right amount of dots, that were easy to see and create a way to quickly navigate the template.
So to quickly navigate I added a light and unobtrusive link to the ‘index’ page and a page that links to any page, just by tapping on the number.

My process is to log where things are located in the index, jump to the page-navigation page and quickly jump to the page that I’m after. Then if I need, I jump back to the index page or page-navigation page.

That means within just two taps, I can go from anywhere in the journal to anywhere else.

For me, this makes the bullet journal system even better.

It still feels analogue. I’m still writing and doing deep thinking. I’m still able to be flexible in how I do things. I’m not distracted like I am with my PC or Phone.
And now I don’t need to put up with messy pages or take forever to find things.

If you want to try out bullet journaling for yourself on the reMarkable 2, you can download our template here. We have a dark mode option and the normal white background option. Try it out for a couple of weeks and if you don’t like the template, I’ll refund the few dollars it costs.