Journaling: Future Log, It's NOT a Year-At-A-Glance

In my first post on journaling, I referenced the original basic system that Ryder Carroll developed. He listed four core sections to his system:

• Index/ Key
• Future Log
• Monthly Log
• Daily Log

Today, we are going to focus on the future log.

Have you ever forgotten a birthday or missed a doctor's appointment because you didn't have a place to write that information down? Do you constantly find yourself checking the website for your upcoming convention because you can't remember the dates? Are you going to remember that concert you bought the tickets for months in advance? If these are a concern for you, then you need this post.

After  researching and using bullet journals, and interacting with various bullet journal communities on social media, I feel that future logs are a little misunderstood. My original take on future logs was that they were yearly calendars with a fancy name. However, after watching Ryder Carroll's introductory video again, I realized that the future log is not a calendar. Yes, you list the months. But, unlike a calendar, you only list the dates of future, up-coming events that do not fit in the current monthly, weekly and/or daily spreads that you are working with.

That being said, I do not know why there is such confusion around them. They are the simplest spreads to create and maintain. I think that the lack of actual set dates is why people struggle with it. They would rather have a Year-At-A-Glance view, then a blank space that may or may not get filled with possible up-coming events.

Here I'm going to present Ryder's original future log concept, a Year-At-A-Glance (YAG) set-up and a monthly set up that could be used as a future log, if that is what you want.

1 Journal Future Log

This is a traditional future log. Because this future log was made specifically for this blog post and not something I actually use, I forgot to put in dates for the events. But, based on this layout, you get the general idea. Whenever you get a future event that is not in the current month, you put it in your future log with the date and time if you have it. What type of events??  You can log birthdays and parties, weddings, personal & business trips, vacations, due dates for major projects, medical appointments, oil changes, etc. The idea is that if you are not going to immediately schedule it in your daily, weekly or monthly spread, BUT it is important, put it in your future log.

I mentioned that I don't use this basic future log. Remember that I didn't grasp the simplicity of this basic layout until recently. I have managed to schedule my future events using a Year-At-A-Glance and monthly spread combination. Here is my first Year-At-A-Glance and one of my monthlies:

1st Journal Year At A Glance

1 Journal December Monthly

Together, they let me plan events for the future until I can actually schedule them into my journal.

There is one more Year-At-A-Glance/Monthly combo that I will be testing out in my Teacher Journal (stay tuned for the full reveal). Here is what they look like:

Teacher Journal Yearly August to January

Teacher Journal Yearly February to July

Teacher Journal August Monthly

Future logs are an invaluable way to keep track of important dates that you can't immediately schedule. Whether you choose the traditional future log set-up or a variation that works for you, this concept will keep you from missing that doctor's appointment or forgetting to send that birthday card. When does my oil need to be changed again? Just check your future log.

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