Lesson: 20 min
Page: 10 min

Day 1 is here!

The anticipation has been building over these last few weeks, and hopefully, everyone has had a chance to gather the supplies you need, peeked at the schedule for the week, and carved out a dedicated amount of time to devote to working in your journal.

Agenda for today

Dedicating time to the practice
Background on the principles
Magic of writing things down
The supplies
Create a KEY (Make it your own)

Dedicating time to the practice

I get asked a lot, “How much does this all take? It seems like a lot of work!” I laugh at this for a few reasons.

First, anything that is worth something is worth your time and dedication. Children aren’t raised in a day, it takes years to perfect a skill or a trade, so why wouldn’t time be a factor in this?
The amount of time is completely up to each individual. Everyone progresses through things differently, and the amount of time you spend in the beginning isn’t the amount you will spend in the end - you will get faster, find a rhythm and tools to make things move along for you.
Lastly, it’s your journey, you will decide how intricate your pages/lists will become. If you want to dedicate the least amount of time, then making very simple lists or pages, only putting quick thoughts or a few minutes into it will accomplish that. If you are creative (like me) you will add all the embellishments and turn your journal into a planner that looks like a scrapbook.

Hopefully, that helps. During each lesson, I will share the approximate time the layout will take so you know ahead of time.

—— TIP ——

Setting aside a 30-minute window each day at the same time helps to make the routine stick!

I find that first thing each morning works for me, as an example.

Background on the principles

Check out this video to learn about the principles, Magic of writing things down, and steps to create a quick key.

Create a KEY (Make it your own)

Here are just a few samples that I have curated and saved to my Pinterest board. They can be found in various social media apps like Pinterest, Instagram, and even found through Google searches. Find one that suits your taste or make one of your own.

Don’t forget… while we step through the setup day by day, this doesn’t mean you can’t start using your new journal. Read this blog post for how to do that without writing on a setup page :)

Leslie Grossman is the founder of Stitches By Leslie, Inc. and the creator of the patent pending Journal Mate. For more information, reach out!

Day 1 - Overview & defining your KEY