Alexander L. Belikoff reviewed Bullet Journal Method by Ryder Carroll
Review of 'Bullet Journal Method' on 'Goodreads'
2 stars
(This review is more about the book rather than about the system, which is a completely different topic).
Writing a successful book about productivity system, you are allowed to wax philosophical, musing about things like mindfulness, purpose, and The Zone. But you also must be precise in describing the how and the why - especially with a system that is idiosyncratic - something it took you years to tailor to your specific needs. And this is where I think this book falls short.
The Author's writing style is uplifting and engaging but it constantly veers into long philosophical asides about human nature, life and everything in between. The principles of the BuJo system are presented in a pretty free-form if not haphazard fashion, without much system (no pun intended), very few examples and, honestly, not very convincingly. At the end of the day, I found myself simply not very engaged. Where many other productivity system canons make you want to drop the book and jump into implementing it (and then of course to follow it religiously for 3 days, then less rigorously, then declare it a failure in 2 weeks and finally to move on), this book made me yawn and question what the fuss was all about - after all, this is just an idiosyncratic marriage of a to-do list and a journal.
Maybe it's old silly me or maybe the author just doesn't do justice to an otherwise great personal organization system, but I failed to see the light. If I might offer an advice to the Author: provide more worked examples and more emphasis on benefits derived from following those examples. Provide a quick reference on the process and the techniques. It might make your system more compelling for the uninitiated.