Just found out my bullet journal habit is actually backed by science

I was scrolling through a psychology blog last night looking for study tips when I stumbled on this article from 2017. Turns out there's actual research from Princeton and UCLA showing that writing things down by hand helps your brain process info way better than typing. I felt so validated because my coworkers always tease me for carrying around this little notebook everywhere. The study specifically said that the physical act of writing creates stronger neural pathways for memory retention. I've been bullet journaling for about 3 years now and I always knew it helped me stay organized, but I had no idea there was real data behind it. Has anyone else found cool research that backs up why we love this hobby so much?

2 comments

2 Comments

morgan.jason11d agoTop Commenter

Got to admit, I used to be one of those people who thought bullet journals were just an excuse to buy fancy pens and washi tape (my sister has a whole drawer full of them). But then I tried it myself for a few months last year after getting overwhelmed with work stuff and honestly, it clicked for me in a way I never expected. I remember reading that same Princeton study and feeling like a total jerk for judging it before trying it. The part about handwriting creating stronger memory pathways actually explains why I can still remember random grocery lists I wrote down weeks ago but forget a typed meeting note five minutes later. Really made me take back all those jokes I made at my sister's expense.

the_jake11d ago

Man your story is basically my exact same arc. My girlfriend has been into bullet journaling for years and I would give her so much grief about it, called it her expensive hobby with the fancy notebooks and all that. Then last spring I hit a wall with my to-do lists just being this endless scrolling mess on my phone and borrowed one of her old notebooks to try the whole rapid logging thing. Two weeks in I was already ordering my own supplies and had to eat crow big time. The grocery list thing you mentioned is so real, I can still picture the exact page where I wrote down "olive oil, pasta, tomatoes" three months ago but I have to check my phone calendar three times to remember a dentist appointment.