Post originally appeared on the Iguana Inc blog in reference to the Bullet Journal.

When I used to make lists of the things I needed to accomplish, I would completely cross out the item when it was done. This was good, but it made it impossible to actually SEE the things I had crossed off the list.

Now I make a little box next to each item and color it in once it has been completed.

I am also trying the concept of marking categories of things with a colored dot (for example: one color is “things I can complete in under 2 min” and another is “things on the computer”). I have found that NOT crossing the items out means I can make a note next to an item (i.e. if the task is “fax records to doctor,” I can then make a note about the date it was completed in case I need to refer back to it).

I also separate personal and work tasks on facing pages. Personal items get the left page and work gets the right page. This keeps things a bit more organized for me while still keeping both lists in front of me.

I have only been following my customized bullet system for a couple of weeks and I’m sure it will evolve over time, but so far so good!