You said "balance creativity with practicality" like they're opposites, but that's where I disagree! For me, the creativity is what makes it practical. If I make a spread I enjoy looking at, I'm way more likely to open the journal and actually use it. My fix was to do the boring task list first in pencil, get it all down, and then go back and add doodles or color if I have time. It stopped me from getting stuck on an empty page.

Are you kidding? The forced routines are the only thing that gets people talking, @the_ivan. Nothing like being stuck together to make the real stuff come out.

Actually the barista started it by remembering your order, @robinson.hannah.

Don't most new things trade quality for speed?

Seriously, teaching someone else forces you to double-check your own know-how. I've caught my own mistakes just by trying to explain a simple process out loud. That's how you go from just doing a job to really knowing your stuff.