3 Reasons Why You Should Be Tracking Your Habits

Keeping track of your success habits is an amazing way to make consistent progress towards your goals. If you're not keeping track of your daily activity, then you're putting yourself in a position that makes continuous improvement difficult and mysterious.

Having a clear view of how much attention you're giving to the activities that MATTER will help you create a plan for improvement so that each week can be better than the week before, instead of just a mediocre repeat.

Here are 3 powerful reasons why you should be keeping track of your daily habits and routine:

1. YOU CAN IDENTIFY WHAT IS WORKING

Even when things are going good, we will have times when we fall off track and get in a bit of a rut or slump. When this happens, we can pick ourselves up so much faster when we are aware of "what worked." Whenever I experience ease and success in doing something, I make sure to take note of whatever it is that's making my life work better. 

For example, if you are cultivating a habit of reading more and you find that you're checking off that activity every day pretty easily, then stop and ask yourself what is creating that ease. It could be that you've been keeping the book next to the couch where you sit often. It could be that you have an alarm on your phone that reminds you to read for 15 minutes at a certain time of day before things get too busy. 

It's the little things like this can set you up for success - be aware of them so that you can keep doing them.

2. YOU CAN IDENTIFY WHAT IS NOT WORKING

When a habit is slipping through the cracks, it's a sign that we are sabotaging our success in some way. With a little reflection, we can dig up our stumbling blocks.

Here are some examples on figuring out what is not working:

failure to exercise 30 minutes a day >> I haven't even decided what type of exercise I want to practice.

failure to record daily income and expenses >> I haven't identified a single system to use for this.

failure to practice french daily >> I haven't found a language program that I enjoy.

When you know why something is not working, you can start to make the DECISIONS that will set you up for success moving forward.

3. YOU CAN MAKE A BETTER PLAN TO IMPROVE

At the end of the week, after reviewing your progress on all of your different habits and taking notes on what works and what doesn't work, YOU ARE IN THE PERFECT POSITION to make a plan to improve. This simply comes down to identifying the little shifts you need to make in your routine in order to remove stumbling blocks and add more check marks more easily to your habit tracking spreadsheet.

After completing my own "plan to improve" today, I've discovered that I need to identify which habits fall under a "morning routine," "evening routine," and "work schedule." I can tell that operating according to three separate routines will help me progress through my day without feeling scattered or overwhelmed.

Your life is a direct reflection of your habits. When you get more intentional about mastering the habits that create more success and balance, you can start living your life on an upward spiral.