Productivity is more than a skill you can master, it’s a habit too. It’s a decision to plan, implement, and reflect on your life so you can work smarter [not harder] and do more with less time. If you want to be productive, you have to train yourself to take the actions that ensure you work efficiently. And one of the most powerful ways to do that is with Habit Trackers.
Let me explain…
“Depending on what they are, our habits will either make us or break us. We become what we repeatedly do.” ―Sean Covey
Good habits can be hard to stick because as humans, we’re so comfortable in our comfort zones! We like what we know and we know what we like, which means any attempt to do something different is met with resistance — even if it’s something that’s good for us!
You’ll have experienced these frustrating phenomena in your own life. For example, when you start a new healthy eating regime, it’s tempting to slide back into old habits. If you want to train for a marathon, it won’t be long before running feels like a chore.
If you can’t push through the resistance and keep on going — however painful it feels, you’ll soon fall back into your old ways, and struggle to get what you want.
So how can you cultivate good habits?
Let’s take a look…
Build a chain and don’t break it
You probably don’t think about cleaning your teeth before bed and it’s unlikely to take a lot of effort to make your bed in the morning. Instead, you do these actions — almost on autopilot. In fact, it probably feels weird if you don’t do them.
That’s the true power of habits.
They become a part of your identity to the extent that you carry them out without even thinking too much. You don’t even need any willpower to check them off, you just make them happen.
Yup, habits can be that effective [and that’s the good news].
The bad news is bad habits can be hard to break and it takes time to wire your brain with a new pattern of behavior. In fact, it can take as long as 66 days for a new habit to become automatic.
So how do you support yourself to keep going — even when you don’t want to — to ensure that desirable new habit becomes part of who you are?
The short answer is Habit Trackers. Here’s why…
Why do habit trackers work?
There’s this cool story about Jerry Seinfeld and how he became such a brilliant comedian. One day on the comedy circuit, a budding comedian asked Seinfeld how he’d got so good at creating jokes.
Seinfeld’s answer was surprising — he wrote a joke every day.
But more than that, he also shared his methodology for doing so.
Seinfeld kept a calendar. Everyday he wrote a joke, he marked up a big red cross. Pretty soon, those red crosses created a chain and eventually that chain became so long, he didn’t want to break it.
^ That in a nutshell is what Habit Trackers do.
They create a visual representation of your winning streak, which keeps you motivated and inspired to keep going — even when you don’t want to. In fact, ESPECIALLY when you don’t want to.
Now you may not want to track jokes, but you can use this methodology for anything and everything you want to introduce into your life. For example:
- A journaling practice
- An idea-generation practice
- Upping your water consumption
- Tracking daily steps
- Quality time with your kids/partner
- Creating social content — daily
- Bullet journaling/daily planning
The choice is yours.
What Habit Trackers are best?
There are plenty of good habit trackers on the market. Here’s a selection of some you may want to try.
1. Habit Roadmap – BestSelf.Co.
The Habit Roadmap comes in a pack of two — enough for 6 months of habit tracking. We like how this tracker has space to record your weekly as well as your daily habits. Simply make a note of how many times you want to hit your target, then track it.
Each roadmap can track 13 weeks of habits and has room for up to 12 daily habits and 8 weekly habits. There’s even a total column so you can calculate how many times you hit your habit over the 91 day period.
Printed on quality paper, this Habit Roadmap is designed to be pinned up somewhere visible — so you can see your winning streak and keep yourself motivated all the way to the finish line.
2. 2019 On Track calendar
This pretty tool cleverly combines a 2019 calendar with a habit tracker.
Use the calendar section to mark on your key dates, deadlines, and reminders and the tracker section monitor the habits you want to build. With room to track seven daily customizable habits, you can inspire yourself to cultivate habits that stick.
As well as a 2-page spread for every month in 2019, you’ll also find a special bonus to take you all the way through until April 2020. What habits could you cultivate this year and beyond?
3. Ready-to-Use Habit Trackers [Paperback]
Want to dive deep into habit tracking and use your bullet journal to do it? If so, this book may be exactly what you’re looking for.
As well as an in-depth look at all things habit tracking, this book also contains a wide selection of habit trackers, which you can explore and try. Use this book to help you organize your life with daily, monthly, and yearly trackers that monitor your mood, time, goals, and more. All you need are some colored pens, your bullet journal, and you’re good to go!
4. Habit Tracking Stickers
If you want to use your BuJo to track your habits and you don’t have the time to draw out a tracker everytime, these stickers are a great shortcut. They’re super cheap too!
Each pack contains enough trackers for 52 weeks. They’re super simple to use. Simply write your chosen habit into space then check off each day you complete it.
5. Habit Tracking stencil
If you prefer stencils to stickers in your bullet journal, then this stainless steel tracking duo is well worth a look.
You can use the circle template for creating circular trackers with ease while the journaling stencil makes it easy to customize your trackers and daily pages. This stencil set even comes with a handy storage sleeve.
What habit will you start today?
The habits you practice daily will have a HUGE impact on your life and because you have control over your habits, this is an intentional way to create a life you love.
So find the tracking tool that works best for you and get to work!
Invest the time and energy now and those life-changing habits will soon become automatic.
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