How to keep on track with something
But there’s another psychological component involved. You probably already know that breaking up your goals into smaller chunks-say, shrinking your monthly sales goal into daily metrics-makes them less intimidating and therefore less attainable. You may be surprised how much you achieve. Plus, when you’re expecting someone to check in with you on a regular basis, you’ll have all the more reason to keep track of your goals.Ĭhoose someone you trust, ideally someone who has similar goals or a shared perspective on success and growth, and invite them to check in with you on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis. That’s because having no progress to share feels like letting that person down, and it never feels good to disappoint someone. You’ll be less likely to make excuses that derail you when you know someone is going to check in with your progress. Sometimes, self-motivation can only go so far-and you have to invite someone else into the process if you want to keep track of goals you’ve set.īy sharing your goals with someone else, you’re essentially making a commitment. When you have something to look forward to besides the goal itself, you’ll be more likely to attain the goal. Either way, the premise is to incentivize your progress. Maybe after a week of daily walks, you order takeout from your favorite restaurant. Maybe you buy yourself something you’ve been eyeing if you stay on track for a month. However, if building in your own rewards to your goal process will boost your inclination to keep going, then find a way to put a little “bait” in your line of sight. But a more tangible-and honestly, fun-incentive reminds me how good it feels to stay on track, and makes me want to get up and do it again tomorrow.įor some people, the rush of crossing something off the list (or in this case, marking the calendar with a nice, big “X”) is enough motivation to keep going. If I would have checked my fitness app to see I’d reached my daily step goal, I may have felt a sense of accomplishment. It may sound silly, but this reward keeps me going. Every time I reach my goal for the day, the watch face explodes into a miniature celebration, complete with a disco ball. My fitness tracker sets me up for success with a simple, built-in feature. ⌄ Scroll down to continue reading article ⌄ 3. Then, keep the progress chart somewhere motivating. To keep it simple, just grab a poster board and use Post-It notes, stickers, or a colorful marker to reflect your progress.
If you’re artsy, you can create a fancy bullet journal spread for your progress chain. Some people use graph-style journals to create their own goal-trackers. It’s rumored Seinfeld used this system to meet his goal of practicing writing jokes every day, marking a large calendar with a big, red “X.” But you can use whatever system that makes sense for you. By keeping your progress visible, you’ll gain motivation and build momentum toward the finish line. But people meet goals little by little, one small success at a time. Remember: One day’s success might not seem all that important. Your only job, according to Seinfeld, is not to break the chain. The idea is that every day you stay on track and work toward your goal, you mark the calendar (or your journal or whiteboard), and then you keep going until your goal is met. Visualize the “Chain”Ĭomedian Jerry Seinfeld popularized a goal-tracking concept called “don’t break the chain” (Develop Good Habits: Don’t Break the Chain: Jerry Seinfeld’s Advice on Sticking to a Habit)). Want to keep track of your goals? Here are 5 strategies to do it effectively. ⌄ Scroll down to continue reading article ⌄ Plus, big goals seem less overwhelming when you break it down into smaller steps. You’ll be more motivated to complete the journey when you know how much you’re already accomplishing.
I like to think of goal-tracking as creating mile-markers. Now, I keep track of goals in other areas, like work, finances, and hobbies. Goal-tracking not only increased my activity levels, but also my energy levels and overall well-being. If I lag behind, I receive an hourly notification reminding me how many steps I need to complete to stay on track. Understanding how active I’ve been is as simple as a quick glimpse at my wrist. I couldn’t believe how drastically my activity levels increased. 70,000 steps a week seemed like a lofty goal-until I began tracking my daily activity with a digital step counter. I’ve always been the type to keep track of goals, so I decided to create a simple system to boost my exercise. If I wanted to stay healthy, I would need to step it up-literally. My doctor asked how much I exercised in a week, and I realized how much time I spent sitting down at a desk. Then, I had a wake-up call at my yearly check-up.
I had always considered myself an active person, able to keep track of goals and stick to them.