Where do you want to be in five or ten years? What does your happiest life look like?

As John C. Maxwell said, “The secret of your success is found in your daily routine.” With that being said, what habits can you implement into your life that will lead to the life of your dreams?

Studies have shown that creating routines that become habits is the best way to change your life. One of the best ways to develop new habits is habit tracking.

A habit tracker is a simple way to measure if you did a habit each day or week. It gives you a way to visualize progress, feel motivated, and show up the next day.

Still on the fence about if you should start habit tracking? Here are 5 reasons why you should start.

Why you should start habit tracking:

1. Daily reminder to take action.

Studies have shown that people who keep track of their progress are more likely to succeed than those who do not. This includes people trying to quit smoking, lose weight, and lower blood pressure.

● Tracking your habits on a daily basis is a simple way to remind yourself of the action you need to take in order to reach your goals.

2. Motivation to continue.

Seeing progress is the best motivation. With every small win, habit tracking can create growing motivation to continue towards your goals!

3. Gratification from achieving your goals.

Every time you mark a habit as complete, you get a sense of accomplishment! This feeling of accomplishment will give you more motivation to continue the next day.

4. More likely to reach your goals.

Breaking down your big goals into small habits that you track will help you feel more confident and in control. You’ll be more likely to reach your goals with a habit tracker holding you accountable every day!

5. See your progress.

Months down the line, you can see how far you have come from where you started. Spend time one a month or every few months to look at previous months and appreciate how far you’ve come.

Tracking your habits and goals will have a compound effect on your happiness. Are you ready to start?

Get started tracking your habits:

1. Write down your goals.

To define what’s important to you, journal about the life you envision. What does your happiest life look like?

2. Create habits that will help you achieve the life you envision.

What goals are most important to you? What habits can you develop that will help you achieve those goals?

3. Add those habits to a habit tracker.

Next, add the habits you want to track to your habit tracker.

4. Every time you complete a habit, mark your habit tracker.

Try to make it a goal to record each measurement after you complete the habit. This will help you use your habit tracker regularly and celebrate each habit as you complete it!

Tracking habits will help you feel in control of your life. As you look back on your weeks and months, you’ll see what you accomplished (and did not accomplish). It can help you see progress, and also where you can improve!

As you track your habits, you might also notice different patterns. For example, maybe you notice that the days you exercise you feel like you have more energy.

Remember that developing a habit takes time! Don’t feel discouraged if you forget to do something one day. Instead, make a commitment to complete it the next day. Consider that forming a habit can take months and keeping a habit tracker can help motivate you as you keep track of your daily progress.