How to Make Progress

If you're committed to living a life on the upward spiral, or want to be, making progress in healthy habits is where it’s at. Whether it be your health, your career, your relationships, your hobbies, there’s always something that you desire to improve.

But it can be disheartening sometimes because ... progress takes time.

Sure, sometimes we get that experience of not being able to play the song one day and then waking up and voila! it’s like we’ve been playing it for years, or suddenly you find you CAN to a push-up, but even in those "holy-shit-I-can-actually-do-this" flash moments, it's a result of the hours of practice you did beforehand.

There are two tools that are essential to making progress happen in any kind of timely manner -- or at least seem like it enough for you to be high-fiving yourself all day every day.

1. Tracking: I know it sounds super boring to systematically track your practice, time, or activities around any goal, but believe me, it's something that will pay off in the long run. Whether it's writing down your running times, filling in water drops to count how much water you drank today (one of my favorites), or keeping a tally in your calendar for how many days this week you went to an open mic (I hear this is how Jerry Seinfeld found his way to stardom), keeping track of what you've done is a game-changer.

My suggestion: If you're new to tracking, start with 1 thing for right now. What's the most important activity or habit that you want to integrate into your life right now? Pick one thing, decide how you'll track it, and be consistent about it for at least a month. It will help you to do the next step.

2. Reflecting: Look back on what you've tracked each week and month. You've now got your data, what can you glean from it? Is there a time of day that seems to work best of this activity? What threw you off the days you missed, what can you learn from that? What lessons can you learn about yourself that will help set you up for success over the next month?

Remember: This isn't about beating yourself up, but lifting yourself up. Switching from your inner bully to your inner cheerleader will make all the difference.