Tracking – Keeping it Honest

If planning is the roadmap, tracking is the odometer. It tells you where you’ve actually been, not just where you meant to go. Tracking is data. It’s receipts, steps, hours slept, water drank, money spent, books read—you name it.

The power of tracking is that it grounds you in reality. You may think you only scroll Instagram for “a few minutes,” but once you track it, you realize those “minutes” somehow add up to three hours. Oops. We have all been there. LOL!

Tracking helps you spot patterns. It shines a light on habits—both the ones that serve you and the ones that don’t. And once you see the pattern, you can actually do something about it.

But here’s the caution: tracking without purpose can become obsessive. You don’t need to track every breath you take. Decide what’s worth paying attention to—sleep, water, workouts, spending—and let the rest go.

ROBYNE RECOMMENDS: Every morning I review my penciled in schedule. Then during the day at my desk, or at the end of the day when I am out and about, I sit down and record my final schedule. I also run through my trackers and record my stats – meds, hydration, steps, routines, etc. There are crazy weeks that I end up playing catch-up with several days at a time. I think the main focus here is tracking for long-term review and results.

FAITH FOCUS: Tracking isn’t just numbers—it can be an act of stewardship. When you log your sleep, your spending, or even your gratitude list, you’re paying attention to what God has entrusted to you. Tracking can become a way of saying, ‘Thank you, Lord, for what I have, and help me use it well.’

SUMMARY: At its best, tracking is your accountability partner. It moves you toward your goals. It keeps you honest about how your life is actually unfolding, not just how you wish it looked. And when you pair it with planning? That’s where the magic happens.