Planning and Tracking: Partners in Crime

Planning and tracking are like peanut butter and jelly. They’re different, but girl, they work well together.

Planning says, “Here’s what I want to do.” Tracking says, “Here’s what I actually did.” Without planning, you drift. Without tracking, you can lie to yourself (unintentionally, of course). Together, they create a loop of progress: set an intention, measure reality, adjust, repeat.

Here’s an example:

• Planning: I’ll work out three times this week.
• Tracking: I actually worked out once.
• The Magic: Next week, I either recommit or adjust my plan to something more realistic.

The tension between planning and tracking is that one is aspirational and the other is brutally honest. That’s a good thing. You need the dream and the data.

ROBYNE RECOMMENDS: Balancing planning and tracking was a turning point for me in successfully completing goals. I now track a lot of things that help me stay on target balancing routines and new activities. If you visit the resource section, one of my favorite trackers is available as a freebie to print and use.

FAITH FOCUS: Planning shows intention; tracking shows reality. Faith bridges the two. We make our best plans, we track our imperfect results, and then we trust God to work through both. Progress isn’t about perfection—it’s about walking step by step with Him.

SUMMARY: If you feel like you’re endlessly logging numbers but not moving forward, add some planning. The two together are where real growth happens.