Does Tracking Habits Work?

For the month of May, I tracked my habits in a field notes notebook. I shared with you the inspiration being Peter McKinnon and his new-ish habit of keeping track of his daily habits and goals. The point of this being that you would be able to look back and see how your journey is going to formulate or break habits. Amongst this habit tracker is also a meter for how much sleep you get. It fills the page up pretty nicely using the full span like this.

Here are some of my findings:

• My most consistent habits are drinking water, starting the day with coffee, and watching (some form of) TV.

• I really do not prioritize time for exercise and walking. Though I should point out that (as mentioned last issue) I did start working out on May 19 and I have kept true to the schedule.

• Tracking “Spent $” is a great way to keep a budget in mind. I didn’t mark any subscriptions or bills. This tracks any instance where I consciously spent money whether it be going out to eat, buying groceries, or just buying myself something.

• Tracking “Eat Veggies” is a great way to keep a new habit forming. Every filled in box was another marker for establishing the habit (or at least the good practice) of eating vegetables.

• My amount of reading has definitely gone down over time. Recently, I’ve become more busy with work later into the night/evening hours. This in turn affects my energy for reading before bed - which was my time of reading prior to work ramping up.

• Sleep is pretty dang consistent. Sure, a spike or dip here or there, but I can pretty confidently say that I get about 8 hours of sleep each night.

Is all this worth tracking?

I would say the answer is yes.

At base level, there’s a sense of organization and orientation gained by notating all of these things in the morning. I always start my day by making coffee, making my breakfast, and then sitting down at the counter to write in the habit tracker. This helps to gauge how each factor is going - how I am feeling and if these habits have anything to do with that. And one thing I added in is a morning gratitude journal. So I would have a couple sentences written each morning for something I’m grateful for that day. This helped maintain perspective on all the stresses that may be happening and set an appreciation for the good as the focus for that day instead of the stress. It’s easy to get bogged down with work, life, whatever else. That all gets to you over time and writing down something I’m grateful for helps to reframe my mind to not be on any stresses, but to be on what benefits I have in my life.

Going forward, I’ve adjusted the habits that I’m tracking and adjusted how I do the morning gratitude in my journals. I hope to be able to keep up with this because it really does help me orient my day right as things start off. I encourage you to give it a shot and let me know how you like it!

On a Personal Note

I’ve really been honing in my efforts into building my own creative agency. I’m wanting to build up my resume with the work that I do and therefore be able to show the fruits of working with me. In order to do that, I need to work with more clients! Enter, Stan Store.

In this video, Steven Bartlett shares about his recent investment into Stan Store and what it can do. It’s a great tool for anyone selling or marketing online digital assets. Currently, there’s a 30-day challenge going on for creators to build their site on Stan Store and come to learn from Steven and the Stan team about building an online business.

I’m currently offering FREE Brand Consultations through my Stan Store! So, if you’ve ever thought about building your personal brand or you have a business idea and want to know how to build that brand, I can help you with an introductory strategy call.

Sign up for your FREE Brand Consultation at https://stan.store/Bennymate

Watch History

God, Growth, and Going Viral

A lot of what I’ve been watching recently has been gear videos for what I need to purchase, as well as business training videos to help me know what I need to be doing as I build my creative agency. However, aside from that, this was one video that has been on my list for a while but haven’t gotten around to it - until now!

I really enjoyed this conversation because, for me, it was a sort of meshing of worlds. I’ve watched Sean Cannell with Think Media for years about building a YouTube presence and knowing what gear I need and then Rich Wilkerson Jr. has been one of the main pastors in the Christian industry leading the way for creative expression as a part of church. Vous Church in Florida often has some of the coolest designs and inspires many churches on the forefront of modern style and ideas. Seeing them sit down for a conversation was very insightful as they break down the crossover of these worlds - The Church and online media presence.

Sean shares a lot of his past and his insights for the church today. He brings into question some of the things we do and it’s great to be able to have that conversation opened.

Add to Watch Later:

• The Creative Leadership Blueprint (2025)

• How to 10x Your Income as a Creator w/ Daniel Priestley

• How To Build Unstoppable Confidence - Jocko Willink (4K)

Psst. I made a Playlist on YouTube for the videos I’ve mentioned here so that you can always refer back to it!

The Growth Log Library

I’ve compiled a list of the books that I mention in case you want to pick any of it up. Full disclosure, these are affiliate links. Doesn’t cost anything extra on your end, I just get a kickback if you use my link to make a purchase.