Habits can be hard to break and even harder to form, but it doesn’t have to stay that way. If you struggle with maintaining or forming new habits, then habit trackers may just be what you need! 

Therapists are beginning to recognize the power of habit trackers in helping people achieve their goals.

In this post, we share 5 tips from therapists on how best to utilize habit trackers for long-lasting progress and success. 

From understanding why they work so well together all the way through to identifying which type of habit-tracking apps will work best for your situation.

This is your essential guide for achieving success with habit-tracking!

With resolutions comes the need for accountability. We all have ideas of what we want to do and who we want to become in the new year.

Adding a tracking system into your daily life is key. That’s where habit trackers come in! 

Habits trackers help you measure and monitor progress towards long-term objectives by breaking them down into smaller components.

They provide insight into which habits are progressing or falling off and motivation through seeing improvement over time.

To start making positive changes in your life using habit trackers. Here are five therapist tips on how best to use them.

Pen and paper habit trackers have many benefits and can turn habit-tracking from a mundane task into something you look forward to. 

Physically writing allows for better engagement of your whole body, meaning remembering what you wrote down will be much easier. 

And having a physical journal or bullet journal presents the unique opportunity of transforming habit tracking into an artistic exercise.

Choosing to switch off screens provides the perfect environment for creating rituals around habit tracking while giving yourself a chance to pause, reflect, and relax away from the internet!

It all comes down to finding a tracker that works with your lifestyle and injects creativity into your habit-tracking routine.

There are many habit trackers apps out there, and they can be really helpful if you’re the type of person who likes structure and ready-to-go solutions. 

Many of them are free to download and relatively easy to use. Some popular habit-tracking apps include Habitica, which offers a creative approach to habit tracking, allowing users to customize their goals. 

Also, HabitBull is perfect for data lovers who want to analyze their habit data in graphs and tables. 

Finally, Done has a simple list format that lets users quickly say whether they completed a habit on a given day.

It’s important to take the time to be deliberate when it comes to setting goals for yourself. 

Habit tracking can be a great way of keeping you on track and motivated, but it’s hard to know how best to move forward without clear goals and objectives. 

That’s why it’s helpful to ensure your goals follow the SMART rule: specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and timely. 

For example, instead of simply wanting to “eat healthier,” a more precise goal would be aiming for five servings of fruits or vegetables daily for the month. 

This provides an actionable plan that is easy to measure with habit trackers, so you can clearly see your progress throughout the process.

For instance, let’s say you want to start using habit trackers to break a bad habit. Before starting this process, it’s important to consider the purpose of that habit in your life. 

Why are you doing it? What benefit does it provide? Without understanding these answers, implementing the habit tracker and sticking with it will be difficult. 

You’ll struggle if you try to stop bad behavior before figuring out how it serves you. Often times people find creative ways to replace the value of their bad habits with something positive. 

Once you understand why a certain habit exists, you’ll have an easier time deciding how to move forward in building healthy new habits and getting rid of the unhealthy ones.

In the era of instant gratification, habit tracking may not seem like something that can give you results overnight. And it’s true. 

Though trying to get quick fixes or flashy results (like this habit-tracking app!) is tempting, habit trackers are most effective when given a dedicated few weeks or months for implementation. 

This is especially important for habits that aren’t regular in nature. If you’re trying to cut down on your drinking but only binge once or twice a week.

It might take a couple of months before you realize whether habit tracking has had an impact.

It’s also good practice to stick with habit tracking over time in order to gain an accurate sense of whether or not your habits have truly changed. 

So while habit trackers may not be able to make all your life changes immediately, they can help you see gradual progress over time!

It’s never been more important to prioritize your mental health. Feeling connected, calm, and grounded can make a difference in all aspects of life. 

Having good habits in place that keep our minds healthy and help us better navigate the challenges we face each day is essential. 

In the next blog post, we share 7 simple daily habits you can do now. So you can start building healthier relationships with yourself and those around you to improve your mental well-being going into 2023. Read on!