As the year closes and people are (once again) awaiting that blank slate to (re)start many of their personal aspirations, I just wanted to quickly share a tool I have been using for the past 2-3 years to track my own progress across various projects/activities. And despite the world moving through a myriad of new, cool “productivity” and “personal development” tools and apps (last I heard, Notion and Trello are quite readily embraced by many), I am loyal to the good old spreadsheet, which I find both powerful and easy-to-use. More importantly, it has been the only tool which I come back to again and again for tracking my progress in all of my “personal development” schemes (and much more; trust me when I say I love spreadsheets lol). I will also quickly break down in this post why I think this format has worked well for me, in case you can relate.
But first, the spreadsheet template itself, which I have generated in the most generic, duplicable form. I appreciate Google Sheets for its accessibility and user-friendliness, but if you prefer an offline version of this, I’m pretty sure you can export it to use with Excel or any open-source equivalent. Otherwise, you can easily duplicate the template via File > Make a copy (just make sure you’re logged into Google). In this template, you first see a “Dashboard” tab which looks something like this:
This template comes with pre-formatted tabs, pre-filled formulae/functions, and the overall structure for tabs that can be duplicated and updated however you want. I filled it in with a pretty basic list of “resolutions” (drawn from the top search results for “common new year’s resolutions” and some of my own). Of course, please determine the resolutions/intentions that make the most sense to you, as well as the “target” for each of them that corresponds to your aspirations, needs, and capacity.
Here are a few reasons why I think this spreadsheet format works so well for me:
1. Resolutions are quantifiable.
I’m not one of those people who like everything numerical, but in pursuing a major goal or project that takes many steps or repetitive actions, I find numbers incredibly helpful in tracking and keeping up progress. Like the rationale behind setting a “SMART” goal, with the second letter referring to the measurability of the goal, setting a quantitative target makes the finish line more concrete and less of an abstract milestone.
2. Achieving each resolution feels like a finite and flexible task, rather than an unending sequence of un-skippable efforts.
Habit tracking is undoubtedly helpful for many people out there (with much more discipline than me), but it creates an unnecessary pressure to keep up with things consistently, and often without an end in sight. By determining a certain “target” for each of my resolutions, I intuitively find them more finite, and thus more attainable and less overwhelming. Once I meet the “target”, I consider the resolution “completed” and never worry about dragging on my streak. I also don’t need to commit to them daily or at a consistent interval, and I can vary my time and effort investment into a certain resolution depending on my availability, capacity, and mood.
3. Resolutions are cumulations of small, trackable steps.
With the trackers scattered across the tabs, I get to also record what I do and when, as little steps towards the more ambitious goals in the dashboard. For instance, because I read a lot, having a tab to note down the books I read can be a neat way to know at the end of the year what I have consumed. With each book completed, the tracker automatically updated and I get to feel like I’m inching closer to the finish line. Every step counts, and a big ambitious goal ends up being much more manageable than it first seems.
4. Pursuing resolutions is gamified.
The main appeal to this spreadsheet, I find, is that it mimics some features of a game. The progress bar in the dashboard resembles the “XP bar” or other forms of score indicator. As the numbers update and the progress bars extend, I also feel like I’m “leveling up” and getting closer to the finish line. I’ve also designed the dashboard to reflect whether my progress in each of the resolutions is meeting the expected “pace” (purple progress bars indicate I’m keeping up or staying ahead, while the red bars mean I’m falling behind). This creates small nudges to keep me on track and prompt me to pick up pace where progress is needed. It is a game not against any stress-inducing “enemy”, but against the benchmark I have set for myself.
5. Resolutions can be as ambitious or as lenient as I want them to be.
Finally, I like the fact that the numbers listed in the “target” column can be as low (and high) as the user wants. I can even change it halfway through the year (and I have done it a few times before) to reflect a more realistic and fitting “target” based on my ongoing progress and personal capacity.
I get that a system like this (in the dry, boring spreadsheet format) can feel like an overkill to some, but my intention in sharing this template with others isn’t to generate even more pressure for toxic productivity. I thought long and hard before making this public because I didn’t want to come across that way at all! What I have benefited from this spreadsheet is, in fact, a relief of pressure to pursue overwhelming goals that barely register little, inconsistent steps. I want to challenge myself towards a more fulfilling life, but I don’t want any of the stress and mental punishments for the lack of discipline or continuous commitment. Guess what, my 2023 tracker is full of red bars and even a few goals with 0% progress, but looking at it now, I still get to see things I have gotten to do/accomplish along with things I will get to retry in the upcoming year.
So if you already have a few things you want to try taking on this year, and if you think some of the reasoning I explored above appealed to you, please feel free to give this spreadsheet system a try. I’m happy to help customize it for my friends, so just message me or drop a comment below, and we can work on this together 😉