How to make a weekly habit tracker
By 40585 Labs, makers of Corenk · Updated
A weekly habit tracker is one page with the seven days as rows and the parts of your life as columns. You write each routine on the days it belongs to and tick it when it is done. You need paper, a pen and about ten minutes, or you can print our free page and skip the drawing.
1. Draw the week
Turn the page upright and write the seven days down the left side, leaving even space for each one. Pick the day your week really begins. If Sunday is when you plan, start on Sunday.
2. Name three or four columns
Draw three or four lines down the page and give each column a name. Areas of your life work better than single habits, because they still make sense when the habits inside them change: Health, Home, Work, Me. Parents might use Kids instead of Me. Students might use Classes and Study.
3. Choose only a few routines
Start with three to five. It is tempting to write down everyone you would like to become, but every extra line is one more box you can leave empty, and a page full of empty boxes is a page you stop looking at. If you need help choosing, see habit tracker ideas.
4. Put each routine on its days
This is the part a weekly page does better than a grid. Write "Gym" only on Tuesday and Friday, in the Health column. Write "Bins out" only on the evening they go out. Give each one a small empty box. When a routine has only the days it really happens on, an empty box always means something.
5. Keep the page in sight
Put it somewhere you pass every morning: the fridge, the wall by your desk, inside the front of your notebook. A tracker in a closed drawer cannot remind you of anything. Keep a pen with it.
6. Read it at the end of the week
Before you start the next page, take a minute with the old one. Three questions are enough:
- Which routine did you finish without trying? It can stay, and maybe it can grow.
- Which box stayed empty every time? Make it smaller, move it to a better day or drop it.
- What did you do that was not on the page? It may belong there next week.
Questions
How many habits should a weekly tracker have?
Start with three to five. You can always add one next week, and a short list you finish beats a long one you stop opening.
Weekly or monthly habit tracker?
A monthly grid shows long runs at a glance and suits daily habits. A weekly page has room for routines that only happen on some days, and it starts clean every week.
What should I do when I miss a day?
Leave the box empty and carry on with the next one. If the same box stays empty for two weeks, change the routine or drop it.
Skip the drawing
Our free weekly habit tracker has this layout ready: seven days, four columns you name yourself and three checkboxes in every cell, in A4 and Letter, with a Monday or Sunday start. Still deciding? Read paper or app.