Perfectionism Lie: "You will be crushed by disappointment if you look at the data."

Perfectionism Lie: "You will be crushed by disappointment if you peer behind that curtain" of data.

Truth: "Data - it makes things easy. It is not emotional. It's just data."

In Jon Acuff's book, Finish, he discusses how tracking and investigating data can be freeing! 

As we track our progress with our goals, we can see our areas of growth and improvement. Without this data, we may not recognize where we need to change our goal. We may not see how even though the progress is slow, it is still progress!

Without data, we can sabotage our progress because we don't recognize that there is progress at all.

Recently, I made a goal to add 20 people to a challenge I was holding. As I was writing my goal and getting specific with it, I decided adding one person a week would be a realistic but challenging goal! I began my challenge with a few people but quickly became discouraged because people weren't trickling in like I wanted them too. It wasn't until I looked at the data that I realized I was right on track! I had actually added seven people in five weeks! I'm looking forward to seeing how this challenge continues to go and following the data.

The data never lies and will help you determine how to continue with your goal.

Data helps us to identify what we are doing right and what we need to change so we can improve.

One way we can track data is on our monthly page in the Anchor Planner. You can track time invested, money earned, inches lost, products sold, miles run, steps, meals made, money saved, hours slept. Simply write down the number each day. 

At the end of the month, analyze the numbers, find your wins and how you can improve. The data doesn't lie. It gives you freedom to improve and celebrate.

I'm curious, how do you use data to help you with your goals?