Quality engineers tell us that the surest way to improve at something is to keep track of how you’re doing. If you want to make a more efficient light bulb, measure the efficiency of the light bulbs you’re making. If you want more money, keep a record of all the money you bring in and all the money you spend. If you want to lose weight, measure your weight and your waist.
A great deal of your success in life comes from the things you do from day to day. To help you measure your performance in any of these areas, Benjamin Franklin devised a simple record-keeping technique, which is described here:
One key tip to help you be happier
Keep track of how you’re doing every day on the habits you want to cultivate, and you stand a better chance of making every day count. If you know your results from the day will end up on a chart that you’ll be looking at, you take your actions a little more seriously — and you’re less likely to forget your everyday goals by getting caught up in the unique distractions of the day, which on a day like today might include:
- The first-ever Internet reboot scheduled for 11:59 UTC so that Web 2.0 can officially launch for real, after a decade of hype
- Taking your vacation to a higher level or booking your flight to Mars
- Doesn’t this new Shakira video sound an awful lot like one of her first singles?
- Why one of the largest newspapers in the U.K. is going Twitter-only starting today
- Ikea finally takes the wraps off its automobile-shaped sofa (in French)
- How to get your whole life organized in just 10 minutes
