The day my habit tracker saved me from a panic spiral at work

Last Tuesday I was about to miss a big deadline and my brain froze, but flipping open my journal to see 47 days of consistent morning check-ins gave me this weird sense of control. Has anyone else used their bullet journal as an emergency grounding tool like that?

3 comments

3 Comments

theajohnson1d ago

My 43 day streak for "took my lunch break outside" fell apart last month when it rained for a week straight. But flipping back through that page reminded me that I actually felt less jittery on the days I got fresh air. Now I have a little note in my journal that says "rain doesn't cancel break, just move it indoors by a window." It's funny how those small counts really do anchor you when your brain goes blank. Your mileage may vary on what counts count for you though.

emma_garcia1d ago

Okay but counterpoint @theajohnson: what if letting the streak die actually teaches you more than forcing an indoor window version? I had a 60 day "read fiction before bed" thing and when I caved one night for work emails I realized I didn't actually miss the book habit as much as I thought. Sometimes the streak breaking shows you the thing wasn't truly important (it just felt like momentum). Not saying your outside breaks aren't valuable, but maybe the jitters came from other stuff too and you're giving the fresh air too much credit.

the_claire1d ago

Does the whole streak thing ever make you feel like you're keeping a score for someone else instead of yourself? @emma_garcia your point about realizing the habit didn't actually matter is honestly kind of freeing. I had a solid 30 day "walk around the block after dinner" streak going and when I missed it because of a late work call, I was so mad at myself. But then I sat there and thought, did I really even enjoy those walks or was I just checking a box? Turned out I liked the idea of being the person who does a nightly walk more than I actually liked doing it. So now I just go when I feel like it and it's way less pressure.