Creating new, healthy habits, can be a life long journey. In order to continue to work towards various goals, bad habits must be kicked to the curb. Make new habits need to replace them. Usually these include daily exercise, reading,
There are so many different ways to track habits now, including using technology to help keep you motivated. Apps on your phone can be a great way to help you be constantly reminded of your goals and really help you achieve them.
If you ask any teenager, they will tell you that streaks can be a powerful motivator. (Many teens are desperate to keep their Snapchat streaks alive). Most apps have the ability to track your progress. They let you know how many days in a row you have been successful. You just need to find the right user interface for you to help you decide which one you want to use.
TickTick
Recently my favorite task/to-do tracking app has now added habit tracking! It was extremely exciting to find this in the latest update. I have been using TickTick for several years to track all of my lists. I love how subtasks, recurring tasks, and task categories are handled because my life is extremely compartmentalized. Now that I can also track my habits within the app, I can use the same app for everything I need to and want to do during the day.
The habits show up with specialized icons within the app and the widget. You can tap the habit and swipe the slider to check it off. Or just tap the icon inside the widget to complete the habit for the day. If you use the slider you get a small animation as a reward for your hard work.
Habit Bull
Prior to TickTick adding habit tracking, I used Habit Bull to keep track of my daily habits. I really loved HabitBull’s widget, which made it super easy to check off my daily habits. If I open the app I can check out my streaks and my success percentages. This really helped me to make new habits.
HabitBull will also send notifications to your phone to keep you motivated and just to help remind you to do your tasks. You can set different colors for each habit and change the success/fail icon from green and red dots to green and red check marks and x’s.
Habitica
Certainly if you are looking to make your habits more of a challenge or game, Habitica will be the app for you. Each time you check off a habit you will earn points. The points can help you customize your avatar and do other things within the app.
This app will add some serious gamification options to your habit tracking as you “level up” your character through these habits you want to create in your life. If you or your teen is into gaming at all, this might be the best option for you.
HabitShare
If you need an accountability partner to help keep your habits in check, HabitShare might be a great option for you. With HabitShare you can add friends or family who can see your progress and help keep you motivated to keep going. You can message GIFs or emojis to help inspire your friends and family or let them know you are disappointed with their lack of progress.
The app also features reminders, streaks and charts like most of the other habit trackers. It also has the ability to track from multiple devices if you find yourself bouncing around between phones, tablets and computers.
The best thing you can do is download a couple different apps and play around with them. The truth is, the best habit tracker is going to be the one you actually use, so try them all out and discover which one will help you make new habits and reach your goals!
