Habit scorecard: list your habits, mark each +, – or =

The short answer

A habit scorecard is a list of everything you do in a normal day, in order, with each habit marked + if it helps the person you want to be, – if it works against that and = if it is neutral. It comes from James Clear's Atomic Habits. Use it to notice your habits first, then pick one – habit to change.

How to make a habit scorecard

1. List your day in order. Start with the moment you wake up and write each thing you do, small ones too: checking your phone, making coffee, the first email. Add a time if you know it. Sort by time puts the list in order.
2. Score each habit. Ask: does this help me become the person I want to be? Tap + if it does, – if it works against that, = if it is neutral. The same habit can score differently for different people.
3. Do not change anything yet. The scorecard is for noticing. Keep it for a day or two and add what you missed.
4. Pick one habit to change. The summary picks the first – in your day and the habit right before it, which is your cue. Turn that into a 30-day plan, or stack a small + habit after a habit you already do.

Habit scorecard example

The scorecard above opens with this filled example of an ordinary weekday. Change any line, or start a blank list.

Where the habits scorecard comes from

The habits scorecard is an exercise from James Clear's book Atomic Habits (2018). You write down your daily habits, mark each one positive, negative or neutral, and judge them by one question: does this behavior help you become the type of person you want to be? Clear presents it as an awareness step, before you try to change anything. This page is an independent free version; the wording and the example are our own.

Why start with awareness? Many daily habits run on autopilot, cued by a time, a place or the habit before them. In a study of 96 adults building a new daily habit, it took between 18 and 254 days for the behavior to feel close to automatic, so it pays to choose the one change worth that effort. Read what the research says about Atomic Habits for more.

After the scorecard: what to change first

• Swap one – habit. Keep the cue and change what follows it. If you check your phone right after the alarm, put the phone on the charger across the room and drink water first. The guide to breaking a bad habit has more.
• Add one tiny + habit. Pick an = habit you already do every day and stack a two-minute action after it with the habit stacking builder. The micro habits guide has 60 ideas that take two minutes or less.
• Look for a keystone habit. Some changes tend to pull others along, such as a regular bedtime or a daily walk. See keystone habits to pick one.
• Track it. Once you pick a habit, a 30-day habit tracker shows which days worked.

Frequently asked questions

What is the Atomic Habits scorecard?

It is an exercise from James Clear's Atomic Habits: you write down your daily habits from waking up to going to bed and mark each one positive, negative or neutral. The point is awareness. You notice what you actually do before you try to change anything.

How do you decide if a habit is good or bad?

Ask whether it helps you become the person you want to be. A glass of wine with dinner might be = for one person and – for someone cutting back. That is why the scorecard asks you to write the kind of person you want to be at the top.

What should I change after doing the scorecard?

One habit at a time. The summary suggests the first – habit of your day, because it often sets up the rest, and names the habit right before it as your cue. Change what you do at that cue, or add a small + habit after a habit you already do.

Is there a printable habit scorecard template?

Yes. Print scorecard prints your list on one Letter or A4 page in classic, warm or ink-saver design, with the +, – and = columns and your totals. Print blank sheet gives an empty template with 24 lines to fill in by hand.

How is a habit scorecard different from a habit tracker?

A scorecard is a snapshot of one ordinary day: everything you do, good or bad. A habit tracker follows one or a few chosen habits across many days. Most people do the scorecard once, pick a habit, then track that habit.

Where is my scorecard saved?

Only in this browser on this device. Nothing you type is sent to our server and there is no sign-up. Print it or save it as an image to keep a copy.

Sources and evidence

1. James Clear: The Habits Scorecard — Describes the exercise: list your daily habits, mark each as positive (+), negative (–) or neutral (=), and judge each by whether it helps you become the type of person you wish to be; the aim is awareness before change.
2. James Clear (2018): Atomic Habits — The book in which the Habits Scorecard appears as an exercise for making habits visible.
3. Lally et al. (2010): How are habits formed — In 96 adults repeating a daily behavior in a consistent context, time to reach 95% of the automaticity plateau ranged from 18 to 254 days.
4. Gardner, Lally and Wardle (2012): Making health habitual — Habits are actions triggered automatically by a context cue after repetition, which is why the moment before a habit is the place to change it.