Inquiry Update 1: Learning New Functions

The first part of building this software was getting the math right. Most people use Excel as a calculator, but to make a tracker, you have to use it as a logic engine.

I focused on the “Momentum Streak” and “Daily Progress %” rows. The math is simple but effective: the sheet counts how many boxes are checked and divides that by the total number of habits. If the percentage hits 100, the streak counter adds a day. If it doesn’t, the streak resets to zero. Learning how to nest “IF” statements was the first hurdle. I didn’t know the syntax, so I used AI to draft the initial strings. It taught me that code isn’t about memorizing symbols; it’s about breaking a goal into a series of logical steps. If X happens, then do Y.

The software is fully built now. It provides a visual feedback loop that a standard paper list can’t match. Seeing a “71%” instead of a “100%” makes the failure objective rather than a vague feeling.