How to Track Projects Properly Without Creating Chaos
One of the most common mistakes I see in project tracking is where weekly status updates are stored. They are often buried inside the project record, written into free text fields that get overwritten every week, scattered across dozens of static views.
All of these approaches destroy history. A proper project status update is not a snapshot. It is a time based record. Think of it as a project diary. The simplest and cleanest way to do this is with a dedicated Weekly Status Updates table, where each update is a record in its own right and is linked to a project.
Step 1. Create the Weekly Status Updates table
- Click + and choose Create empty table
- Name the table:Weekly Status Updates. This table will grow over time.
Step 2. Core narrative field
Rename the first field to: Status summary. Type: Long text.
This is your update for the week. Short, factual and focused on what matters.
Step 3. Link the update to a Project
Add a new field: Name: Project, Type: Link to another record, Link to: Projects.
Every weekly update must belong to a project. You cannot skip this step, ever!
Step 4. Add the week identifier
Add a field: Name: Week ending, Type: Date.
I always use the same weekday, for example Friday, or Monday. This keeps sorting, filtering and reporting clean. If your project requires other cadences of updates, such as Monthly updates, you can create tables for those too. Then you can even link each weekly update into a month in the monthly update table.
Step 5. Add health signals – RAG
- Name: RAG Status, Type: Single select,
- Options: Green, Amber, Red
This captures how the project was reported that week. Status of that week. Not the overall project. At least, that’s how I use it.
Step 6. Key risks
- Type: Long text
- Capture anything that could block progress or needs attention.
Step 7. Add action oriented fields
Add the following long text fields:
- Key achievements
- Key risks or issues
- Decisions needed
- Support required
These indicate what stakeholders and management care about: Where help is required, What moved forward, What might block progress, What decisions are needed
Step 8. Optional fields
These are not essential at the start but are useful as your system matures:
- Confidence level (High, Medium, Low)
- Prepared by (Collaborator)
- Audience (Internal or Client)
When you open a Project record, you will now see a linked section called Weekly Status Updates. Each row equals one week and records sorted by date.
Create a view: Project Weekly Status
- Create a new view → Grid
- View name: Project – Weekly Status
- Add Filter: Project is not empty
- Add Sort: Week ending descending
- Filter the Project field to focus on one project
- Instantly see the full weekly history in order
The weekly workflow
Each week, for each active project:
- Go to Weekly Status Updates
- Add a new record
- Select the Project
- Set the Week ending date
- Fill in:
- Status summary
- Date
- RAG Status
- Risks and so on
Never overwrite history. If something changes after the update, it goes into next week’s record. This approach is a professional grade reporting without heavyweight tools or process. It is simple, disciplined and extremely effective.