Recording your journey.

It is very beneficial to have your own chronological account of product, technique and style hits and misses. Keeping a record is helpful in determining whether you are making progress and where you have room for improvements.
Among starting pictures and length measurements, you should have detailed assessments of the following:

-How a product affected your hair
-Manageability
-Breakage and Shedding
-Noticeable differences in look and feel of hair

Also, initially you may not be able to gauge your hair's particular need. This comes with time and experience. This is where scheduling protein treatments or trims is very helpful.