We Spend More Time Choosing Apps Than Building Habits

There is something funny about the way we solve problems now.

When we decide to get healthier, we look for an app. When we want to focus, we look for another app. When we want to sleep better, we download another app.

I have done the same thing more times than I can count.

The strange part is that downloading an app feels like making progress. It gives us the satisfaction of taking action without actually changing anything yet. We spend thirty minutes reading reviews, comparing screenshots, and watching videos about productivity instead of simply standing up and taking a short walk.

I realized I was doing exactly that while building TouchGrass. I was spending hours polishing tiny details inside an app whose entire purpose was to remind people to spend less time in front of their computers.

It felt a little ironic.

Eventually I stopped asking myself how many features I could add. Instead, I started asking a simpler question.

Does this help someone build a habit?

If the answer was no, I tried not to build it.

Good software can make good habits easier. It cannot create them for us.

At some point we still have to stand up.