Gamifying Lunch
Introducing the Tamagotchi of habit tracking
Ever seen a ‘P.S.’ up top? Rebellious, I know. I’m hosting a free Mindful Inbox Hour on Monday, April 24 at 9am PST/12pm EST. Click here to learn more/register. We’re about halfway to capacity already!
Mealtime can be tough as a person with ADHD. When I say “I forgot to eat lunch,” I don’t mean it in an almond mom, I’m too busy and important to eat meals type of way.
It takes a lot for me to get into the zone. Once I do, everything else ceases to exist, including time itself.
While I love working from home, it’s harder for me to create routines the way I did when I was working in an office. In the office, I had humans ask me if I wanted to get lunch, I’d hear my stomach growl in meetings, I’d ‘clock out’ as soon as it turned five and then went home to eat dinner. Now, the whole day just meshes together.
I read a very limited amount of newsletters each week, but one I never miss is Work Less Wednesday. A few issues ago, Rich recommended an app called Habitica.
Let me start by saying, I’ve tried almost every type of habit tracker on earth. Countless apps, bullet journaling, special notebooks and worksheets — not even my beloved Notion could keep me honest.
In grad school, I remember learning about the effectiveness of gamification — the beautiful, fun younger sister of capitalism. To summarize, gamification makes boring shit more exciting using elements of play like leaderboards, badges, streaks, etc. It’s a technological gold star (and the reason I once tried to complete my daily Duolingo lesson drunk in a bar bathroom…ay dios mío, I couldn’t break my streak!). It keeps us engaged with the products we invest money into.
Habitica is like the Tamagotchi of habit tracking, except you are the pet and also much less likely to die days after hatching.
Here’s how it works:
Enter habits you’d like to commit to — you can choose daily habits and one-off tasks. As you check them off, your Mario-Brother-looking ass grows and gets stronger.
You can also enter habits you’d like to break, like overspending or eating out too often.
The thing I love most about this app is that missing a day, or not doing it perfectly, doesn’t immediately break your streak or kill your Tamagotchi/Mario Brother. It just makes you a little weaker each time, and you can always strengthen as you re-commit to your habits. I have a tendency to quit when the streak ends; however, Habitica naturally encourages resiliency.
There is also a “competition” feature for you to challenge your friends, if you need some additional accountability or a more productive gambling outlet.
I’m honestly having a blast using it, and have managed to track my habits every day for over 2 weeks.
Do you have a habit tracking system that works for you? Let me know!! And if you end up trying out Habitica, I’d love to hear about your experience.
Peace, love, and workflows,
Andrea
Yes! I quit Wordle once I broke my steak. I’ll try out this app.