Excuses stream out from our ears when we think of all the things we need to get done or need to accomplish. Short and long term goals get lost in the moment when we hear voices in our head convincing us we are too tired to exercise or too busy to start that closet cleanup project. The biggest obstacle, it turns out, is ourselves.
Now, you can help get yourself out of your own way with what I would consider to be almost a personal assistant. LazyHabit is an app that helps you define what you want to get done, plan out how you want to achieve it and then works with you to help you complete it. Whether it’s cleaning out the garage or cleaning out your head, LazyHabits is the tool that can help you.
The app is free, but also comes equipped with more advanced options you can obtain through a few subscriptions. I used the free version for a while and really liked it. Upon downloading the app, the first thing it will ask you is if you have about 15 mins to try out one of their built in exercises. I tapped Yes and was taken to a screen that asked me to select one of several predefined and common activities we all need to get done or can do to get us in the mood before we tackle a project. Select one of those and follow as the app guides you what to do.
I selected a Pre Routine activity under the category of Meditation. The app lets you know ahead of time how long it will take and how many steps there are. Once you agree to start it, the app prompts you to perform each step, showing one step at a time, and staying on that screen for the prescribed time so you perform that item for the right amount of time.
Once you are done with that introduction, you can snoop around through the app. There’s a Collection area, where you can collect Gems, however, I was not sure about what these would do for you. There’s Schedule, where you can enter Routines on your calendar and be reminded to perform them. Then there is the Explore screen. From here, you access the library of routine recipes, as the app likes to call them. Find the ones you are interested in, Save them and they will show up in the Routines area of the app. Note that the only Routines you can schedule are ones you have saved in the Routines part of the app.
The library comes equipped with a variety of activity genres. To start, there are Pre-Routines, like Starting Rituals, Meditation, Block Distractions, Start Work. Next, there is a Health genre, with activities like Sleep, Health Care, Dental, and so on. Other genres include Productivity, Self Improvement, Beauty & Grooming, and many more.
Most of the app was very self explanatory, but I wish there was some place that guided you on the steps to take to make Routines available to you so you could schedule them. I ended up creating ones of my own, without realizing I should have been using the predefined ones.
As a reminder and prompter tool, LazyHabit should be high on your list of apps to help you stay organized and keep on track. That’s what a personal assistant is for, and now you can have one, too!