DobdobWhy promises to yourself are the easiest to break
Promise a friend you'll help them move house and you'll be there, van and all. Promise yourself you'll start running on Monday and Monday comes and goes. The difference isn't how much you care. It's that nobody saw you make the second promise, so nobody will see you break it.
Keeping promises to yourself gets much easier when they stop being private.
A commitment device, minus the drama
A commitment device is anything you set up in advance to make the easy, lazy option harder later. Leaving your running kit by the bed. Telling everyone you're doing a 10k. Paying for a class up front. They work because the decision is made while you're still feeling keen, and future you has to deal with it.
Dobdob is a commitment device in app form. You make the promise when you mean it, pick someone to tell if you don't keep it, and the deadline does the rest. No money on the line, no lectures.
You made a promise. I wrote it down. That's all I'm saying.
What makes a good promise
- Make it specific"Read more" is a wish. "Read 10 pages" is a promise.
- Give it a deadlineA real time on a real day. By 10pm, weekdays. Deadlines are what turn "later" into "now".
- Make it provablePick a tap, a photo, being at a place, a screenshot, or Apple Health and Health Connect.
- Pick a witnessSomeone who'll enjoy finding out. They say yes first, and only see that one promise.
Some promises people make with Dobdob: up by 7, no takeaway this week, pray on time, gym by 7pm, call Mum on Sunday, an hour on the dissertation. Small and specific always beats big and vague. You can always make the next one bigger.
What happens at the deadline
Deadlines run on our server's clock, not your phone's, so there's no fiddling with the time. Prove it before the deadline and it counts as kept: your snitch sees that too. Miss it and it's a flop, which lands in your snitch's Snitching inbox with a line from Dobdob written for that exact flop.
When life gets in the way
A good commitment app shouldn't punish you for having a life. Pause a promise for up to 7 days, or switch on Holiday mode to pause everything. Flopped but actually did it? Appeal it from the app. An appeal clears the flop, though anyone already told still knows. We never said Dobdob was forgiving.
If procrastination is the real enemy, read our guide on how to stop procrastinating with a deadline. Or see how to turn a mate into your accountability partner.
Questions
How do I keep promises to myself?
Make them specific, give them a deadline, decide how you'll prove them, and tell someone. Dobdob does all four in one place.
Is Dobdob a commitment app?
Yes. You commit to a promise with a deadline in advance, and if you don't keep it, the person you picked finds out.
Do I have to put money down?
No. Dobdob never takes money for a flop. It's free to use, with an optional paid tier called Supergrass.
What if I can't keep a promise for a good reason?
Pause it for up to 7 days, use Holiday mode, or appeal a flop from the app.
Can I change a promise later?
Yes. Open it on Today to edit or pause it.