About Startsy
Startsy is a web app that helps people begin avoided tasks. You type the task, choose why it feels hard (overwhelm, unclear start, perfectionism, fear, boredom or mental overload), and Startsy returns one concrete first step plus a 2–25 minute timer.
Startsy is made by Startsy Inc. Write to support@startsy.app.
Our principles
Zero guilt
A missed day is just a missed day. Startsy shows the days you began, never gaps to make up.
One task, not a list
Bring the task in front of you. Startsy helps with its first move.
Your words stay yours
Task text is never used to train AI models, and you can delete it any time from your account.
Clear limits
Startsy is a self-improvement tool, not a medical or mental-health service.
Why it works
Procrastination is mostly about feelings, not time.
Research describes procrastination as a way of avoiding the bad feelings a task brings up, rather than a time-management problem.
Naming when and how you'll start helps.
Deciding exactly when and how you'll begin — an implementation intention — reliably helps people follow through. A review of 94 studies found a medium-to-large effect.
A small, concrete plan for the moment of starting.
Procrastination is common and well studied.
Procrastination is one of the most studied problems in self-regulation.
References
- Sirois, F., & Pychyl, T. (2013). Procrastination and the priority of short-term mood regulation: Consequences for future self. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 7(2), 115–127.
- Gollwitzer, P. M., & Sheeran, P. (2006). Implementation intentions and goal achievement: A meta-analysis of effects and processes. Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, 38, 69–119.
- Gollwitzer, P. M. (1999). Implementation intentions: Strong effects of simple plans. American Psychologist, 54(7), 493–503.
- Steel, P. (2007). The nature of procrastination: A meta-analytic and theoretical review of quintessential self-regulatory failure. Psychological Bulletin, 133(1), 65–94.
Startsy is built on these ideas. We haven't run our own study, so we don't claim numbers for Startsy itself.