I don’t want to be too dramatic here, but it’s a true fact that for years and years I’ve wanted to get up earlier, but have never been able to pull it off. But with Focusmate, I’ve actually done it, and have a reliable tool to help overcome procrastination in general.
The biggest miracle is that it’s made me as close to a morning person as I’ve ever hoped to be. For months now I’ve had the super-power of getting up at 5:45am many mornings to do an hour of something helpful (reading, stretching, dishes, writing, computer work, etc.). This is thanks to knowing that a nice, smiling person will be waiting for me to get started on their own project at 6am – or whatever time it is where they are, somewhere around the world.
It’s a 50-minute study hall via video-chat. My randomly-assigned partner and I will have a very brief and cheerful intention-setting conversation, then work for 50 minutes, then quickly recap our progress and congratulate (or commiserate with) each other. It has surprised me that this quick shot of social contact gives me a boost of energy that ultimately adds to the focus-enhancing effect. Plus, being forced to become aware of the passage of time helps me course-correct when I do get distracted. It’s like the Pomodoro technique, but with a partner to help me actually follow through.
As an Obliger (see Gretchen Rubin’s The Four Tendencies), Focusmate’s set-up really serves my needs, and interestingly, I’ve talked to other users of different tendencies who say the same thing. I happily pay $5/month for unlimited sessions (and get nothing for my endorsement), but you can also do 3 per week for free.