It seems we’ve gotten to that point, or at least I have, where much of what I do in a day or want to do, is via an app.

Prior to my trip to Paris last summer, I used Duolingo to brush up on my French.  More recently I’ve been using it to brush up and learn Italian.  With the New Year and resolutions and all that, I’ve added two new apps to my phone: Yousician and Nike Fit Club.

What I like about these apps is the daily “hit” of something.  I can’t always motivate myself to find time for a weekly bass guitar lesson, or hitting the gym for an hour every day.  BUT I can easily find 5 or 10 minutes to mess around on my phone.  These apps all appeal to that 5-10 minute window.  They also add gamification, which regardless of how you feel about that word, makes me happy when it’s something I need encouragement to do, like practicing a language, an instrument, or exercise.  Give me rewards and gold stars for doing small tasks, it’s the hit I need to keep coming back and making it a daily habit.

I also love streaks (remember way back when I ran every day for 3 1/2 years?) and most of these types of apps track that and reward you for it.  They also seem to know when it’s too much and allow you to customize the amount of nag, at least the good ones do.  I won’t go back if I feel like I’m being hounded by an app, but I do need occasional reminders when I’ve let things go too long.

What apps are you using for building daily habits or learning new things?