[barry66]

Something funny happened today: I opened an app I don’t even use much just to keep a streak going. It made me laugh afterward because I realized I didn’t care about the app at all — I just didn’t want to “lose” the streak. It’s kind of like when my buddy told me he kept going back to a casino booth just to not break his winning pattern, even though he was barely winning anything. Do streak systems get to anyone else like that?

[millergrace]

Totally understand that. I once kept a language-learning streak alive for almost a year, and at some point the streak was more important than the actual learning. When I read an explanation at https://nichegamer.com/the-dopamine-economy-casinos-vs-social-media/
about how streaks mimic reward mechanics, it suddenly made a lot more sense. What helped me was letting one streak end on purpose. It felt awful for a day, but afterward I stopped feeling pressured, and the apps became fun again instead of something I “had to” maintain.

[emmacol]

Just popping into the thread, and I find it interesting how streak systems can mean so much to some people and almost nothing to others. I’ve never really followed one myself, but I always hear friends talk about not wanting to break theirs. I guess it all comes down to personality and how motivated you get by small daily habits. Still, it’s cool seeing different perspectives on it.

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