Way of Life: habit tracker - Interview with the developer of a fantastic app

Did you have any prior development or coding experience?

Yes. I’ve been coding since a very young age. I grew up in a family of IT nerds in the 80s.

What was the most challenging aspect of developing mobile app?

Designing the user experience for such a small device was a big challenge. I came from a desktop where space is not an issue. And the fact that a mobile user doesn’t have much patience with an app they initially don’t know means you have to nail the onboarding, too.

Name a few of your favorite apps and reason you love them.

YouTube because of the content.

How long have you been working on this app?

12 years - Since iOS 3 😊

What need of the user did you have in mind when developing this app?

I built this app for myself initially. In my constant struggle to lose weight, I have invented a simple system on paper for tracking my consumption of sweets, alcohol, fruit, etc. This was before the iPhone era.

Initially, I wanted to build an electronic device for tracking, but when I first saw the iPhone, I knew that was the device I had to build it for. The paper solution gave me an easy overview of my habits, and I wanted to transfer that idea to mobile.

In what way do you think your app is better than similar apps on the market? Please describe in detail what innovation you think you bring and what you are proud of in your app.

An essential aspect of the app that I paid much attention to was the time the user needed to spend in the app to enter data on a daily basis.

I had used calorie tracking apps (desktop) before and found them way too laborious and lost interest after a few weeks. A simple yes/no app that gave you a good idea of the general success in changing your habits was what I wanted, and judging from the feedback/reviews from my users, they stick with their habits and Way of Life, precisely because it’s fast and easy to use. I think that is my most significant achievement.

What are your future plans and expected features of the coming new versions of this app?

Adding accountability. Having a partner whom you can share your progress with is a very strong commitment device in terms of changing habits.

Assuming new users of your app are reading this page. What do you want to ask them to do (contact you about X, Share the app, etc.)?

Download the app. It’s totally free to try. And, if they succeed changing just a single habit, pass the word on to a friend who might also need to change a habit or two for a better way of life.