An App Idea to Stop Procrastinating Before Starting Work
A pre-work timer app that caps 'warm-up' video watching and forces a hard transition into work.
Anyone else or am I just allergic to being productive?
“just 5 videos then I’ll be productive” 2 hours later and I don’t even remember what I watched just me??
The problem, in the searcher’s words
You tell yourself 'just 5 videos then I'll get productive' and two hours later you don't even remember what you watched. It's not that you don't know what to do — you just can't stop the pre-work scrolling loop before you actually start.
This isn't about willpower in the abstract, it's about the specific ritual of 'warming up' with a few videos that turns into a lost afternoon. Existing advice in the thread is behavioral, not app-based: drop rigid time plans, just decide what must happen today, or set a timer on the procrastination itself and then a second timer to force a stop.
What the thread shows
The thread shows a common, relatable procrastination pattern, but responses are personal coping tactics rather than evidence of demand for a new tool or dissatisfaction with existing ones.
““just 5 videos then I’ll be productive””
“2 hours later and I don’t even remember what I watched”
“I stopped planning exactly when I'd do something. Now I just decide what has to happen today.”
“I set a timer on my procrastinating and then I set a 15 minute timer after that so I actually stop and get to work”
Target customer
Who
Someone who procrastinates via short-form or casual video watching right before they intend to start focused work
Context
They set an intention to 'warm up' with a few videos before a work session, but the video-watching itself becomes the session, costing hours without them noticing.
What to build
- User sets a short pre-work 'permission' timer (e.g. 10-15 min) for video/browsing
- Hard interrupt or lockout when the timer ends
- Simple log of what was watched and how long, shown back to the user afterward
- One-tap 'start work' action that begins a separate focus timer immediately after
Build note — Would likely need OS-level screen time or app-usage APIs to detect and cap video app usage, similar to existing digital wellbeing tools; browser extension needed for desktop video sites.
Later, if it lands
Who’s already out there
Lets users grow a virtual tree during a focus session and penalizes leaving the app or phone.
Gap: Focuses on protecting a work session already started, not on capping or transitioning out of a pre-work procrastination ritual like 'just 5 videos.'
Blocks distracting websites and apps across devices for scheduled periods.
Gap: Built around blocking access outright, not around the specific 'allow a short warm-up, then force a hard stop' pattern described in the thread.
Blocks specific sites, apps, or the whole computer for set schedules.
Gap: Same as above — an all-or-nothing blocker, not a bounded 'permission window' with an automatic handoff into work.
Demand read
The thread shows relatable, self-deprecating venting and generic coping tips, but no one describes paying for a tool, wanting to pay, or being frustrated with a paid solution — so durable demand isn't established here.
Worth digging into before you build
4 to considerNo idea is a sure thing at this stage — these are open questions worth checking yourself, not a verdict against building it.
Thin Source
Only 6 comments, mostly one-line personal anecdotes; not enough material to strongly validate a product direction.
Generic Idea
Procrastination/focus-blocker apps are a saturated category already served by Forest, Freedom, and Cold Turkey Blocker.
Weak Demand
No willingness-to-pay signals anywhere in the thread; commenters offer free behavioral tips, not tool requests or purchases.
Unsupported Field
demand.willingness_to_pay_signals is empty for lack of any pricing or purchase-intent statements in the thread.