APPA FAQ

Answers to common questions about APPA.

General

What is APPA?

APPA is the Anti-Productivity Productivity App. It helps you pick a few things that matter today, connect them to your values, and reflect on how the day went.

Do I need an account to use APPA?

No. APPA works without an account. If you do not sign in, the content you create stays on your device.

What can I do for free?

You can use the core planning and reflection tools for free: daily pages, priorities, more items, notes, values, reminders, and reflections.

What does APPA Premium include?

Premium unlocks Sync and Insights. Sync keeps your content available across devices. Insights helps you notice patterns in your tasks, reflections, and values.

Is APPA medical or mental-health advice?

No. APPA is a planning and reflection tool. It is not a medical device, therapy, clinical assessment, or emergency service.

Planning Your Day

What are Priorities?

Priorities are the few things worth your attention on a page. Daily pages support up to 3 priorities.

Why does APPA limit daily Priorities to 3?

APPA limits Priorities to 3 because the point is not to capture everything you could do. It is to help you choose what deserves your attention today, and let the rest wait.

The exact number 3 is APPA’s product choice, not a universal scientific rule. The research behind the choice is broader: attention and working memory are limited. George A. Miller’s classic paper, “The Magical Number Seven, Plus or Minus Two”, helped popularize the idea that short-term memory has limits. Later work, including Nelson Cowan’s review “The magical number 4 in short-term memory”, argues that working memory capacity is often closer to about 4 chunks when memory aids are stripped away. APPA’s 3-priority limit stays inside that range and leaves room for the normal noise of a day.

Goal-setting research points the same way. Locke and Latham’s review, “Building a practically useful theory of goal setting and task motivation”, describes goals as useful partly because they direct attention and effort. APPA uses 3 priorities to make that choice visible: choose what matters, keep the rest in More Items or Stacks, and avoid turning a long list into today’s obligation.

What are More Items?

More Items are things you want to keep nearby without making them top priorities. They live below the Priorities section.

Can I move an item between Priorities and More Items?

Yes. Swipe left on an item to reveal more actions and tap the move control. You can move an item into Priorities when there is room under the 3-priority limit.

Can I reorder checklist items?

Yes. Hold and drag items to reorder them within their section.

How do I edit a checklist item?

Tap the item text, make your change, and press return to save.

How do I delete a checklist item?

Swipe left on an item to reveal more actions and tap the delete control. You may see an undo option for a short time before the deletion is saved.

Can I add notes?

Yes. Each page includes a notes area below the checklist. Notes support Markdown formatting.

What is the Calendar for?

The Calendar lets you open and edit daily pages from other dates.

What are Stacks?

Stacks are containers for non-daily pages. Use them for project notes, recurring lists, parked ideas, or anything that should not crowd today’s page.

Values

What are Compass Values?

Compass Values are the values you want to keep close while you plan and reflect. You can choose them during setup or edit them later.

Why connect actions with values?

APPA asks you to connect actions with values because a task is easier to understand when you can see what it is serving. “Email the school,” “go for a walk,” and “finish the proposal” are ordinary tasks. Tied to values like Presence, Health, or Craftsmanship, they become small choices about the kind of day you want to live.

This idea is rooted in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, or ACT. ACT is not about forcing yourself to feel better before you act. It is about noticing what matters, making room for the thoughts and feelings that come with real life, and taking committed action in the direction of your values. The Association for Contextual Behavioral Science describes ACT as a model that builds psychological flexibility: the ability to stay present and choose or persist in behavior “in the service of chosen values” (ACBS ACT overview). Hayes, Luoma, Bond, Masuda, and Lillis describe the same model in their paper, “Acceptance and Commitment Therapy: Model, processes and outcomes”.

For APPA, that means your list is not only about getting things done. It is about noticing whether your actions are still connected to what matters to you. Some days that means doing the important thing. Some days it means letting the rest wait.

How do I edit my Compass Values?

Open Settings > Compass Values and tap Edit. If you have not chosen values yet, tap Start Here.

Can I create my own values?

Yes. When the preset values do not fit, you can add your own.

How do I attach a value to a checklist item?

Swipe left on an item to reveal more actions and tap the value/tag action. Choose the value or values the item supports, then tap Done.

Reflections and Insights

What is a Reflection?

A Reflection is a short daily check-in about how the day felt and whether it reflected what matters to you. Completed reflections are used for Insights.

What is the I-PANAS-SF model used in Reflections?

APPA’s affect reflection is based on the I-PANAS-SF, the International Positive and Negative Affect Schedule Short Form. The name is technical, but the idea is simple: it is a short research-backed way to notice positive and negative emotional states.

The I-PANAS-SF is a 10-item short form of the original PANAS, a widely used research scale for positive and negative affect. The original PANAS was introduced by Watson, Clark, and Tellegen in “Development and validation of brief measures of positive and negative affect”. The international short form was developed by Edmund R. Thompson in “Development and Validation of an Internationally Reliable Short-Form of the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS)”.

In APPA, the positive prompts are Active, Determined, Inspired, Attentive, and Alert. The negative prompts are Afraid, Nervous, Upset, Hostile, and Ashamed. Each is rated from 1 to 5. APPA adds the five positive ratings into an On Score from 5 to 25, and the five negative ratings into an Off Score from 5 to 25.

Positive and negative affect are not treated as simple opposites. A day can be energized and stressful, quiet and calm, or somewhere in between. APPA uses these scores to help you reflect and notice patterns. It does not use them to diagnose, screen, or label you.

When can I complete a Reflection?

Reflections appear on past daily pages and on today’s daily page after 6 PM local time. Future daily pages do not show reflections.

What are Insights?

Insights are Premium views that help you notice patterns across your tasks, reflections, and values. They can show affect trends, value alignment, value energy, and written summaries.

Why do I not see Insights?

Insights require a Premium subscription. They also need completed reflections and enough relevant activity to show useful patterns.

Reminders and Notifications

Can APPA remind me about a task?

Yes. Checklist items can have reminders. Swipe left on an item to reval more actions and tap the reminder control, choose a quick option or pick a custom date and time, then save it.

Can APPA remind me to plan or reflect each day?

Yes. Open Settings > Notifications to turn on a Morning Reminder for setting priorities and an Evening Reminder for reflecting.

Why am I not receiving notifications?

Check that notifications are enabled in APPA and in your device settings. On Android, reminder behavior may also depend on alarm and notification permissions.

Open Account, enter your email address, and tap Continue with email. APPA sends a sign-in link to that address that you’ll need to click on the device where APPA is installed.

Check your spam or junk folder, confirm that the email address was entered correctly, and try again. If it still does not arrive, email support@justanotter.day.

Yes. Sign-in links are single-use and expire after 1 hour. If a link no longer works, request a new one from the Account screen.

What happens if I sign out?

Signing out removes the active session. APPA can still show local data on that device. Data remains on the device unless you clear local data or delete it.

How do I delete my account?

Open Account and tap Delete account. This permanently deletes your account and synced data from APPA’s database.

Does deleting my account cancel my subscription?

No. Deleting your account does not cancel an active App Store or Play Store subscription. You must cancel the subscription through Apple or Google.

Sync and Data

Does APPA sync my data automatically?

Sync is a Premium feature for signed-in users. Use the Sync button in the drawer to sync local content with APPA’s servers.

Why is the Sync button locked?

Sync is locked when you are signed out or your Premium subscription is not active. Sign in and subscribe to Premium to unlock it.

Where is my data stored?

Your content is stored locally on your device by default. If you sign in with Premium, your content is also stored on APPA’s servers so it can sync across devices.

Can I clear data from this device?

Yes, when signed out. Open Settings > Local Data > Clear local data. This permanently deletes local notes, stacks, reflections, and reminders from the device.

Subscriptions and Billing

First, you’ll need to sign-in to your account (see “How do I sign in?”). Once signed in, open Account and tap Subscribe, or open a Premium feature such as Insights. Subscriptions are purchased through the App Store or Play Store.

How much does Premium cost?

APPA Premium annual: $79.99 per year, with a 7-day free trial.
APPA Premium 3-month: $24.99 every 3 months.

How do I manage or cancel my subscription?

Open Account and tap Manage subscription if it is available. You can also manage or cancel through your Apple App Store or Google Play account settings.

Can APPA issue refunds?

Subscriptions are billed by Apple or Google. Refund requests are handled under the App Store or Play Store refund policies.

How do I restore a purchase?

First, you’ll need to sign-in to your account (see “How do I sign in?”). Once signed in, open Account and tap Restore purchases.

Troubleshooting

My Premium access is missing after reinstalling or changing devices. What should I do?

Sign in with the same email address, then open Account and tap Restore purchases. If access still does not appear, email support@justanotter.day.

How do I contact support?

Email us at support@justanotter.day. Whether it’s a question, an idea, a bug, or just feedback, we’d love to hear from you.