Illustration by UncommonCriminal
Each month, our Use Case Spotlights highlight user stories and tips that can help you as you set up your own tasks, refresh things to add new challenges, or just get more motivated to keep at it! This month, we asked users to share their thoughts on how they use Habitica to support their loved ones — which for some people is totally key to a satisfying life, but can also lead to struggles with balancing conflicting needs… or just remembering everything that needs to be done!
SuperSaraA started us off by really emphasising the importance of self-care, but also how Habitica has helped her understand people better:
The social aspects of Habitica also help me to be able to support my family and friends in a healthy way because the guilds (and tavern chat) give me a safe space to vent in general if I am having a bad day and serve as a great dose of encouragement to keep going even when it is hard. Because of the users in Habitica who kindly send comforting words into the chat, I can often be kinder in real life because of letting go of my frustration in a different place (while following the community guidelines of course). Being a socialite contributor in Habitica also helps me to support my family and friends because it has taught me to stop and think about what the question really is and to analyze what the person needs to know (and if they understand or not). Thinking on a world wide scale (something helping in the Tavern chat has really made clear to me) also allows me to have a larger view on things from many perspectives which makes it easier for me to relate to and respect members of my family and friends who have different views on topics than I do. Differences are what make the real world (and Habitica) a beautiful place.
maxmoon shared how they use Habitica in a very practical way, to help them switch between different types of tasks:
I have physical tasks helping family members, especially while a pandemic is going on, because they need some help, like carrying heavy stuff or using the pressure washer to clean up the terrace or other heavy physical task older family members can’t do anymore. Having the todo row organized in physical and non-physical tasks helps a lot to switch between those kind of tasks, especially if a family member doesn’t live around the corner.
QuartzFox uses Habitica to reinforce a well-established habit of speaking to her mother daily, to help keep her connected to the world:
QuartzFox: I hardly need a daily to talk to my mother, but I have one anyway, and I think it’s the one I’ve had the most consistency in maintaining. She lives alone and especially with things the way they are, I know I’m one of her few links to the outside world and it’s a great boon for both of us.
And shanaqui mentioned how transformative that kind of habit can be, even if you keep the bar really low:
I do have a daily task to reach out to a friend or family member. It doesn’t have to be something big, just as simple as saying hi, but I have to do it every day. It’s really simple and there are no rules about it not being the same friend two days in a row, and it’s not meant to be massively transformative… but it kind of is. I’m back in touch with friends I miss from university, I’ve spoken to my aunt more in the last few months than in the last few years, and I know what’s going on for my friends in time to support them instead of finding out from Facebook or Twitter when it’s over.
We hope these ideas are useful for you in figuring out how to use Habitica for this kind of task! Don’t forget, you can read other tips and ideas in the Use Case Spotlights Guild, or by digging through the backlist of Use Case Spotlight posts… and we’d love to hear about you support your loved ones, whether it’s as a carer, a parent, a shoulder to cry on, or something else.
If you’re interested, you can also participate in next month’s Use Case Spotlight and potentially get your response published in next month’s article! To join in, become a member of the Guild and watch out for the prompt explaining what the next theme is. Just post your thoughts in the chat, and your response could get included in the blog post!
get organized. stay motivated. have fun. 