cansino: Anti-Procrastination

A fun anti-procrastination app that uses annoying reminders, proof-based tasks, and token-based challenges to keep you accountable.

Comment

Inspiration

As a proud member of the Procrastination Nation, I kept putting off simple but essential tasks — like changing my cat’s litter, watering my plants, or finally sending that email. Eventually, I realized: no app was annoying enough to keep me accountable.

So, I built Cansino — an app that’s not just a productivity tool, it’s a digital pain in the neck. Why? Because I needed it. And maybe… you do too.

What it does

Cansino is a fun, sarcastic, anti-procrastination app that makes sure you actually get stuff done — by any means necessary. • Create tasks that you usually postpone. • Choose days, times, and how often to be reminded (spoiler: it will bug you). • Complete tasks by proving it — via voice phrases, photos, text or even location. No cheating allowed. • Bet tokens on weekly/monthly challenges. Win if you complete them. Lose tokens if you slack off.

It’s like if your most annoying friend became your productivity coach… but in a good way.

How we built it

This was my first solo project using Swift & SwiftUI, and I took it as a personal challenge to learn and ship something real — by myself.

The app is built 100% in Swift, using: • SwiftUI for the modern and clean UI. • SwiftData for local persistence. • RevenueCat for token purchases and subscriptions. • AdMob for rewarded ads. • UNUserNotificationCenter for local push reminders. • And of course, some magic with AVFoundation & SpeechRecognizer for task validation.

Challenges we ran into

• Handling validations like speech input and image proof without making it annoying (well… too annoying).
• Managing reminders and notifications in different time zones (don’t ask me about Qatar).
• Creating a token-based economy that actually motivates users without making the app feel like a paywall.
• Oh, and resisting the urge to procrastinate building an anti-procrastination app.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

• Built and shipped my first real iOS app completely solo.
• Learned SwiftUI and Swift from scratch — and didn’t give up when things broke.
• Designed a full UX around behavior change and gamification.
• Made something weird, funny, and genuinely useful for people like me (aka professional procrastinators).

What we learned

• SwiftUI is amazing… and occasionally infuriating.
• User behavior is unpredictable — validation mechanics had to be tight but not overkill.
• Monetization doesn’t have to feel gross. Tokens can actually help reinforce habits when used creatively.
• Sometimes, the best way to beat procrastination is to make it cost you.

What's next for cansino: Anti-Procrastination

• Quick Tasks Notifications: Add support for lightning-fast reminders.
• Smarter Feedback: Cansino will analyze your patterns and give personalized feedback — supportive… or passive-aggressive.
• Cansino as a Companion: The goal is to evolve the character into your sarcastic little buddy that knows your habits and helps you stay on track (whether you like it or not).

At the end of the day, I built this app for people like me — forgetful, overwhelmed, but trying. And with a bit of humor and pressure, maybe we can trick our brains into actually getting stuff done.

Built With

  • admmob
  • revenuecat
  • swift5.9
  • swiftdata
  • swiftui
Share this project:

Updates