If you fail to reach your goal, the amount goes to GFDI itself. It could go to a charity or third person but that would make the incentive to finish your goal weaker. Since it's a startup and the goal is to make it profitable as fast as possible, that's the business model.
Great name -- I'd bet that it significantly increased your upvote count :)
I like these kinds of projects as fun motivational tools, but as a business, your interests aren't aligned with your users. It is a big problem.
Imagine if Weightwatchers only made money when you didn't lose weight. Or, if universities got paid when you didn't learn. Doesn't sound too pretty does it?
I think it makes sense to have the money go to GFDI. If I succeed, I'm be more likely to add more goals, and eventually I'll fail and make GFDI money. :) BeeMinder has been doing this successfully for a couple years.
Those who don't like the business model, what do you think would work as an alternative?
I love the idea of the cash going straight to the maker. Did you guys ever try loseitorloseit? It was a very similar service a few years back focused on weight loss, and each week the devs would post a video of themselves spending forfeited cash in a silly way. Fun times.
I'm not sure that giving the money to charity would necessarily weaken the incentive. I get where you are coming from, but there is a whole lot more to motivational psychology that that. In the big picture, having an accountability partner (which you do have—"supervisor") is probably a bigger part of the motivational aspect.
I feel like it would make more sense to give the money to the supervisor than to "GFDI itself". Maybe you'd take a cut or something.
I just can't imagine people wanting to signup for something that would potentially give the money to some random website. Sure, people would be motivated to accomplish their goal so that the money doesn't go to GFDI, but I think people would be equally motivated to just not use the product at all.
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I saw this and thought "It's Gym Pact for the rest of your life." Key difference is that Gym Pact funds the people who achieve their goals from the money they collect from people who fail.
eu/acc: European Accelerationism
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