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- Idea Of The Day - Build the App That Makes You Pay When You Slack Off on Goals
Idea Of The Day - Build the App That Makes You Pay When You Slack Off on Goals
Needs To Exist
August 14, 2025
GM. This is Needs to Exist (aka NTE), dropping a startup idea that’ll make hitting your goals impossible to ignore—and way too expensive to fail.
NTE Pro – $99/year lets you raid our vault of almost 5k untapped ideas before anyone else even knows they exist.
Sitting on gold while it gathers dust?
NTE Zero to One takes buried ideas and forges them into things the world can’t ignore.
Check out all the past newsletters here
Here’s what we’ve got for you today.
Daily Idea - Cash-Backed Discipline
Angel vs. Devil
Lose Goals, Lose Your Cash
Stake it → Keep it or Lose it.
Want NTE Zero To One to make it real?
The One Liner
Bet against yourself or lose big.
The 140 character tweet (or X) version
Set a goal. Put up cash. Miss it? Your money funds causes you hate. Verified via apps, locked on-chain.
The Longer Story Version
The Problem
Self-discipline is a scam we keep falling for.
We make “new me” promises, daily journaling, 3 workouts a week, read a book a month. We buy planners, download habit trackers, watch productivity YouTubers.
And then… we ghost ourselves.
Why? Because missing doesn’t hurt. The only consequence is “I guess I’ll try again next week.” That’s not punishment, that’s a nap.
Every accountability app so far is built on good vibes. Notifications. Badges. Encouraging emails. None of that works on the primal part of your brain that only moves when something’s on fire.
The Solution
Burn your ships. And your money.
You set a measurable goal, workouts, pages read, tasks done.
You deposit cash into the platform.
The system tracks your progress automatically via Apple Health, Strava, Readwise, Notion, Todoist.
You succeed → you keep your cash.
You fail → the platform sends it to your personal “enemy cause” (political party you hate, rival sports team, that influencer who makes you irrationally angry).
Everything runs on-chain. Transparent, timestamped, impossible to fake. Your future self can’t “forget to log” or Photoshop a streak.
It’s the only habit tool where slacking actually hurts.
How We’d Build It
Beginner Mode: Launch Weekend MVP
Product
GTM
Run a 30-day “Pain Challenge” in Reddit self-improvement and fitness subs.
Partner with small YouTubers in the productivity niche and have them publicly put up $100 and dare viewers to join.
Intermediate Mode: Let It Run
Product
Smart contract on Base for transparent stake + forfeit logic (low gas fees).
Public dashboard of all forfeits + donation targets.
Direct API integrations for faster verification.
GTM
Team up with group coaching programs, gyms, or mastermind groups to offer “accountability with teeth.”
Launch leaderboards + group forfeits: if one person fails, everyone pays.
Advanced Mode: Own the Space
Product
Mobile app with streaks, public shaming wall, and “nemesis mode.”
Gamify with badges for long streaks and biggest forfeits.
AI goal coach that taunts you when you’re slacking.
GTM
Sponsor “versus” challenges between rival fanbases (Yankees vs. Red Sox, Marvel vs. DC).
Corporate wellness plans: employees lose to fund the competitor’s charity.
Why It Needs to Exist
Because people fear losing money more than they want to “be better.”
Every self-improvement tool is a cheerleader. This one’s a debt collector. You won’t skip your run when you know it’s paying for your rival’s champagne fund.
The future of habits isn’t gentle reminders, it’s weaponized accountability.
Your Dream Customers, Served on a Silver Platter
A Message From Our Partner
You just built something amazing. Now what? Most founders start spamming LinkedIn like it’s 2012. Smart founders? They fire up Apollo. In minutes, you’ve got a hit list of perfectly matched buyers, their real emails, and the tools to reach them, without feeling like a desperate door-to-door salesperson.
You swore you’d work on it this weekend
The “big idea” from last month’s happy hour, the one your friends said was genius.
But then came laundry. And Netflix. And somehow you’re three episodes deep in a cooking show about fermented cabbage.
Meanwhile, your million-dollar idea? Still just a punchline in your group chat.
NTE Zero to One drags it out of limbo. We hand you the plan, tools, and momentum to go from “lol someday” to “link in bio.”
$49. Less marinating. More making.
🔥 Angel vs. Devil: The Habit App That Makes Failure Hurt
Angel:
“Alright, this one’s brilliant. You set a goal like work out three times a week, read twenty pages a day, hit your sales calls and put your own money on the line. Hit the goal, you keep it. Miss, and the cash goes to a cause you hate. That’s stakes. That’s motivation.”
Devil:
“Or that’s just a stress machine. People have enough pressure already, now you want to turn self-improvement into a financial landmine? One bad week and suddenly you’re funding your ex’s yoga retreat.”
Angel:
“Exactly. That fear is what makes it work. Humans respond more to loss than to gain, it’s science. You’ve tried sticky notes, reminders, habit trackers. None of that made you consistent. But knowing your $100 is going to your rival sports team? You’ll never miss leg day again.”
Devil:
“Or you’ll just quit the app the moment you lose once. People hate failing in public. And remember, it’s on the blockchain. Everyone can see when you blow it. You think that’s motivating? Half your friends will be rooting for you to slip so they can laugh.”
Angel:
“And that’s even more incentive to not slip. It’s built for accountability you can’t wriggle out of automatic tracking through Apple Health, Strava, Notion. No faking it, no logging a run by shaking your watch on the couch. Every success and failure is timestamped, verified, and untouchable.”
Devil:
“Sounds exhausting. What if someone’s sick? What if they have an off week? You’re punishing people for being human. I say build people up, don’t tear them down with financial spite.”
Angel:
“Financial spite is the point. You’ve had years to build those habits the ‘nice’ way. How’s that working out? This isn’t about being gentle—it’s about finally doing the thing you keep putting off. Pain moves people.”
Devil:
“Pain also makes people game the system. What’s to stop them from picking baby goals just to protect their cash? Or setting a goal like ‘smile once a day’ and calling it a win?”
Angel:
“That’s where the public ledger and verification come in. The whole point is to set real, measurable goals, stuff that actually changes your life. The app isn’t built for fakers, it’s built for doers who just need a hard shove.”
Devil:
“Or maybe it’s built for masochists. Self-improvement by fear isn’t sustainable. The second you take the punishment away, the habits vanish. You’re just renting discipline, not owning it.”
Angel:
“Not if you do it right. You use the stakes to build momentum, then the habits stick because you’ve tasted what it’s like to win. Think of it like training wheels made of barbed wire and you only need them until you can balance on your own.”
Devil:
“Training wheels made of barbed wire… catchy. Still, this is going to attract a certain type of person. The overly competitive, the grudge-holders, the ones who’d pay $50 just to make sure their friend donates to the Yankees Foundation.”
Angel:
“And you say that like it’s a bad thing. Those are exactly the people who’ll stick with it, hit their goals, and tell everyone they know. It’s accountability with teeth. Soft, fluffy apps had their chance—now it’s time for something that actually works.”
Devil:
“Or something that makes people poorer and angrier.”
Angel:
“Or richer and better.”
Who’s right? Depends on whether you’re ready to put your money where your habits are or in your enemy’s pocket.
What We’d Put in a Billionaire’s Idea Journal
If you could peek inside the “next big thing” list of a billionaire, it wouldn’t be boring. It’d be wild, slightly unhinged, and loaded with asymmetric upside.
That’s exactly the kind of stuff we put in NTE Pro.
Todays drop includes:
🛏 Monetizing Sleep: Trading Rest for Rewards — Turn hours in bed into a new income stream. Yes, seriously.
💌 Viral Gratitude: Spreading Kindness Through Messages — A social loop that weaponizes thank-yous to grow like wildfire.
🎯 Belief-Based Marketing: Targeting Aligned Micro-Audiences — Stop selling to demographics; sell to what people actually believe.
That’s 3 out of almost5,000 unclaimed blueprints you can see, sort, and steal inside NTE Pro.
These ideas don’t sit in someone’s journal forever, they either collect dust… or they collect dollars.
Your Idea → Live App in Minutes
A Message From Our Partner
NTE Pro hands you almost 5,000 unclaimed business blueprints. Glide turns them into working apps, fast. No code, no dev team, no waiting. Just connect a Google Sheet (or your data of choice), drag-and-drop your way to a polished product, and launch before your coffee gets cold.
If you can make a spreadsheet, you can make an app.
One More Meme
