Loading
During onboarding, Headway will ask you when you like to see new ideas, and then use that to set notification alerts.
Behind this Bite
There are two great things here.
Firstly, by giving you some autonomy over the alert—making you more likely to pay attention to them (User Initiated Triggers).
Secondly, by framing the question as "when do you like to find new ideas", they're putting you in a mindset to think about a routine (rather than ad-hoc).
AI insights
Insights
User-Initiated Triggers means people react more to reminders they've set themselves. Here, Headway asks users to pick their notification time, so alerts feel personal and less intrusive.
Progressive Disclosure is about exposing complexity step by step. Headway first asks a simple habit question, then lets users pick a time, so onboarding feels easy and not overwhelming.
Tomorrow uses a similar pattern by letting users choose which notifications they want. Both examples give users control, which often boosts attention and feature usage.
Uptime lets users set their reminder time during onboarding, just like Headway. Both approaches help users create a routine, which can improve habit-building.
The Science Behind Nurturing Habits shows that cues and consistency help habits stick. Headway's time picker and routine options act as cues, making it easier for users to build a learning habit.
Related psychology:
Impacts:
UI Components:
Posted 01/08/2025
More Bites
Free Newsletter
World-class UX, one week at a time
There are more than 40,000 designers, developers and product teams who trust BFM to explain why things work. Join them.