Our team

Helena Brandt

Behaviour & productivity writer · second reviewer · Reads the studies an app cites, then checks whether they say what the ad says.

Helena Brandt covers the why and how on this site — what the research genuinely supports about attention, motivation and behaviour change, and which design choices let a fragile new routine survive a chaotic week. She treats studies as evidence to be read, not garnish: when an app points to a paper, she opens the paper and checks whether it says what the marketing implies.

The moment that interests her most is the small one where procrastination actually happens — the gap between meaning to start and reaching for something easier. She looks for the mechanics that close it: a first step too small to talk yourself out of, a timer you will genuinely press, a block you cannot idly tap through, a streak that forgives the day you miss. She is wary of any app leaning on a grand, neuroscience-flavoured claim it cannot stand behind, or hinting at a cure it cannot deliver.

As second reviewer she reads every page for accuracy and tone before it goes live — with extra care wherever procrastination shades into ADHD, anxiety or low mood — and writes much of the focus, habit and deep-work coverage herself.

Areas of expertise

Focus & deep-work apps
The psychology of procrastination
Habit formation & adherence
Reading productivity-app evidence claims
Plain-language explainers

Knows about: procrastination, focus apps, anti procrastination apps, habit formation

How Helena evaluates apps

Helena measures each app's stated method against what the research actually supports, calls out any claim that overreaches, and aims her testing at the real question: does a focus habit still hold up once the first fortnight is over?

Articles by Helena

Articles Helena reviewed

Find Helena on LinkedIn.

Helena works to our published review methodology.

Struggling, not just stalling? Most procrastination is ordinary. But if putting things off has tipped into hopelessness, or you are having thoughts of harming yourself, please reach out today. In the US and Canada, calling or texting 988 connects you with a trained counsellor at no cost, any hour. Anywhere else, contact your local emergency line. You do not have to handle this on your own.