Low Bar Podcast The 19-Day Delusion: The Business of New Year’s Resolutions — Ep. 15
New Year’s resolutions fuel a massive business built on optimism, failure, and predictable human behavior.
Ben and Jon walk through the hidden economy behind fitness apps, diet challenges, planners, habit trackers, and self improvement products that surge every January. They explain how platforms already know exactly when users will fail, why that failure is expected, and how it becomes a feature of the business model. Using real data from apps and search trends, they show how predictable drop off turns into recurring revenue year after year.
This is not a motivation episode. It is a business episode about incentives, psychology, and monetization. Once you see how these models work, you will recognize the same mechanics in subscriptions, ecommerce offers, challenges, and seasonal launches everywhere.
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Timestamps:
00:00 The economy built on New Year’s optimism
03:50 Why most resolutions fail by day 19
07:35 How apps know exactly when users quit
12:20 Vision boards and packaged motivation
17:10 Shock bracelets and forced habit change
22:40 Dry January and diet challenges explained
28:35 The real business behind self improvement
34:20 How this model applies to ecommerce
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