Are you sure?

Today I'm releasing Are you sure?, a little Chrome extension that prompts you before you visit certain websites. I often get distracted by Reddit or Hacker news when I'm meant to be doing something useful, and this is my own particular take on that problem.

I think that in many cases we overreact to mild cognitive flaws and biases, unreasonably punishing our monkey brains that are already trying as hard as they can to keep up. While I respect the power and depth of extensions like StayFocusd, I can't help but feel that strict schedules, time limits, and having to write lines on a virtual blackboard to use your computer is more masochism than self-improvement.

For my needs, I mainly trust myself. If I really want to, there are a hundred ways I can get around a website blocker. And sometimes I really do need to visit Hacker News or Reddit for work. I don't need a strict taskmaster, I need a helpful friend; someone to ask "hey, man, is this really what you want to be doing?". Are you sure? is an extension from that school. It only prompts you once, just enough to interrupt your muscle memory and ask you to actively make a decision about whether to waste time or not.

After that, it's up to you.