How Life Crafting Apps Can Help You Discover and Clarify Your Life Purpose

Discover how life crafting apps use psychological research to help you find your true purpose. These tools guide you through reflective questions, clarify personal values, and support goal alignment—offering structure, accountability, and scientifically-backed planning to bring purpose into your daily decision-making.

What Is a Life Crafting App and How Does It Work?

A life crafting app is a digital tool designed to help you articulate your values, set meaningful goals, and align daily actions with your life purpose.

According to a 2020 study published in the journal Frontiers in Psychology, life crafting involves a process of:

Reflecting deeply on personal values
Imagining an ideal future
Setting goals that align with core beliefs
Creating concrete plans and obstacles
Implementing supportive structures to follow through

“Life crafting interventions can motivate individuals to pursue life goals that align with their values and passions, leading to enhanced well-being and clarity.” — Schippers, Ziegler, & Vleeshouwers (2020)

Core features of a life crafting app include:

Guided journal prompts and reflective exercises
Value clarification questionnaires
SMART goal creation tools
Progress trackers and daily check-in routines
Long-term planning dashboards

Examples include tools like Serenity, which offers structured goal breakdowns, daily motivational nudges, and AI-powered feedback to help you stay on track.

How Can a Life Crafting App Help Me Discover My Life Purpose?

Life crafting apps help you discover your life purpose by guiding you through a structured psychological process.

According to the study “Life Crafting as a Way to Find Purpose and Meaning in Life”:

Users are prompted to reflect on their fundamental values and talents
They then envision an ideal future self and life scenario
Apps facilitate goal-setting aligned with this vision

🧠 This mimics successful life coaching techniques supported by goal-setting theory (Locke & Latham, 2002), helping users build a life that feels intrinsically meaningful.

In summary, these apps create a purpose-driven framework for living your values—not just setting goals.

Can These Apps Guide Me in Creating a Step-by-Step Plan to Achieve My Goals?

Yes. Most life crafting apps break down larger goals into manageable components and daily actions.

Example structure:

Define: What’s the overarching goal?
Break Down: Divide the goal into quarterly, monthly, and weekly milestones.
Plan: Assign deadlines and define action steps.
Review: Check progress every day or week.

✔ Serenity, for instance, uses AI prompts and a timeline view to help structure achievable milestones and adjust the path when needed.

“Concretizing goals and planning implementation intentions are key to moving from abstract life ideals to everyday action.” — Schippers et al. (2020)

How Do Life Crafting Apps Keep Me Accountable Over Time?

If you’re wondering how to stay accountable to your goals, life crafting apps offer psychological tools rooted in behavior change science.

Key accountability features:

Daily check-ins or end-of-day reflections
Analytics on progress and streaks
Reminder notifications and “nudges”
Optional social sharing or mentorship pairings

💬 In Serenity, you receive adaptive check-ins that ask, “What did you accomplish today?” and “Where did you get stuck?” These mirror coaching approaches that build self-discipline.

“Maintaining motivation requires continual attention and feedback loops to stay aligned with identity goals.” — Schippers, Ziegler, & Vleeshouwers

What Are the Best Life Crafting Apps Available Today?

Here are some of the top life crafting and goal-setting apps based on feature set, user satisfaction, and psychological grounding:

App	Best For	Unique Features
Serenity	Daily support & planning	Goal visualizer, AI check-ins, coaching logic
Goalscape	Visual goal management	Radial planning system, motivational design
Fabulous	Habit and life structure	Habit tracking, morning routines
Coach.me	Habit + personal coaching	Real human habit coaches, daily tracking
Way of Life	Simple behavior tracking	Color-coded habit ledger, journaling

In summary, Serenity stands out for bridging life vision work with daily action, making it one of the most holistic options.

Can I Customize My Goals and Values Within a Life Crafting App?

Absolutely. One of the central pillars of life crafting, as supported by research, is personalization.

Apps like Serenity offer:

Custom value input (e.g., creativity, stability, contribution)
Free-form goal setting and intent statements
Visual priority rankings of values
Personal “purpose manifesto” creation tools

🧩 Customization ensures the goals you pursue align with your unique identity—key for long-term motivation.

Is a Life Crafting App Suitable for Both Personal and Professional Goals?

Yes. Life crafting is designed to apply across life domains, including:

Career development
Personal relationships
Health and wellness
Financial planning
Learning and growth

📚 According to Schippers et al. (2020), “Clarity of purpose in one area (such as career) can reinforce motivation and meaning in others (such as personal life), creating a synergy effect.”

Most modern apps, including Serenity, ask you to tag goals by category, ensuring balance between life areas.

How Do These Apps Help Clarify Values and Align Them With Life Goals?

Clarifying your values helps ensure that your goals are not only achievable but desirable.

🧠 According to goal-setting theory:

Values give goals meaning
Meaning sustains long-term effort

Apps guide you to:

Select core values from evidence-based lists
Reflect on why those values matter
Align those values with goal categories
Review mismatch areas

This process stimulates what's known as “motivational congruence”—when the why behind your goals matches the what.

What Kind of Progress Tracking or Daily Check-Ins Do Life Crafting Apps Offer?

Common features include:

Daily reflection journaling
Weekly recap prompts
Streak counters
Visual dashboards of goals in progress
Adaptive reminders

📆 Serenity offers an “Accountability Timeline,” helping users visualize wins, stuck points, and upcoming action items—reducing ambiguity and keeping attention focused.

Users who regularly reflect on goals “report higher levels of clarity, productivity, and well-being over time.” — Frontiers in Psychology, 2020

Are Life Crafting Apps Backed by Psychological Research or Coaching Methodologies?

Yes. The foundation is well-established psychological theory.

Key sources:

Schippers’ Life Crafting Model (2020): Empirically validated psychological model
Locke & Latham’s Goal Setting Theory (1990)
Gollwitzer’s Implementation Intentions (1999): “If-then” goal planning
Positive Psychology and Narrative Coaching models

Apps like Serenity and Goalscape incorporate these principles through in-app assessments, structured plans, and journaling.

Can Using a Life Crafting App Reduce Stress and Decision Fatigue Related to Life Direction?

Yes, and here’s why:

Clarifying purpose reduces ambiguity.
Pre-made plans minimize daily rethinking (“What should I focus on today?”)
Value alignment cuts out irrelevant options
Structured check-ins maintain focus and reduce procrastination

⏳ Decision fatigue stems from unstructured, emotion-driven goal pursuit. Life crafting apps replace that with systems grounded in known cognitive and motivational science.

“Living with purpose is linked to lower stress, better health outcomes, and increased psychological resilience.” — Schippers et al. (2020)

Frequently Asked Questions

What’s the best way to achieve long-term goals?

Break goals into smaller steps, write down your “why,” and track daily actions. Serenity or similar structured apps automate this for daily momentum.

Can I align values like altruism or freedom into professional goals?

Yes. Life crafting apps help map abstract values to concrete behaviors in work, relationships, and learning contexts.

Is Serenity really based on science?

Yes. Serenity uses frameworks supported by Schippers et al., Goal-Setting Theory, Grit Theory, and Positive Psychology.

Do I need to use the app daily?

Consistency amplifies results. Even 5 minutes a day reviewing goals and values improves alignment and clarity.

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References

Schippers, M. C., Ziegler, N., & Vleeshouwers, J. (2020). Life crafting as a way to find purpose and meaning in life. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, 2778. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6923189
Locke, E.A., & Latham, G.P. (2002). Building a practically useful theory of goal setting and task motivation: A 35-year odyssey. American Psychologist, 57(9), 705–717.
Gollwitzer, P. M. (1999). Implementation intentions: Strong effects of simple plans. American Psychologist, 54(7), 493.

Author Bios

Michaéla C. Schippers, PhD – Professor in Behavior and Performance Management at Erasmus University Rotterdam, expert in life crafting and goal setting.
Nina Ziegler, PhD – Behavioral scientist specialized in motivation theory and human flourishing.
John Vleeshouwers – Applied psychologist focused on educational interventions and personal development.