Frequently asked questions about DeepAnchor

What is an anchor, and how do I set one up for everyday life?

An anchor in DeepAnchor is a small intention in your own words, following the pattern “When this happens, I do that”, for example: “When my jaw tightens, I take three breaths before I answer.” It works best when it’s tied to a moment you’re sure to notice, such as a transition or a signal from your body, and when the action is so small it takes seconds. The app reminds you at fixed or varying times. When you tick it off, you say whether you lived it or brought it back to mind, and both count. After three weeks, the app asks how natural it has become.

How is DeepAnchor different from a journaling app or a habit tracker?

A journal records, a habit tracker counts. DeepAnchor joins the two into a circle: a journal entry becomes an insight, the insight becomes an anchor for the situation it’s about, and what you experience with the anchor goes back into the journal. That way the anchor changes with what you learn about yourself, instead of you ticking off the same habit endlessly. What counts is looking, not succeeding. And an anchor is allowed to be finished: once it carries you by itself, you can move it into the collection “What carries me today”, and it stops reminding you.

What can the AI coach do, and what can’t it?

The AI coach in DeepAnchor asks questions when an entry is to become an insight, or an insight an anchor, one question per turn. It doesn’t advise, interpret or diagnose. At most it suggests a sentence as a draft for you to overwrite, because the sentence should be yours. It is always recognisable as a machine, and if something points to an emergency, the app shows a fixed notice with the crisis line and 112. It only sees what you release to it for a conversation.

What is the method assistant?

The method assistant in DeepAnchor shows you where your next step in the circle lies, for instance when an entry hasn’t become an insight yet. The first time, it guides you through the app step by step. It doesn’t judge, interpret or write sentences for you. It reads no text without your permission; if you expressly allow it, it reads your entries from the last fourteen days with AI, at most once a day, to suggest a step that fits. You can turn it down or off at any time.

Do I need a coach?

No. You can use DeepAnchor on your own. Then, if you want, the AI coach supports you with questions at the transitions, and the method assistant shows you where your next step lies. If you work with a human coach, you find them at the same points instead of the AI coach; they only see what you release to them. Research on if-then plans finds stronger effects when they are taught in person than when they are taught online or on paper (Sheeran, Listrom & Gollwitzer 2025; the evidence is on the “The method” page). That’s why a coach is a good addition, but not a requirement.

Why do good intentions fail, even though I know what I want to change?

Often it isn’t down to willpower. Many reactions run automatically, faster than we can think. You can’t think them away, but you can relearn them. That’s why DeepAnchor doesn’t start with the good intention but with the moment before it: with an anchor that is there exactly when it matters, and with repetition in everyday life.

What is a vision?

The vision in DeepAnchor is the inner state you want to strengthen, such as calm, clarity, self-worth or composure. It describes how you want to be, not what you have to do: anger becomes composure, shame becomes self-worth. There are seventeen states to choose from, and you can also put your own into words. Anchors, insights and entries each belong to one vision.

What is the Deep Anchor Circle?

The Deep Anchor Circle is the circle DeepAnchor works by, with four stations: vision, journal, insight and anchor. You orient yourself towards your vision, record in the journal what happened, condense it into an insight and bring it into your everyday life with an anchor. What you experience with the anchor comes back into the journal, and the circle goes one turn deeper. You can begin at any station.

How much time do I need a day?

A few minutes. You open DeepAnchor when a reminder comes, tick off your anchor and put your phone away again. The real work happens in everyday life, in the moment the anchor is meant for. You write in the journal when something has happened that you want to record.

What happens if I miss a day?

Nothing bad. The streak in DeepAnchor doesn’t break on the first missed day, and it counts “re-anchored” just the same as “lived”. For holidays, illness or times when it just isn’t possible, you can take a break of up to thirty days; the app then doesn’t remind you, and the streak rests. If the method assistant is turned on, it invites you to start again after a few quiet days.

Who can read my entries?

Journal, anchors, check-ins, letters and media are end-to-end encrypted in DeepAnchor (more on this on the security page). The key is on your device, not with us; we can’t read the entries, and neither can your coach. The only exception is what you choose to release: for a conversation or, if you allow it, for the assistant with AI. If you back up your phone to iCloud or Google, the app is included, like other apps; that’s handled by Apple or Google. You can export and delete everything.

Is DeepAnchor therapy?

No. DeepAnchor is an app for personal development in everyday life, not a medical device, and doesn’t replace diagnosis or psychotherapy. Anyone under heavy strain or in a crisis should get professional support; in the app, the notice with the crisis line and 112 is always there.

Is there scientific evidence for the method?

DeepAnchor is a combination of building blocks that have each been studied, such as if-then plans, recording progress in writing and short exercises for self-soothing. How well each building block is supported varies, and we set this out openly on the “The method” page, including where the evidence is thin. Whether the combination works as a whole has not been tested, and we don’t claim that it does.

What does DeepAnchor cost?

DeepAnchor Free costs nothing and doesn’t expire: one anchor with its vision, thirty journal entries and five conversations with the AI coach (one-off), with no subscription and no payment details. If you need more, you choose one of three paid plans (all prices). The method is complete in all of them; they differ only in the number of conversations with the AI coach and in storage.

I’m a coach: how does DeepAnchor fit into my work?

DeepAnchor carries what emerges in your sessions into your clients’ everyday lives. You give them insights as impulses, prepared anchors and material, and support them at the transitions of the method. You don’t see what they write, only what they release to you for a conversation or put into a package for the next session. More on the “For coaches” page.