You keep getting in your own way, and you know it. Sabotype gives that loop a name, shows the strength hiding inside it, and points to one small next step. It starts with a free 5-minute quiz.
28 quick statements and a few short questions. It looks at six common patterns across four parts of life: direction & work, success & growth, money, and love. Your result shows up right away, no email needed.
Your result
Your Sabotype
The pattern you lean on most, the hidden strength inside it, the life area where it shows up most, and one small step you can take today. If two patterns are close, you'll see both.
$47 · one-time
The Reset
An optional 30-day program built around your type: a short daily email and a private page. About 10–15 minutes a day, with a 5-minute version for busy days. No subscription. 30-day refund.
How we write it
A pattern, not an identity. You have a Sabotype. It describes something you tend to do in certain moments, not who you are.
Always a strength and a step. Every pattern protects something. We name what it protects and the strength inside it, then suggest one small, kind step.
Evidence, without the hype. Each type draws on published psychology, explained in plain words below. We don't claim more than the research shows.
No promises. The Reset is 30 days of small resets. It's practice, not a promise of results.
The research behind each type
Sabotype's six types are our own names for patterns psychologists have studied for decades. The quiz isn't a published psychological test, and it hasn't been studied for accuracy. It's a reflection tool that borrows these ideas and puts them in everyday words.
The Fresh-Start Chaser
Researchers at Wharton found that people take on new goals more often right after “fresh start” moments, like a new week, a new month or a birthday. Those moments can feel like a clean break from past slip-ups. Procrastination researchers also describe putting things off as short-term mood repair: it feels better now and passes the cost to later. A brand-new plan is one of the quickest mood lifts there is.
Dai, H., Milkman, K. L., & Riis, J. (2014). The fresh start effect: Temporal landmarks motivate aspirational behavior. Management Science, 60(10), 2563–2582. doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2014.1901
Sirois, F., & Pychyl, T. (2013). Procrastination and the priority of short-term mood regulation: Consequences for future self. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 7(2), 115–127. doi.org/10.1111/spc3.12011
The Polisher
Psychologists separate two sides of perfectionism. One is high standards, which on its own is often linked to good outcomes. The other is the worry that a mistake says something about you, sometimes called perfectionistic concerns. That second side is the one tied to stalling and stress. So the goal isn't lower standards. It's less fear about falling short of them.
Stoeber, J., & Otto, K. (2006). Positive conceptions of perfectionism: Approaches, evidence, challenges. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 10(4), 295–319. doi.org/10.1207/s15327957pspr1004_2
Hewitt, P. L., & Flett, G. L. (1991). Perfectionism in the self and social contexts: Conceptualization, assessment, and association with psychopathology. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 60(3), 456–470. doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.60.3.456
The Hedger
In 1978, psychologists Edward Jones and Steven Berglas described self-handicapping: putting an obstacle in your own way before a test, so a poor result can be blamed on the obstacle instead of your ability. It's a clever shield for how you see yourself. The trade-off is that you rarely get to see what your full effort can do.
Jones, E. E., & Berglas, S. (1978). Control of attributions about the self through self-handicapping strategies: The appeal of alcohol and the role of underachievement. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 4(2), 200–206. doi.org/10.1177/014616727800400205
Berglas, S., & Jones, E. E. (1978). Drug choice as a self-handicapping strategy in response to noncontingent success. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 36(4), 405–417. doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.36.4.405
The Understudy
In 1978, psychologists Pauline Clance and Suzanne Imes described high achievers who credited their success to luck, timing or other people, and who quietly feared being “found out.” They called it the impostor phenomenon. Later research has found these feelings are common in many groups, including people who are clearly doing well.
Clance, P. R., & Imes, S. A. (1978). The imposter phenomenon in high achieving women: Dynamics and therapeutic intervention. Psychotherapy: Theory, Research & Practice, 15(3), 241–247. doi.org/10.1037/h0086006
The Echo
Psychologists link this pattern to resting a lot of your sense of worth on other people's approval. Each yes brings quick relief, which makes the next one easier. The good news: saying no may cost less than you think. In a set of studies, people overestimated how upset others would be when they turned down an invitation.
Psychologist William Swann's research on self-verification suggests people tend to seek experiences that match how they already see themselves, even when that view isn't flattering. Familiar feels steadier. Other studies found that people who felt less sure of themselves were more likely to dampen their good moods rather than savor them.
Swann, W. B., Jr., Pelham, B. W., & Krull, D. S. (1989). Agreeable fancy or disagreeable truth? Reconciling self-enhancement and self-verification. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 57(5), 782–791. doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.57.5.782
Wood, J. V., Heimpel, S. A., & Michela, J. L. (2003). Savoring versus dampening: Self-esteem differences in regulating positive affect. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 85(3), 566–580. doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.85.3.566
What the Reset draws on
The daily steps lean on three well-studied ideas. Specific “if this happens, then I'll do that” plans help people follow through. Meeting a mistake with kindness, rather than criticism, was linked to more effort to improve, not less. And procrastination often has more to do with mood than with time.
Gollwitzer, P. M., & Sheeran, P. (2006). Implementation intentions and goal achievement: A meta-analysis of effects and processes. Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, 38, 69–119. doi.org/10.1016/S0065-2601(06)38002-1
Breines, J. G., & Chen, S. (2012). Self-compassion increases self-improvement motivation. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 38(9), 1133–1143. doi.org/10.1177/0146167212445599
Steel, P. (2007). The nature of procrastination: A meta-analytic and theoretical review of quintessential self-regulatory failure. Psychological Bulletin, 133(1), 65–94. doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.133.1.65
What Sabotype isn't
It isn't therapy, medical advice, a psychological test or a diagnosis.
It isn't a label for life. Your result reflects your answers at one moment in time, and patterns change.
It isn't crisis support. We can't respond to emergencies by email.
It's for adults 18+.
Sabotype is a self-reflection tool, not therapy or a diagnosis. If you're struggling, please reach out to a professional or a local helpline.
If you're in crisis or thinking about harming yourself, please contact your local emergency number now. In the US, call or text 988 (free, 24/7, 988lifeline.org). Anywhere else, find a free, confidential helpline at findahelpline.com.
Sabotype is a small, independent project. Payments are handled by our payment partner, which acts as merchant of record. We never sell your data, and we never send your answers or your type to advertising platforms. Questions about anything on this page: [email protected].
Curious which one is yours?
Free. About 5 minutes. No email needed for your result.