The SuperBetter book is already a NY Times best seller (Yay!).
BACKED BY TWO SCIENTIFIC STUDIES AND POWERED BY THE SCIENCE OF GAMES, SUPERBETTER IS AN APP AND WEBSITE THAT HAS HELPED NEARLY 500,000 PEOPLE TACKLE REAL-LIFE PROBLEMS AND INCREASE MENTAL RESILIENCE.
WE ARE NOT DONE WITH OUR PRODUCT, SCIENCE AND RESEARCH. TO IMPROVE EVEN MORE LIVES WE NEED YOUR HELP TO BUILD SUPERBETTER 2.0!
A randomized controlled study conducted by the University of Pennsylvania found that playing SuperBetter for 30 days significantly reduced symptoms of depression and anxiety, and increased optimism, social support and player’s belief in their own ability to succeed and achieve their goals. It also found that SuperBetter users were significantly happier and more satisfied with their lives.
A clinical trial funded by the National Institutes of Health and conducted at Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center and Cincinnati Children’s Hospital found that using SuperBetter improved mood, decreased anxiety and suffering, and strengthened family relationships during rehabilitation and recovery.
SuperBetter, LLC is a digital health company headquartered in Chicago, IL. As a team, we are so passionate about its potential to positively and profoundly impact the world that we acquired SuperBetter in 2015. Keith Wakeman is our CEO, Jane McGonigal is our Chief Science Officer and Mike Hostetler is our Chief Technology Officer.
Keith Wakeman is the CEO of SuperBetter. Keith is a social entrepreneur and innovator that has launched over $1 billion of new products. He was a brand builder for 20 years in the CPG industry and an entrepreneur for the last 10 years in developing new ventures in the health community. For more information on Keith please visit his LinkedIn.
Jane McGonigal is the Chief Science Officer and world renowned designer of games to improve real lives and solve real problems. Jane has a Ph.D. in Performance Sciences from the University of California at Berkley. She is also the NY Times Best Selling Author of Reality is Broken, Why Games Make Us Better and How They Can Change the World…and of course her new book – SuperBetter, A Revolutionary Approach to Getting Stronger, Happier, Braver, and More Resilent. For more information please visit Jane's website.
Mike Hostetler is our CTO and is a proven technology entrepreneur. Mike formerly founded appendTo, a boutique consultancy born out of his work on the jQuery project, which he exited in 2015. For more information on Mike visit his Blog or LinkedIn.
Violet Ricker is the Community Manager for SuperBetter. Violet has a background in community development and is an active advocate for reducing the stigma surrounding mental health. She has a bachelor’s degree in non-profit management from North Park University and is and currently working towards a Masters in Divinity Studies.
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UNDERSTANDING SUPERBETTER
WHAT IS SUPERBETTER?
SuperBetter is a gameful way of living that increases resilience: the ability to stay strong, motivated, and optimistic even in the face of difficult challenges. Resilience has a powerful effect on health—by boosting physical and emotional well-being. Resilience also helps you achieve your life goals—by strengthening your social support and increasing your stamina, willpower, and focus. Every aspect of the game is designed to harness the power of positive emotions and social connection to help you improve your life.
WHO IS SUPERBETTER FOR?
SuperBetter is for people who want more out of life—who want to feel happier, healthier, and more able to reach their goals. SuperBetter was designed with universal psychological research—meaning anyone can benefit from playing, regardless of age, gender, or location! Anyone over the age of 13 can create an account at SuperBetter.
WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF PLAYING SUPERBETTER?
SuperBetter makes you stronger. It helps you build social, mental, physical and emotional resilience in the face of any illness, injury, or health goal. Building resilience—the ability to stay optimistic, curious, motivated, and connected to others even in the face of an extreme challenge—has been scientifically proven to improve health outcomes of all kinds. Playing SuperBetter makes you more capable of getting through any tough situation—and more likely to achieve the goals that matter most to you.
HOW CAN I LEARN ABOUT THE SCIENCE OF SUPERBETTER?
As you play SuperBetter, you'll find science icons hidden throughout your missions. Clicking these icons gives you access to the science of SuperBetter—including links to the research articles that everything's based on.
You can see an overview of the science behind SuperBetter at ShowMeTheScience.com.
IS THE GAME AVAILABLE IN OTHER LANGUAGES?
We’re not quite ready to support translation into multiple languages, but rest assured it’s on our list of things to offer in the future.
IS THE APP AVAILABLE FOR MY MOBILE DEVICE?
Yes, the SuperBetter app is available for iPhone & iPads, and Android devices. You can also play it on any web browser by visiting SuperBetter.com.
ARE THE FEATURES THE SAME ON THE MOBILE APP AS THEY ARE ON THE WEBSITE?
The mobile apps are a companion to the website, not a full version of it. Some features (like your Secret Lab and your Ally dashboard) are only available on the website version for now. We plan to continually add new features to the mobile apps, so be on the lookout for updates! If you've only played on your phone, you can log in to your account at SuperBetter.com to discover even more ways to get SuperBetter!
PLAYING THE GAME
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO “PLAY” SUPERBETTER?
SuperBetter is a gameful way of living your real life—we just help you keep track of it. You can sign up and tell us what challenge you’re trying to tackle, and we’ll recommend Power-ups to help you feel better, Bad Guys to watch out for, and Quests you can do to get closer to your goals. Each time you complete a Quest, activate a Power-up, or battle a Bad Guy, just log into SuperBetter and push the “I DID THIS!” button to record your action. This will increase your personal resilience in real life and also move you forward in your SuperBetter adventure.
WHAT'S THE MINIMUM I SHOULD DO EACH DAY TO GET SUPERBETTER?
To get the most out of SuperBetter, we recommend a "Daily Dose":
Activate 3 Power-ups
Battle 1 Bad Guy
Complete 3 Quests
Your To Do list will automatically keep track of everything you do, so you'll know when your Daily Dose is complete. If you have more time, check in with an Ally, do more Quests, or update the Trackers in your Secret Lab!
HOW DO I WIN SUPERBETTER?
You win SuperBetter by achieving your Epic Win, a real-life goal you set for yourself at the start of the game. When you achieve your Epic Win, you can choose a new goal and start a new game!
SuperBetter is like life. It's a process, not an outcome. We think that you win every day you show up, face your challenges, and keep aiming for your goals.
HOW CAN I KEEP A POSITIVE ATTITUDE AND STICK WITH IT?
If you're struggling to keep a "never give up" attitude, here are some tips that might help you along:
Focus less on outcomes and goals and more on tiny steps that feel good in the moment.
Enlist plenty of positive social support. This is hands-down the best thing any of us can do to improve our health and attitude towards our health.
Accept that some days will be easy and others will be hard. It's normal and okay. Having a down day (or week even) doesn't mean you're doing anything "wrong." Just keep taking your Daily Dose!
Know that sometimes it takes hard work, grit, and determination to transform our challenges. Other times all we can do is witness our situation with neutral attention. Experiment with what works best for you.
Be sure that when you do choose a goal, you're choosing something that is a stretch but still realistic and attainable. Start small!
And most importantly—be good to yourself. Celebrate even tiny successes.
