Behavioral Design: Crafting Castlight’s Healthy Habits Experience
UX Copywriting • UX Design • Behavior-Driven Design
Approach
Built the content architecture for the entire feature, including onboarding, progress tracking, and habit completion states
Defined voice and tone guidelines specific to this feature to ensure we sounded encouraging without being prescriptive
Collaborated across teams (product, design, research, engineering, and marketing) to ensure cohesion and clarity from first tap to final check-in
Informed design decisions by incorporating behavioral science principles like habit stacking, identity reinforcement, and positive reinforcement
Iterated quickly, launching with a few high-impact habits, then expanding based on engagement metrics and qualitative feedback
The Challenge
At Castlight, we wanted to help users build healthier routines without overwhelming them. The challenge: design a lightweight, in-app feature that could guide users through small, achievable habit changes over 1–2 weeks. It needed to feel simple, supportive, and worth coming back to. V1 focused on habits like drinking water, eating fruit, and meditating.
I shaped the experience from concept to launch:
Building modular journeys users could self-select and revisit.
Partnered closely with product, design, and engineering to define the user journey, voice, and overall narrative structure.
Led the development of in-app copy, from feature entry points to habit-building flows, always grounding content in behavioral science and user motivation.
Findings
The Healthy Habits feature became a consistent driver of repeat engagement. Small habit loops, framed with the right language and visuals, helped users feel momentum without the pressure of a full lifestyle overhaul.
This work not only strengthened Castlight’s engagement strategy, but it also laid the foundation for future content-led feature development rooted in behavior change and user trust.