How to Use the ‘Gotta Go’ iOS App from Chelsea Does

Of course, we’ve all been in a situation that we just flat-out didn’t want to be in. You might show up to a party and realize it’s not quite what you thought it was, or you’re on a super awkward first date and don’t know how to politely end things early. Well if you’ve watched “Chelsea Does” on Netflix, you know that Chelsea Handler has an idea for how to get out of these situations. She brought the Gotta Go app to life.

In the second episode of the docu-series, Handler dreams up a Gotta Go app that can automatically give you a fake way to get out of any situation. Whether or not you’re anticipating having to get out of it in the first place, it can seriously be a life saver. The iOS app, I’m happy to report, is real and it’s free to download. Let’s get into how make the most of it.

Using Gotta Go to Avoid the Unavoidable

Here’s how Gotta Go works. When you download the app, you’ll automatically get a few different preset “excuses” but you can also create and customize your own. These excuses come from fake contacts that the app will set up to contact you in some way right when you want it to. In public, you’ll be able to show other people you’re being contacted for some urgent reason and use it as an excuse to get out of a situation.

To create your own custom alert, tap the Add New button on the main screen to set it up. First, pick an emoji to essentially name and represent the excuse. For this example, I’m going to use a glass of wine. You can also change the background color by tapping Edit Color and making a selection.

Next, you get to pick your “contact.” Tap underneath From to select who you want the call or text message to show up from. It’ll generate a photo, a name like “BFF” and real information like a phone number about that contact.

Note: This will add a real contact into your Address Book

Next up, time to decide when the call or message comes in to save the day. You can set it up to alert you anywhere from a minute after activation if you’re in desperate need of an escape or up to two hours after if you’re planning to be miserable somewhere.

You can have the app send you either a phone call or a text message or both. You can write the text message yourself in up to 140 characters and can even have Gotta Go send you multiple different texts. When you’re ready, tap Activate and the timer will begin.

Sure enough, at the time you set, your phone will ring. Answer the call and it’s none other than Chelsea Handler (pre-recorded, of course) hilariously guiding you through what you should be saying to the person you’re with. After the phone call ends, you’ll get the text messages.

And there you have it. If you’re believable, Gotta Go for iOS should be able to let you quickly get up and leave whatever social misery you’re in without being rude.