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Ade

Exploring how current technologies can be used to help the habit of procrastination.

For my 12 week capstone project, I was inspired to help procrastinators by the article “Millennial Burnout”, where Anne Helen Petersen detailed her experiences with procrastinating on small tasks and errands. I used current technologies and trends to arrive at an A.I.- powered coaching and motivation solution.

Roughly 65.7 million Americans can be classified as chronic procrastinators.

Even with the high costs associated with procrastination, there is a lack of products that truly target their needs. Due to a number of factors, chronic procrastinators finds existing solutions ineffective. How can technology help them?

Research + Discovery

Gathering User Data through surveys

I designed a survey that was distributed via Survey Money. I aimed to find out people's attitudes towards task management and how different people got things done. I received 106 replies, which I then compiled for analysis.

Key learnings from surveys

1.

Procrastinators procrastinate because of stress and anxiety, which stems from their low self-efficacy

Everyone has a to-do list that needs completing, but the reasons for putting things off differs bwtween procrastinators and non-procrastinators.

2 .

Completion rate of survey directly correlated with self-efficacy of respondent.

By asking participants to rate their competence at completing chores, errands and tasks, I found the completion rate of this survey is correlated directly with how highly they rated themselves.

3 .

Procrastinators have trouble building the habit of using calendars and task organizers.

Participants describes current apps as "no better than a list", "easily ignored notifications", "difficult and tedious to input all my tasks", and "forgettable".

REBT can be used to help procrastinators.

Established in the 1955 by Albert Ellis, the Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy developed with the aim of resolving the underlying emotional and behavioral problems so people can achieve a better quality of life. One of the first widely cited books written about procrastination was “Overcoming Procrastination”, published by Albert Ellis and Bill Knaus in 1979.

4 stages of tackling procrastination

1. Awareness
Becoming aware of one’s procrastination, routines and underlying emotional triggers.
2. Goals
Developing goal-directed behavior to carry out the tasks on which one is currently procrastinating.
3. Commit
Making a commitment to tolerate the anticipated short-term discomfort to achieve the longer-term goal.
4. Persist
Persisting in this anti-procrastinating outlook or approach.

Taking advantage of emergent trends

Sensory
Opportunity

A new wave of consumers are chasing multi-sensory experiences that enhance their well-being, increase their sense of belonging, and offer an exhilarating escape from digital overload.
‍
In the well-being space, multi-sensory products and services provide a deeper sense of peace and balance.

Design

Design Criteria

  • A system that helps users time manage by establishing concrete goals that can build their self-efficacy.

  • Helps users remain committed by visualizing their progress and motivate them to persist through obstacles.

  • Help users gain awareness of their emotions and underlying causes of procrastination.

Ade

Ade is a system that consists of a time management mobile application and physical totem that guides users through daily sessions of self-reflection.
Scheduling App
  • On-boarding
  • Provide notifications
  • Allows users to review accomplishments
  • See their tasks and goals
  • Connect with support group
Daily Meditation totem
  • Digital smart device with screen and voice capabilities
  • Aids building the keystone habit of self reflection through the use of A.I.
  • Assists planning for Daily Goals
  • Utilizes lighting and sound as notifications.
  • Introduces scent as a reward for completion.

Time Management App

Streamlined On-boarding: Pick a Goal
Through the survey, I found that users considered the process of inputting information, schedules and tasks off-putting. I designed a streamlined on-boarding system that guides the user towards picking an inspiring goal for motivation, reducing the friction of the
on-boarding process.
1. Friendly introduction
2. Enter information
3. Pick a goal
4. Suggested task
Task-Management Coaching
Ade coaches procrastinators into managing their own tasks through building successful daily habits that will grow with time.
Tasks as cards
Tasks are represented as cards, categorized by color. Users can see what needs to be done at-a-glance.
Tracked progression
Once completed, each card gets is colored in.
This provides a satisfying conclusion.
Achievements
Each Personal Goal and Daily Task comes
with a unique set of achievements and badges
that can be collected and shown off.