Feature Brainstorm

[paulstatezny]

This is an issue for discussion potential features / details about the app.

Eisenhower App

This app (http://eisenhower.me/) is pretty similar to what I want to make, but (1) it's for iPhone primarily and (2) the web version is kind of lacking. (It was made primarily for mobile.)

My vision is to make Decisive a more feature-complete desktop version.

As a "starting point", check out the desktop/web version at http://www.eisenhower.me/todos. (You'll need to create an account, but the web version is free.)

Definite Features

1. Add items to 1 of 4 to-do lists
2. Check off items (Do they go away immediately? In a given time? Or is there a "clear" button?)
3. Dragging tasks between quadrants
4. Moving tasks higher / lower within list on a quadrant
5. UI should be so obvious there's no "explanation" pop ups needed.

Potential Features to Discuss

1. No "logging in" at first -- it's just ready to use and saves to your local computer.
2. Simple -- the system knows nothing about deadlines. Just your 4 lists.
3. "Focus mode" like the Eisenhower mobile app?
4. For tasks in "schedule" list, hook into calendar? (This is what Eisenhower does)
   • Eisenhower takes the method really literally. In it, the way that you deal with a task in the "Important, Not Urgent" quadrant is by adding it to your calendar. But some people aren't very calendar driven, so I wonder if it would work to allow the user to use this quadrant as a "holding area" for tasks that will eventually become more urgent.
5. For tasks in "delegation" list, send emails? (This is what Eisenhower does)
6. Multiple grids (work, home, etc)
7. "Suggestions" -- intelligently determine what the user needs to do next. (First highlight "do now"s, then highlight things that need planned and delegated.) We'd need a way to hide these.

Mobile Features

(If and when we make a mobile version.)

1. Show 1 to-do list at a time.

[paulstatezny]

Any thoughts / questions / criticisms?

[pedringt]

I like everything here so far! I'm struggling to think of anything else to add at the moment, ha. But I'll keep thinking about it.

[paulstatezny]

Here's a sketch of what the layout could look like.

I'm thinking it reaches all the way to the top of the screen, and then any kind of menu / options go on the left.

Also, I didn't add "New Task" buttons, but I guess those would go in each quadrant. And I think it would be super helpful if you could add a task by clicking anywhere in the quadrant (except on an actual item, of course.)

[paulstatezny]

The "Grids" switcher would switch to a completely different grid with different to-do's of course.

The "Focus" buttons are if we have a focus mode like Eisenhower. Maybe different tabs would have different actions, too? ("Schedule on my calendar" buttons for the "Plan" quad, "Email someone" buttons on the "Delegate" quad?)

[paulstatezny]

Also, with the bottom right quad I feel like people need the freedom to do that stuff... just on their "down time". i.e. You don't have to be perfect to use this system, just roll with the punches and use it help you, not make you feel like a slave to the system.

[paulstatezny]

What if, when you add an urgent and important task, it's somehow prompts you or give you the option to split that task up into smaller tasks?

I feel like that would be helpful to battle procrastination, splitting things up into smaller tasks always makes it easier to start the process of tackling them.

[paulstatezny]

Like, it would have to be a really easy and intuitive interface where the user could split of the task with very minimal effort.

[dmmcinty]

I like the idea of being able to split tasks; maybe allowing a user to set up a set of smaller sub-tasks that lead up to the completion of the larger task so that users can keep their graph organized would be useful.

[dmmcinty]

I also like the idea of hooking Plan/Schedule tasks into a calendar. For users who don't like using calendars though, we could just ask for the date it needs to be done by, and remind them when that date is near so they can update the matrix, or even just move it for them.

[paulstatezny]

For users who don't like using calendars though, we could just ask for the date it needs to be done by, and remind them when that date is near so they can update the matrix, or even just move it for them.

I really like that, especially the last part

[paulstatezny]

I made a layout prototype in Sketch/Invision. http://invis.io/YC2ODJQBS

[paulstatezny]

Prototype Version 2

http://invis.io/3G2OYJB5N

Philosophy behind the changes

In the first prototype, I feel like there was too much attention on the quadrant headings. "Do Now, Delegate, etc." The Eisenhower app focuses on similar headings. But I think they detract from the original Eisenhower method, which tries to get you to answer two questions:

1. Is this task urgent?
2. Is it important?

I feel like there is a lot of power in the simplicity of just those two questions. So I made the priority headings more prominent and changed the quadrant headings to be less prominent and more conversational. They still hint the user about what to do with each list, but they leave the focus on the Urgent/Important headings.

[paulstatezny]

Game-ification ideas, to make it more engaging:bKeep track of finished tasks and display them in a prominent place.