You set a schedule of times you want to be productive, and a frequency, and then it rings you at random (but with that frequency) to bug you with questions like:
--Are you “in the zone” right now? [Y] [N]
--(if no) What are you doing? [text box] [common answer] [ common answer] [...]
The point is to cheaply collect data about when you are most productive and what your main time-wasters are, while also giving you gentle nudges to stop procrastinating/browsing/daydream/doomscrolling/working-sluggishly, take a deep breath, reconsider your priorities for the day, and start afresh.
Probably wouldn’t work for most people but it feels like it might for me.
This format of data collection is called “experience sampling”. I suspect there might be already made solutions.
Would you pay for such an app? If so, how much?
Also looks like your crux is actually becoming more productive (i.e. experience sampling is a just a mean to reach that). Perhaps just understanding your motivation better would help (basically http://mindingourway.com/guilt/)?
Productivity app idea:
You set a schedule of times you want to be productive, and a frequency, and then it rings you at random (but with that frequency) to bug you with questions like:
--Are you “in the zone” right now? [Y] [N]
--(if no) What are you doing? [text box] [common answer] [ common answer] [...]
The point is to cheaply collect data about when you are most productive and what your main time-wasters are, while also giving you gentle nudges to stop procrastinating/browsing/daydream/doomscrolling/working-sluggishly, take a deep breath, reconsider your priorities for the day, and start afresh.
Probably wouldn’t work for most people but it feels like it might for me.
“Are you in the zone right now?”
″… Well, I was.”
I’m betting that a little buzz on my phone which I can dismiss with a tap won’t kill my focus. We’ll see.
This is basically a souped up version of TagTime (by the Beeminder folks) so you might be able to start with their implementation.
I’ve been thinking about a similar idea.
This format of data collection is called “experience sampling”. I suspect there might be already made solutions.
Would you pay for such an app? If so, how much?
Also looks like your crux is actually becoming more productive (i.e. experience sampling is a just a mean to reach that). Perhaps just understanding your motivation better would help (basically http://mindingourway.com/guilt/)?