My Role
UX/UI Design
UX Research
Interaction Design
My Team
This is a solo project that I worked on for Idélab x Mälardalen University. I'm happy to announce that 'Dolendar' got into the final round of the competition!
Duration
4 weeks
Overview
Dolendar empowers users to heighten their motivation and productivity through meaningful interactions with friends, family, and colleagues. By capturing images upon task completion and receiving uplifting messages from those around them, users experience a more productive day.
With Dolendar, effortlessly stay informed about the schedules of those close to you to better understand their day's progress. The application facilitates task sharing, collaborative task setting, commenting, reactions, and more.
PITCH VIDEO
Check out my pitch for Dolendar!
Home 1 🏠
Mini calendar: Allows users to keep track of important events of the day. Users can also check other users' tasks, as long as they are public!
To-Do Tasks: A list of tasks created by users, with customizable categories to help them easily track their progress. At the end of the week, users can review statistics to see which categories they have spent the most time on. This allows them to reflect on areas that may need more focus.
Home 2 🏠
Social Media: Users must complete tasks by capturing a photo or video, with the option to share it only with close friends. This helps users stay accountable and motivated to complete their tasks.
Comments and React: This also enables users to view comments and reactions from others, offering motivational support! 💖
Mutual-Calendar 🗓️
Shared calendar: Dolendar also facilitates easy access to friends' schedules and allows users to collaborate and be productive together.
The calendar section showcases the priority schedules of friends offering an overview of their day's agenda. Users can identify days when everyone is free, streamlining real-life meeting planning without lengthy conversations with their friends, and making the meeting planning smoother without deliberations.
Weekly Tasks Review 📊
Visualization review: Get a clear overview of past week's accomplishments through captured photos and videos. This allows users to reflect on their progress and revisit memories of completed tasks visually.
Friends' Tasks 🙌
More interaction with others: Users can also check their friends' daily tasks to see how their day is going.
For tasks that users couldn't complete or have already passed, there's an option to allow others to view and leave comments for encouragement.
Create a balanced routine between work and social life with an integrated app that combines social media, a to-do list, and a calendar.
HIGHLIGHTS AND PREVIEW
Peer pressures among gen Z
In the last decade, social media has become an indispensable aspect of Generation Z's lives, encompassing those born between 1995 and 2012. However, the constant sharing of carefully curated and idealized versions of life on platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, and Snapchat has led to adverse effects on users. This trend has contributed to mental health issues, especially when individuals struggle to maintain a healthy relationship with these platforms. Peer pressure is a significant concern among the current generation, as evidenced by numerous social studies. 😢
With the overwhelming number of school deadlines, I find it difficult to keep up with everything. I haven’t found a good way to balance it all, except by carefully planning and hoping to have spare time for other activities. I often realize that I don’t prioritize anything besides schoolwork, which can be unhealthy at times. This made me start wondering—could there be a more effective way to solve this problem while still being 'productive'?
Me, also a gen Z, also struggle with overwhelming tasks
I encountered this issue while discussing productivity with four friends. Our group often waited 4–5 weeks to align schedules and struggled to stay updated on social media due to time constraints and distance. As people get older and busier, maintaining relationships becomes harder, and less communication weakens connections. How can we help people reconnect daily while staying informed about each other's lives?
Maintaining relationships is hard in this busy world… 😖
PROBLEMS
"But how can I stay productive without interrupting my friends?"
"I can not balance my life well, I either have to choose myself or other people"
"I only have 24 hours a day, my day barely starts and then it just ends so quickly! How can I even have time to update my friends and family"
QUESTIONS
And the realization came, which led to more insights 🫧
Therefore, we have identified the target user group for this defined problem. The problem here is finding solutions to help users connect with friends or family indirectly without the need for constant communication. Additionally, finding ways to help users become more productive is also a significant advantage in searching for solutions to this problem.
Interviewee 1
A user with two years of experience as a front-end developer finds it challenging to stick to a time planner due to frequent sudden deadlines. Instead, they rely on Apple Reminders for key tasks and use memory for smaller ones. Despite these efforts, they still struggle to maintain consistent productivity without additional motivation.
As their workload increases, they find it harder to connect with loved ones, as the demands of their job consume most of their time. Balancing work and personal life has become an ongoing challenge.
Front-end Developer (Apple Reminder)
Interviewee 2
Another participant, who is a student, relies heavily on Google Calendar to track daily tasks and school work. The app serves as a helpful tool for organizing schedules, managing tasks, and ensuring efficient tasks incoming.
However, they also face difficulties maintaining relationships outside of their academy network. The demands of their work often prevent them from meeting old friends, leading to feelings of isolation. They wish to reconnect with others and stay updated on their lives, despite their time constraints.
Student
(Google Calendar)
Qualitative Data
In order to attain a profound insight into user perspectives, I conducted a pair of interviews—one with a consistent planner user and another with someone who doesn't follow such a routine. These interviews afforded me the opportunity to discern the intricacies of daily productivity challenges and their effective management. From these conversations, notable pain points emerged, encompassing issues such as feelings of social isolation, burnout resulting from obligatory tasks, diminishing enjoyment, and the emergence of impractical expectations.
DATA COLLECTED
And the realization came, which led to more insights 🫧
In the initial stages, I reached out to 16–30 year olds to understand how they track daily tasks. While many used Google Calendar, Notion, or Apple Reminders, 4 out of 10 preferred keeping plans in their heads, struggling with planners.
Unlike Google Calendar, Notion, and other to-do apps, Dolendar addresses a key issue—users feeling pressured and unmotivated. It fosters a supportive and motivating environment, prioritizing well-being and productivity.
After gaining deeper insights, I conducted a competitive analysis of three commonly used apps and followed up with two participants for further discussions.
IDEATION
Inspired by BeReal!
BeReal is a photo-sharing application, that enables users to share a single daily photo. This grants followers and friends a real-time glimpse into the user's current activities and experiences. I took inspiration from the idea of "capturing real-time moments through pictures" to create Dolendar. The core concept behind Dolendar revolves around showcasing our daily life to others through the tasks we engage in.
Using Testing and Iteration
I introduced my sketches and low-fidelity prototype to some users to get feedback. The idea of taking pictures to show that they are done with the task has received positive feedback from all the users. Additionally, I received suggestions to incorporate comments for tasks that friends haven't completed, serving as motivation, and to include a private option for certain tasks.
The development of Dolendar involved an extensive design process, during which I sought feedback from numerous potential Gen Z's users. The response was overwhelmingly positive, with many expressing a genuine interest in using the application once it becomes available. This positive feedback underscores the potential appeal and impact of Dolendar in addressing the needs of its target audience.
Challenges in Solo Project
The project is constrained by limited resources, time (four-week timeframe), and the absence of design collaboration, making it difficult to explore broader creative solutions. Usability testing is the primary source of feedback, and finding unbiased testers is a challenge.
Allow me to think out of the box
Since the project is not tied to business or acquisitions, it allows for more creative freedom and innovation without external pressure.
Customer-Centric Approach
The product, Dolendar, is designed primarily based on user insights rather than third-party stakeholder influence, making it a customer-driven initiative.
Future Research
I aim to refine the project by seeking a wider user base, incorporating quantitative data for better decision-making, and adding features like task statistics and community-driven inspiration tools.
REFLECTIONS
Stella Huynh
© 2025
Made with ❤️ while listening to 20+ music albums
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