TrackMe
TrackMe is a web application that helps people track their most aspirational goals. TrackMe has a robust SMART goal creation in-take process that walks users through the process of creating goals. Additionally TrackMe has a goal progress tracking feature that is meant to help users keep on top of their goals.
Introduction
TrackMe was created to allow for people to track their most aspirational goals.
According to research from the University of Scranton only about 8% of people end up reaching their New Year's resolutions goals. There are many factors as to why this may be the case. Here at TrackMe we believe that the main culprit behind this is ineffective goal creation and progress tracking.
Research and Validation
An American Psychological Association study conducted by Harkin, Webb, Benn, Sheeran found that “Your chances of success are more likely if you report your progress publicly or physically record it.” Additionally the researchers uncovered that “Monitoring goal progress is a crucial process that comes into play between setting and attaining a goal, ensuring that the goals are translated into action,” said lead author Benjamin Harkin, PhD, of the University of Sheffield.
We interviewed family and friends to understand their pain points and areas of concern that our product could solve. Across the board the main issue that we found is that there are no freely available tools that help people create really robust goals.
While there are paid enterprise level tools such as (Monday/Clickup/etc..) that have goal creation functions, there are no free tools that walk you through goal creation following a widely-used goal setting format.
Additionally we found that keeping track of your goals was also a headache. Whether that was writing them down on a piece of paper, or keeping track of them on a word processing doc. Another tracking problem that arose through our research was the inability to track your progress to your goals week over week.
Execution
Our first pivot
Originally we wanted to focus on the tasks tracking function of our tool as that was an area of interest for most team-members and interviewees. However after team deliberations we pivoted to focus on the goal intake process and provide users with additional features such as tool-tips
Our second pivot
Our original tech stack was going to be ReactJs for frontend work and python for database/backend. Due to lack of comfort from both developers with the stack being used, we made the transition to VueJs framework to handle all routing/frontend work while still using python for database/backend. This made it more efficient for both developers as we felt more comfortable with the stack and could get more accomplished in the time we had.
Our third pivot
Our second pivot was around our dashboard screen. Originally we wanted to focus on providing our users with an emailed goal round-up for their records and tracking. However we pivoted to build a dynamic dashboard that allowed users to intake their goal progress on a weekly cadence and provide feedback around how they felt.
Landing on a solution
The goal for this product is to enable people to reach their goals. By providing a way for people to intake and manage their goals. The hypothesis is that if people really want to set and achieve their goals that our product will help them do so.
Solution
TrackMe has three key features:
- Provide information around goal creation - We provide links in our onboarding that direct users to external informational studies/articles
- Provide a robust intake process - TrackMe provides a SMART goal intake process that leads users through a goal creation exercise. We included tooltips to inform people on how to make their goals as robust as possible.
- Dashboard - Here we provide users with the ability to track and manage their progress towards their goals.
Learnings
Product Manager Learnings:
Salman Ahmed
- Prioritization of technical work
- Ability to translate words into actionable development work through user stories and grooming sessions
- Striking a balance between delivering maximum user value and meeting business needs
Designer Learnings:
Austin Torres
- Realizing the importance of user feedback and usability testing
- Team communication is key
- Learned more functions within Figma (auto-layout,Prototype animations)
Designer Learnings:
Jo Sturdivant
- Adapting to an Established Team: Joining the team in week 6 of 8 was challenging, as I had to quickly adapt to existing workflows, dynamics, and goals. This mirrors real-world situations where you often integrate into teams mid-project, and flexibility is essential.
- Work-Blocking for Efficiency: With only two weeks to complete the project, I learned the importance of a structured work-blocking system. This approach allowed me to manage my time effectively and meet deadlines under pressure.
- Making Data-Driven Design Decisions: Unlike my past projects, I had to rely on research conducted by others. This was a valuable experience in using pre-existing data to guide design decisions, helping me focus on the core insights without starting from scratch.
Developer Learnings:
Fatoki Oladele
- Communication is key in teamwork
- Managing and prioritizing product development tasks
- I was able to build my skills and gain experiences in full stack web development
Developer Learnings:
Vanady Beard
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As the back-end developer, I learned how important it is to create efficient and reliable systems that support the entire application. This experience also taught me the importance of optimising the database and ensuring the backend is scalable and easy to maintain.
Developer Learnings:
Stephen Asiedu
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As a back-end developer, I've come to understand the importance of being familiar with various database systems and modules. This knowledge enables me to build diverse applications and maintain versatility in my work. I've also learned that the responsibility for making the right choices rests on my shoulders, guided by my best judgement.
Developer Learnings:
Alex Shearer
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- Making sure all developers that are apart of the product team are comfortable with the tech stack
- Communication is extremely important amongst the entire team
- Learned more about alternative frameworks that have their own perks when working with their tools
Developer Learnings:
Maurquise Williams
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- Process of Creating an MVP: Developing a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) taught me how to focus on delivering core functionalities balancing between essential features and avoiding scope creep.
- Collaboration in a Real-World Tech Setting: This experience taught me how to collaborate efficiently in a fast-paced tech environment, keeping the team aligned and productive, even while working remotely across time zones.
- Sharpening Critical Thinking and Problem-Solving Skills: This experience honed my ability to think critically and solve problems efficiently. By tackling challenges and finding quick solutions, I sharpened my decision-making and troubleshooting skills in a dynamic, real-world setting.
Developer Learnings:
Jeremiah Williams
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All in all this experience was very awesome I learned that in coding with others being transparent is key
Developers Learnings:
Justin Farley
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I learned how important communication is when working with a team. Communication provides understanding, advice, ideas, and much more. While working with the product team, I’ve found that communication keeps everything flowing smoothly. Working with a team also showed me that every member brings something different to the table and we all have to work together in order to align and meet our end goal.