An initial survey of the productivity application landscape, including Microsoft To Do, TickTick, Todoist, Habitica, Plan Joy, and DoDay revealed a pattern of shared capabilities: calendar integration, habit tracking, color-coded categories, folders, progress dashboards, and gamification through level-up systems. Most of these features were well-executed in isolation. However, the presence of many features did not correlate with sustained user engagement. Reviews consistently pointed to two themes: users appreciated initial design, but abandoned apps when they stopped offering something new, or when the setup process became an obstacle in itself.

A key insight emerged from an interview with a user, who described repeatedly downloading productivity apps only to abandon them after a few days. Rather than struggling with organization itself, the user identified motivation and task initiation as the real challenge. Their perspective revealed that many productivity tools focus on helping people plan, but fail to help them actually begin. They also noted that novelty quickly loses its effect, causing many apps to become indistinguishable from the tasks users were already avoiding.

The interview also revealed a reliance on memory and trusted people to keep track of responsibilities, highlighting a common gap between intention and consistent action.

To better understand these behaviors, a formal investigation explored ADHD, executive function, and productivity research. While many of the findings were particularly relevant to people with ADHD, they also helped explain challenges commonly experienced by a broader audience.

Key findings included:

• Task initiation is strongly influenced by motivation and perceived reward.
• Future outcomes are often less motivating than immediate feedback, making it difficult to start or sustain tasks.
• Removing all friction can unintentionally reinforce avoidance rather than encourage action.
• The most effective tools provide enough structure to reduce overwhelm without becoming another system to manage.
• Novelty is a powerful but temporary motivator, making long-term engagement more dependent on meaningful value than short-term stimulation.

The research revealed that productivity challenges are often less about organization and more about execution. As a result, Neki needed to be easy to start, valuable enough to return to consistently, and designed around intention rather than novelty. The goal was to create a tool that supports users with just enough structure to reduce overwhelm while respecting their autonomy and ability to make progress on their own.

Tools like Notion, Forest, Pomofocus, and Trello serve adjacent use cases. Notion is the most capable but also the most abandoned its infinite flexibility becomes a trap for users who need structure. Forest and Pomofocus address the focus dimension but ignore task management entirely, leaving users to maintain two separate systems. Trello is visually intuitive but oriented toward collaboration rather than personal workflow.

Across competitors, two recurring patterns emerged:

• Productivity tools are often either too complex or too simplistic.
• Long-term engagement depends on more than novelty or features alone.
• Users want tools that feel personal, calm, and easy to return to.
• The most successful experiences balance structure, clarity, and emotional appeal.

Neki occupies the space between powerful productivity systems and overly simplified task managers. By combining task management, focus sessions, and a calming visual experience, the product aims to support consistency without overwhelming users or relying on excessive gamification.

Neki is a productivity and focus application designed to help users transform intention into action. Rather than competing through more features, deeper customization, or aggressive gamification, Neki focuses on creating a simple, calming, and sustainable experience that supports users throughout the entire process of getting things done.

At its core, Neki combines two complementary experiences: task management and focused work sessions. Users can quickly organize responsibilities, break larger goals into manageable tasks, and transition directly into a distraction-free focus session without switching between multiple applications.

Every design decision was guided by a single principle: reduce unnecessary friction while preserving meaningful engagement. The goal was not to make productivity effortless, but to make getting started feel achievable.

To bring this concept to life, the solution was structured around two primary modules: the Task Module and the Pomodoro Module.

• Needs a simple way to organize assignments, deadlines, and personal tasks
• Frequently starts productivity systems but struggles to maintain them long term
• Relies on memory, notes, or trusted people to remember important commitments
• Prefers tools that are quick to set up and easy to revisit
• Values visual clarity and calm interfaces over feature-heavy dashboards
• Wants to feel progress without being pressured by streaks, rankings, or guilt-based reminders

• Stay organized without creating additional mental overhead
• Build a sustainable productivity habit
• Break large tasks into manageable actions
• Maintain focus on current priorities
• Feel a sense of accomplishment at the end of the day

A productivity and focus app designed to help users bridge the gap between planning and execution through a simple task management system and integrated focus sessions.

Research revealed that many users do not struggle with organization itself they struggle with getting started. While most productivity tools focus on storing information, managing projects, or creating complex systems, very few help users transition from deciding what to do to actually doing it.

Neki was designed around this observation. Rather than treating planning and execution as separate activities, the product combines them into a single experience. Users can quickly capture tasks, organize priorities, and immediately begin a focus session without switching between multiple tools or workflows.

Neki is built around two core experiences: a Task Module and a Pomodoro Module.

The Task Module allows users to quickly create, organize, and manage tasks with minimal friction. Instead of overwhelming users with complex dashboards, the experience focuses on clarity and helping users identify what matters today.

The Pomodoro Module extends this experience by allowing users to select a task and immediately transition into a focused work session. By connecting focus sessions directly to tasks, the product creates a stronger sense of intention and encourages follow-through on commitments.

The Neki icon features a Monstera leaf rendered in a pixel-art style. The Monstera was chosen because it is commonly associated with growth, balance, and prosperity ideas that closely align with the product's purpose of helping users make consistent progress over time.

The pixel-art treatment connects directly to the visual language used throughout the application, particularly within the focus and Pomodoro experiences. This creates a cohesive identity while giving the product a distinctive personality that stands apart from the minimal, corporate aesthetic common among productivity apps.

The name Neki comes from the Nahuatl word neki, meaning "to want" or "to desire." During the research phase, a recurring theme emerged: most users already know what they want to accomplish they simply struggle with turning that intention into action.

Because of this, the name became a natural representation of the product's purpose. Rather than focusing on productivity, efficiency, or performance, Neki focuses on intention. The name is short, memorable, culturally rooted, and serves as a reminder that every task begins with the simple desire to start.

The color palette was inspired by natural environments and calm workspaces. Productivity apps often rely on bright colors, aggressive notifications, and high-contrast interfaces designed to demand attention. Neki takes the opposite approach.

Deep olive green serves as the primary brand color, representing focus, growth, and stability. Supporting neutral tones create visual warmth while maintaining readability and accessibility. Together, these colors create a calm environment that encourages users to return to the app without associating productivity with stress, guilt, or pressure.

Pixelify Sans was selected as the primary typeface for its ability to reinforce the product's pixel-art aesthetic while remaining highly legible across the interface. The typeface creates a visual connection between the branding, the icon, and the application's focus environments, helping the entire experience feel cohesive.

Its geometric structure and retro-inspired appearance add personality without sacrificing readability, allowing Neki to feel approachable and distinctive while still functioning effectively as a productivity tool.

Design Principles

Every component and interaction was guided by four core principles:

• Humanity — Design for real people, not idealized productive users.
• Intention — Every element should help users move toward action.
• Calm — Reduce visual clutter and unnecessary distractions.
• Consistency — Familiar experiences reduce cognitive effort and encourage long-term use.

Somewhere along the way, this project became much bigger than I originally planned. A simple productivity app somehow became a full branding exercise, a research project, a design system, and eventually a functional MVP. Was all of that necessary? Probably not. Was it fun? Absolutely.

Creating a design system gave me a playground to experiment, refine ideas, and keep everything connected as the project grew. More importantly, it let me focus on solving problems instead of redesigning the same button for the tenth time. Looking back, Neki became one of those projects where curiosity kept adding "just one more thing" until suddenly there was an entire product ecosystem sitting inside Figma.