Initial commit
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Zhongwei Li
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---
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created: 2025-11-02T21:50
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updated: 2025-11-02T21:51
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---
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# Current State Tracking Patterns
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## Overview
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Current state visualizations help answer "what's on my plate right now?" and "where is everything?" They make invisible work visible and help manage cognitive load.
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## When to Use
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- User asks "what should I focus on?"
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- User feels overwhelmed by "too many things"
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- User needs to see what's active vs. waiting
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- User mentions context-switching fatigue
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- User wants to track progress on multiple fronts
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## Pattern: Simple Kanban Board
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Use for tracking active tasks through workflow states.
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```mermaid
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graph LR
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subgraph Backlog[" 📋 To Do"]
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T1[Plan Q1 goals]
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T2[Schedule dentist]
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T3[Research new laptop]
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end
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subgraph InProgress[" 🚧 In Progress"]
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I1[Draft team doc<br/>⚡⚡⚡<br/>45 min left]
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I2[Order birthday gift<br/>⚡<br/>10 min left]
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end
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subgraph Blocked[" ⏸️ Waiting/Blocked"]
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B1[Finish expense report<br/>Waiting for receipts]
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B2[Start new project<br/>Waiting for approval]
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end
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subgraph Done[" ✅ Done Today"]
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D1[Responded to emails]
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D2[Updated calendar]
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D3[Watered plants]
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end
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Backlog --> InProgress
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InProgress --> Done
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InProgress --> Blocked
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Blocked --> InProgress
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style InProgress fill:#fff3cd
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style Done fill:#d4f1d4
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style Blocked fill:#f8d7da
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style Backlog fill:#e1f5ff
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```
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**Key features:**
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- Visual separation of states
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- "Waiting/Blocked" category acknowledges not everything is in your control
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- "Done today" section for celebrating progress
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- Energy indicators (⚡) on in-progress items
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- Time estimates for active work
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**Limit in-progress items to 2-3** - more = cognitive overload.
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## Pattern: Energy/Priority Matrix
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Use when user needs to decide what to focus on based on energy AND importance.
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```mermaid
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%%{init: {'theme':'base'}}%%
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quadrantChart
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title Task Prioritization Matrix
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x-axis Low Energy Cost --> High Energy Cost
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y-axis Low Impact --> High Impact
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quadrant-1 "Schedule it (High energy, high impact)"
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quadrant-2 "Do now (Low energy, high impact)"
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quadrant-3 "Do when tired (Low energy, low impact)"
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quadrant-4 "Question it (High energy, high impact)"
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Respond to client email: [0.2, 0.85]
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File expenses: [0.3, 0.4]
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Write project proposal: [0.85, 0.9]
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Organize desktop files: [0.5, 0.3]
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Quick team check-in: [0.3, 0.7]
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Deep work on feature: [0.9, 0.85]
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Water plants: [0.15, 0.2]
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Review design mockups: [0.6, 0.8]
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```
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**How to use:**
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1. **Top-right (High impact, high energy)**: Schedule dedicated time
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2. **Top-left (High impact, low energy)**: Do these first
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3. **Bottom-left (Low impact, low energy)**: Do when tired/low motivation
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4. **Bottom-right (Low impact, high energy)**: Question if necessary
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**Key insight:** Not everything urgent is high-energy. Not everything important needs peak focus.
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## Pattern: Context-Based Current State
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Use when user works across multiple contexts (personal, work, home).
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```mermaid
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flowchart TD
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Today[Today's Focus] --> Contexts{What context<br/>are you in?}
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Contexts --> Work[💼 Work Context]
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Contexts --> Home[🏠 Home Context]
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Contexts --> Personal[🧘 Personal Context]
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Work --> W1[Active: Finish slides<br/>⚡⚡⚡ 1 hour<br/>Due: Tomorrow]
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Work --> W2[Waiting: Feedback from team<br/>Check: Monday]
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Work --> W3[Backlog: Plan Q2<br/>Start: Next week]
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Home --> H1[Active: Meal prep<br/>⚡⚡ 45 min<br/>Do: Tonight]
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Home --> H2[Active: Order supplies<br/>⚡ 10 min<br/>Do: Now]
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Home --> H3[Waiting: Furniture delivery<br/>Arrives: Thursday]
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Personal --> P1[Active: Call friend<br/>⚡ 15 min<br/>Do: This weekend]
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Personal --> P2[Backlog: Research therapists<br/>Start: When ready]
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style Today fill:#e1f5ff
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style W1 fill:#fff3cd
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style H1 fill:#fff3cd
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style H2 fill:#fff3cd
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style P1 fill:#fff3cd
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```
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**Key features:**
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- Separates contexts to reduce cognitive load
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- Shows what's active in each context
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- Helps with context-switching awareness
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- Acknowledges different energy states for different contexts
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## Pattern: Sprint/Time-Box Current State
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Use when user wants to see what they're committing to for a specific time period.
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```mermaid
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gantt
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title This Week's Focus (Nov 4-8)
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dateFormat YYYY-MM-DD
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section Monday
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Review emails & calendar :done, 2024-11-04, 1h
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Team standup :done, 2024-11-04, 30m
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Deep work: Draft proposal :active, 2024-11-04, 2h
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section Tuesday
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Client call :2024-11-05, 1h
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Finish proposal :2024-11-05, 2h
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Admin tasks :2024-11-05, 1h
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section Wednesday
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Meeting-free deep work day :crit, 2024-11-06, 6h
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section Thursday
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Team sync :2024-11-07, 1h
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Review feedback :2024-11-07, 2h
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1:1 with manager :2024-11-07, 30m
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section Friday
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Wrap up loose ends :2024-11-08, 2h
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Weekly review :2024-11-08, 30m
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Light admin work :2024-11-08, 1h
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```
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**Key features:**
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- Time-bound commitment (reduces overwhelm)
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- Shows realistic workload for the week
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- Includes admin/overhead time
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- Protected focus time visible
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- Can see if overcommitted
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**Guideline:** If more than 6 hours of active work per day → overcommitted.
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## Pattern: "Too Many Things" Triage
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Use when user is overwhelmed and needs to quickly sort through mental clutter.
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```mermaid
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flowchart TD
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Overwhelm[😰 Everything feels urgent] --> List[Brain dump:<br/>List everything<br/>in your head<br/>5 minutes]
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List --> Sort{For each item,<br/>ask:}
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Sort --> Q1{Will something<br/>bad happen if I<br/>don't do this<br/>in 48 hours?}
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Q1 -->|Yes| Urgent[🔥 Truly Urgent<br/>Max 2-3 items]
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Q1 -->|No| Q2{Do I actually<br/>have to do this,<br/>or is it 'nice<br/>to have'?}
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Q2 -->|Must do| Important[📌 Important<br/>Schedule time]
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Q2 -->|Nice to have| Later[💭 Maybe Later<br/>Park it for now]
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Q2 -->|Not sure| Clarify[❓ Need Info<br/>Ask someone]
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Urgent --> Today[Do today:<br/>ONE urgent thing<br/>at a time]
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Important --> Week[Schedule this week:<br/>In specific time slots]
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Later --> Forget[Move to 'someday'<br/>list and forget<br/>for now]
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Clarify --> Ask[Send one email<br/>to get clarity]
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style Overwhelm fill:#f8d7da
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style Today fill:#fff3cd
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style Week fill:#e1f5ff
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style Forget fill:#d4f1d4
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```
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**Key features:**
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- Starts from emotional state
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- Rapid sorting without overthinking
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- Permission to park things
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- Limits "urgent" to what's truly urgent
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- Ends with clear next actions
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## Pattern: Completion Visibility
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Use when user struggles to see progress or feels like nothing gets done.
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```mermaid
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flowchart LR
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Week[This Week] --> Mon[Monday ✅]
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Week --> Tue[Tuesday ✅]
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Week --> Wed[Wednesday ✅]
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Week --> Thu[Thursday 👉]
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Week --> Fri[Friday]
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Mon --> M1[✅ Sent client email<br/>✅ Updated slides<br/>✅ Watered plants]
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Tue --> T1[✅ Team meeting<br/>✅ Expense report<br/>✅ Ordered supplies]
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Wed --> W1[✅ Deep work session<br/>✅ Reviewed PRs<br/>✅ Made dinner]
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Thu --> T2[⏳ In progress:<br/>• Draft document<br/>• Schedule calls]
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Fri --> F1[📋 Planned:<br/>• Weekly review<br/>• Wrap up tasks]
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style Mon fill:#d4f1d4
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style Tue fill:#d4f1d4
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style Wed fill:#d4f1d4
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style Thu fill:#fff3cd
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style Fri fill:#e1f5ff
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```
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**Key features:**
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- Shows completed work (often invisible)
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- Includes "tiny" tasks (watered plants counts!)
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- Current day highlighted
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- Builds evidence of progress
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- Combats "I got nothing done" feeling
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## Language Guidelines
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**Use validating, pressure-reducing language:**
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✅ DO:
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- "You can only work on 2-3 things at once"
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- "It's okay to say no to low-priority items"
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- "What can wait?"
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- "What's blocking you that's outside your control?"
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- "You've done more than you realize"
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- "Small progress is still progress"
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❌ DON'T:
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- "You should be able to handle more"
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- "Just get it all done"
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- "Why isn't this finished yet?"
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- "You're not being productive enough"
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- "Stop being lazy"
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## Capacity Guidelines
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Help users avoid overcommitment:
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- **Active work limit**: 2-3 items simultaneously
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- **Daily capacity**: 4-6 hours of focused work (not 8!)
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- **Meeting tolerance**: Different for everyone, but track it
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- **Context switches**: Each switch costs 10-15 min of cognitive recovery
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- **Buffer time**: Plan for 60-70% of available time, not 100%
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