PAUSE (A Break Management Plugin for Productivity)
Every day desktop/laptop computer users around the world are at risk of experiencing eye-strain, repetitive strain injuries (RSIs), poor posture, poor health, reduced cognitive functioning, among other mental and physical impacts, when they don't take frequent breaks or care for their body and mind outside of their workspace. These are often in the peripheral of what a user thinks they will experience at some point in their daily lives, until it happens to them, and even then, they will still prioritize productivity around work output no matter the mental and physical cost. It has been shown time and again that without our bodies and minds working at full capacity, challenges will come to maintaining productivity.
As a laptop user, I have experienced RSIs, poor posture, weight fluctuations, reduced cognitive functioning (more prone to distractions), and anxiety due to not taking frequent breaks. So I know how easy it is to forget how productivity needs to be approached as a marathon and not a sprint. After suffering from these ailments firsthand for a while and seeing how other desk/laptop users were suffering similarly, I realized that I needed to start paying more attention to my body and mind during extended periods of work-time. That's where the idea of PAUSE, a plugin for the Google Chrome Toolbar, came from. I pondered on how computer users like my stepfather would get so wrapped up in the work that they often forgot to take breaks, took them infrequently, or took a break without actually taking a break from their computer workspace. We are all a little guilty of that one. I have seen the impact it has had on him over the years and the drastic difference in his mental state when in that workspace versus when enjoying outdoor activities around the house. PAUSE came about from personal experience and observations of this problem and a need to find a simple addition to current productivity apps in the Chrome Web Store that solely focus on project time tracking.
How might we create an extension for Chrome that meets desktop and laptop users' needs in PC and Mac work environments?
User Perspectives to Consider
Kim's Story:
Part of Kim's daily schedule is communicating with the CFO, managers, other employees, and vendors through emails, text/phone calls, and zoom meetings. The other part of her schedule includes visiting the stores in her region and resolving problems or checking in with the teams. She stays on top of her breaks typically, but her breaks could be spent on calming activities and away from work-related communication. This is imperative as her type of work can result in burn out quickly. It's difficult to justify frequent breaks because most of her work is communication that involves waiting for responses or just simple back-and-forth, which arguably isn't that stressful. Additionally, the time she does spend on her laptop is sporadic. There are two possible ways she will benefit from the extension: refer to it for randomizing her break time activities so they're not just for eating and hydrating, and/or setting her own timer for how long she wants to stay focused on a given activity. If she decided to use one of the suggested break time methods, it would keep running the timer for the next break until she stopped it by either right-clicking on the extension for shortcuts or stopping it within the extension.
Brandon's Story:
As a Freelance Graphic Designer, much of his work is on the computer whether that is through using the web as a tool to find images or research for his project, or designing and editing through Illustrator and Photoshop. Since half of his time on the computer is spent on the web, he would need a timer that kept running and notified him outside of the browser. There would need to be a sound component to signal five minutes until the break and the start of the break. He rarely closes out his browser even after a long workday, so he would need access to stopping the timer himself. Since he works from home and has a family, there are also distractions that he can't account for or schedule in, so in this case where these times would be spent away from the computer and count as a "break", he would need to pause the timer or come back to it and alter the timer to reflect the number of minutes he wasn't working. This could be resolved by ignoring the upcoming break or taking the break anyway. There is also the option to use a shortcut to skip the next break, which then brings forth a notification of which break is being skipped and if they are sure that they want to skip that one. If they still want the break, they could just add onto the countdown timer the minutes they were gone, but this option may not immediately come to mind. Since it is an option though, the code must account for this situation, especially if they chose an automatic break option.
How might the needs of users be met?
Screen 1:
The Intro page will introduce the user to the plugin and motivate them to use this plugin as their go-to with the reasoning why breaks are important and the features that this plugin offers to make breaks seamless and enjoyable (while also improving productivity and time management).
Screen 2:
Plugin needs to divide the number of hours to be worked with a break system based on the number of breaks. This can be done a number of ways but the formula that should be followed is: (# of hours in workday / # of breaks) with a set of If statements that account for most popular responses and divide up the breaks accordingly.
Also, the break summary pops up after the last break is taken with detail of the time it was taken and how long it lasted. In the future it would be ideal if the user could input their schedule or import Google Calendar schedule.
Also, the break summary pops up after the last break is taken with detail of the time it was taken and how long it lasted. In the future it would be ideal if the user could input their schedule or import Google Calendar schedule.
Screen 3:
The user is given a list of break recommendations for each time interval, whether it’s a 5 minute break or 45 minute break. These are recommended since they would help reduce eye-strain (with time away from the screen), relax the body and calm the joints most commonly used, hydrate and nourish the body (two important activities often neglected during deep concentration), and clear the mind. If they want to keep track of what they have already tried in the past break, the plugin will save the selected activity so they can pick up where they left off.
Screen 4:
Notifications for breaks are kept simple and will be accompanied by a sound notification for both in case the user is using apps outside of the browser.
Imagining beyond the wireframe:
•Decided to cut out the introduction for a first time user (see wireframe above) since the extension should exemplify the core points stated in the intro through the design and usefulness to the user.
•The Quote of the Day would be coded to be a new one everyday selected from a database or file with collected quotes.
•Every feature has a label or feedback (button feedback seen in next window below).
•Color selection should stand out from the background with minimal color use so as not to distract.
•User has three options: set countdown and restart it after their break, have the extension restart the timer for them, or have the extension set breaks for the user so they don't have to manually change the first or second option.
•There is also the option for freelancers, entrepreneurs, and other independents to be provided a summary of their breaks at the end of their work session so they can either fill this info into their schedule, see how many breaks they took outside of the ones they originally set, and/or understand the times when they were most productive based off of their memory of task-break period correlation.
•Entry boxes were chosen because this design choice only requires that the user inputs a number that corresponds to the units next to the box.
•"Saved" feedback after button is pressed.
•Green was chosen to distinguish itself from all other features as what will be more commonly used and what is most important. Green is a common "save" color too, and throughout many applications it indicates this or "complete."
•Another important note is its placement is based on the law of common region/proximity. The user will associate the save buttons with the entry box(es) above it and not necessarily with saving the countdown time that they typed in (the start button should eliminate this potential confusion).
"Saved" feedback for user underneath the second save button.
•This "page" arguably appears less cluttered and more straightforward.
*It is also optional, but since it is the main distinguishing factor from this extension's competitors, it should be on the first "page"*
•The idea behind this design choice, however, was to give the user a break from the options on the first page and shuffle their break as the last part of the countdown timer. They could do this before their work session or before their break.
•Originally, in the wireframe for this page, I had a dropdown menu to organize the options but that design would be too confusing for the user and not necessarily indicate that their choice had been saved.
•Additionally, I considered listing the options but that was too much text on the page and would be perceived as option overload to the user who may be in a stressed state already and wanting the break recommendation to be just be chosen for them. The shuffle design is more fun, straightforward, concise, and eliminates option overload even if they were to press the shuffle button numerous times. The dark blue color of the button was chosen because it contrasts with the background while also following the minimal color scheme.
After pressing the shuffle button, a new break recommendation appears to replace the previous one.
This happens again for the 30 minutes - 1 hour break time interval.
A motivating notification pop-up reminder that appears five minutes before the break time and at the start (a few seconds before) of break time. The notification will have a sound attached for the reminder mark and the start of a break in case the user is using an app on their computer outside of the browser (the browser must be minimized though).
After reviewing the prototype for possible user errors that might occur and improvements that could be made for the user interface to reduce clutter and make the experience as seamless as possible, I revised the previous version. This version is the one that I tested with potential users:
•Intro page that resets itself every 24 hours. This will greet users who like to set their own countdowns instead of opting for the automated version. For those users that opt for the automated version, they merely need to right click on the icon for the option to start timer with the preset settings based on previous session, but they will also be greeted with this page if they choose to open it for every new session.
•There will be a notification pop-up every 24 hours with the new quote of the day even if users turn off the extension (by right clicking on the icon for that option). The purpose of this is to still invite inspiration and productivity into the user's life even if they choose to not use the extension regularly, however, it also reminds users of the extension's presence and reliability.
A few changes made to the previous countdown page:
•Restore Last Session countdown option in case the browser closed unexpectedly
•Break method section relies less on input and more on selecting an option (reducing cognitive load while informing users of common break options for productivity)
•The break recommendations are not on a separate page (inviting the user to use them since they are visible now)
•Without the extra input fields, quote of the day, and option for summary of breaks at the end of the day, the interface is cleaner and accommodates limited attention
"Save" feedback remained the same, but there is one less section that required a save button.
Notification pop-up remained the same. Not shown: the notification for start of break and start of countdown timer after break.
User Testing of Hi-Fi Prototype + Survey Results
Tools used for testing: Adobe XD Prototype shared through User Testing setting
Tools used for survey: Google Forms
Instructions given to users:
"Instructions before you start testing PAUSE:
•Navigate it as you would normally and in your usual work setting
•You will not need to interact with the break recommendations section, only the sections before this one
•If testing the countdown timer, use 20 minutes
•You may leave comments about the design and your interaction with it in the comments section (escape full screen mode to do so), however, it is optional since you will be asked for feedback in the survey afterward
•You will not need to spend the whole 20 minutes interacting with the prototype; you are only expected to interact with it as you would if it were the real thing, then leave it (as if the timer was running in the background)
The survey to be taken immediately afterward should take no longer than 10 minutes, so please plan accordingly.
Thank you for your participation."
Since the extension was straightforward and had limited interaction necessary to accomplish the goal of break management, I kept user testing to two testers that would benefit from this extension (one is a QA Analyst and the other is a Freelance Graphic Designer).
During beta launch of the extension, I would like to test my ideal user base who utilize time tracker and project management extensions. Additionally, I'm interested to see the benefit of this plugin on users who primarily use desktop/laptops for non-work related activities.
Adobe XD doesn't have the sound alert feature for a prototype and doesn't allow type-in to design elements for test users, so I had to work around these limitations. My test users even suggested for these features to be included, which revealed to me the expectations they would have of the extension, so it worked out in a way!
There will be more design considerations after beta testing, but for now, this testing is sufficient for creating a functional and useful plugin for users who will benefit from it the most. Based on their testing of the plugin, the following aspects were changed in the prototype:
Features Changed:
• The countdown timer was altered to account for the input of hours. The instruction below the timer now says "Type in Timer" instead of "Type in Time" so as not to confuse the user.
•The "Refresh" button is now labelled "Clear" as this was noted by a tester that "Refresh" was confusing when paired with "Restore Session" button. "Clear" affords that the timer will clear completely.
Other Feedback:
•The intro page should fade away after a certain number of seconds in addition to the user having the ability to skip with the arrow or by clicking on the background of the intro page. I didn't include this feature because the timer might frustrate some users that are distracted or are slow readers. It is less forgiving than an arrow or clicking on the background, both of which the user can control.
•The "Restore Session" button should be "Reset Session." The terminology used here is tricky for some users' conceptual maps, but this can be mediated through the tutorial. The "Restore" has a more forgiving connotation and it affords that if a user is relying on an automatic break system then the previous countdown will be restored. "Reset" is less forgiving and implies that the whole session will be reset to the very first countdown or cleared completely. Hence, it is more ambiguous than "Restore."
•The automatic break recommendation section should have the option for customization. I had originally designed a similar feature in the wireframe and prototype, but chose to leave out in the final version since it isn't conducive to the purpose of the plugin. The current automatic break option recommendations are proven to increase productivity, while a custom one may not. The user still has the freedom to act on this preference through the countdown timer and by right-clicking on the plugin in the toolbar for shortcuts to make the timer more convenient (this will be shown in the tutorial).
•There were some suggestions for break recommendations, but they aren't included in the final version. This is for the same reasoning as the above point, that the purpose of the plugin is to encourage more productive alternatives to current break methods and activities. The current break recommendations offered are proven to calm and care for the body and mind as well as offer much needed time away from a screen.
Conclusion
The testing of the prototype gave me a glimpse into the ways that this plugin could be improved. There were some suggestions that went against the purpose of the plugin, so they weren't included in the final prototype. The next step for this project is to start developing the plugin for beta.
