MJ's New Goal Setting/Achievement App

[MJ DeMarco]

This looks awesome @MJ DeMarco ! Excited to use and will be a customer.

Appreciate the support, I hope we can deliver some value, and more importantly, deliver some real life-change for a lot of people! When I moved some years ago, I actually found my old 1/5/10 (I included pics) which pretty much is the story behind GoalSumo --it was really refreshing to see that everything I wrote 25+ years ago came true. Freaking EVERYTHING!

 

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[MJ DeMarco]

Signed up! When will it be open for beta testing?

I have been using @LightHouse's GSD Trello system and it's working pretty well.

@MJ DeMarco will GoalSumo.com have an archive of accomplished tasks so we can look back on them whenever we feel like cutting ourselves short on our efforts? What other features do you plan to add on top of the 1/5/10 Planasy and the granular breakdown of the steps needed to get our dream life?

Yes, that functionality should be available. One should also be able to specify their values or ideals, and have those attached to the task system. So after some use, one should be able to get a good visual/analytical glimpse on how their doing with respect to both their goals and values. Goals are specific, values are vague. The system also has a book discovery feature: we plan to feed you high-value quotes from best-selling books on a daily basis within your task (to-do) list. For me, being busy means I often don't have time to scan or discover new books, this should help.

 

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[Ivan Koretskyy]

May I ask, where did you hear about this?

Uh oh MJ product leak

 

[MJ DeMarco]

Is the new goals app and book available yet?

It's in QA right now, we're a few weeks behind.

I'm one of its FIRST USERs and god knows, I'm one damn picky first user.

 

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[MJ DeMarco]

The fall cannot get here any sooner! Very excited about the launch

The service is pretty much finished, been using for about 6 weeks now and it definitely has made me more focused, organized, and productive. What isn't finished, is all the nuances around it, onboarding, emails, help pages, etc. That's what is keeping us behind schedule.

 

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[MJ DeMarco]

Not gonna lie, I am having trouble with writing out reverse dream goal chain for a few things I have on my dreamboard such as the cost of a dream home or the cost of the dream car. I understand the process of breaking it down, but I think I have a blockage on writing it actually out.

Our top priority is to reconfigure this whole process, and to include default templates for certain standard types of dreams. That means you can select and use the template straight out of the box, or you can use it to brainstorm and customize for your own dream goal. This should take a lot of guesswork out of the process, minimally, nudge you in the right direction.

 

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[LightHouse]

Signed up! When will it be open for beta testing?

I have been using @LightHouse's GSD Trello system and it's working pretty well.

@MJ DeMarco will GoalSumo.com have an archive of accomplished tasks so we can look back on them whenever we feel like cutting ourselves short on our efforts? What other features do you plan to add on top of the 1/5/10 Planasy and the granular breakdown of the steps needed to get our dream life?

GSD is more of a daily task management system. The newer version incorporates things like long term goals. It sounds like MJ's app works from the other side (which is also how I work with people) which is vision first, into a task system.

Looking forward to check it out @MJ DeMarco , If you need another power user to beta test, let me know

 

[MJ DeMarco]

GSD is more of a daily task management system. The newer version incorporates things like long term goals. It sounds like MJ's app works from the other side (which is also how I work with people) which is vision first, into a task system.

This is a daily task system that can be flexibly used with specific long-term goals, or short-term goals. It also incorporates ambiguity with general Kaizen improvements and values. Looking forward to hearing your feedback as I know you will be the toughest critic, which is helpful.

I think the app hasn't been released yet. If you've submitted your e-mail, you should receive a message when it is -- we don't know when.

If things go as planned, you should get an email with beta-use details within 45 days.

We were hoping for a summer release but we are a bit behind as I've become a tough first user.

 

[Antifragile]

I expect this to be very useful. I am a fan of writing down what we want from life and then moving towards those goals. Technology is now available to make it even more effective. Good on you @MJ DeMarco!

edit: typo

 

[MJ DeMarco]

@MJ DeMarco I have a question about your goal setting system

Under the dream chain, where you are creating 10 year goals, it then tells you to type in a 2-6 year goal in terms of things you can control (the actions you take).

If the 10 year goal you have set for yourself is so much further away from where you are right now and don't know what will be the vehicle that is capable of taking you to that major goal, how do you even begin to know what the 2-6 year actions are that have to be taken to achieve the 10 year goal?

The system closely resembles the 1/5/10 system. However we're using more flexible time frames.

The dream chain is 6-10 years followed by 2-6 years. The best metric to use is halfway to the dream goal.

So if you want to start a $10M company as a "dream goal" -- in 2-6 years you should aim for a company that does around $100K/mo which is about a $5M company.

The farther the goal, the less "actionable" it will be. The actionable, meter-moving stuff is for your daily tasks, weekly, and monthly goals.

 

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[Saad Khan]

Freaking EVERYTHING!

I can feel the emotions in this!

It's like you're writing your own future and taking action towards it. I don't know why but whatever I wrote in my monthly objectives just seems to happen outta nowhere!

I'm convinced that one is writing their own future if they're taking consistent action and sticking to the fundamentals.

Believe.

 

[MJ DeMarco]

Hey MJ,
GoalSumo.com is great! Really liking the app so far!
The most important task, primary task and secondary tasks should only be focused on your top 1-3 goals and not general to-dos (like grocery shopping, getting the oil changed, etc.), correct?

Glad you are enjoying, thus far, we quiet launched in a sort of quasi-beta to work out some of the kinks and bugs.

Any of your Tasks can be chained to a goal, but it is NOT a requirement, and NOT necessary. Any task can be unchained, but optimally, your Power Task should be chained to a Weekly Goal.

Chained tasks to goals earn bonus points, if you have scoring enabled. A chained power task looks like this:




Note: While we are live, there might be some issues as we are keeping a close eye on things and modifying as we go before we go "official".

 

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[andyhaus44]

I think an app would be more convenient

they are expecting a mobile app to be available by mid 2023

 

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[MJ DeMarco]

@MJ DeMarco The app looks really cool! I haven't signed up and tested it properly yet because my next 3 weeks are side-tracked and I wouldn't be able to follow the first 1-3 weeks milestone, but I'll do as soon as life goes back to normal. You actually added the "gamification" idea, looking forward to having a look.

Just one piece of initial feedback that crossed my mind:
When you add goals and link them to the longer-term goals, you currently selected them from a dropdown. I understand this is an MVP, and this works well enough. I'm thinking that it'd be cool for a later version to add a "tree" similar to a mindmap where you can start from your 10 year goal, then a Plus button to create a branch, then similar idea for smaller goals. That way it's much easier to visualise the whole picture and the dependencies between tasks, as well as add and link the tasks correctly.
Maybe you already had something like this in mind, but worth mentioning in case.

Thanks for the feedback!

We're in the process of revamping the Dream Chain process to make it a bit easier to implement and visualize.

 

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[MJ DeMarco]

I've just subscribed to the paid version of GoalSumo.com.com, yearly billing!

GoalSumo.com is a simple app, it can do one thing but it does it well: setting and achieving goals.

You don't need to cram a gazillion number of features into your SaaS to make it successful, GoalSumo is an example of this. You need to make an app which does one thing but it does it perfectly.

So I like the simplicity of this app. Because I've paid for it, now I have extra motivation to use it. Create some recurring tasks and this software will remind you every day to complete your to-do list.

The gamification feature is great, it gives me a sense of satisfaction when I complete a task and I get rewarded with those sound effects, animations and points.

Sure there are a lot of other project management and to-do list apps out there, but they are bloated with a lot of features you won't use. But in GoalSumo you will use every feature. It is easy to learn and easy to use.

Keep up the good work @Dean Irwin @MJ DeMarco !

Thanks a lot, happy to see that we're achieving our objective of not being bloated, but being a simple, yet powerful solution to setting and achieving goals. We're a bit behind on the development as Dean is also a full time student, but we have a lot of improvements and value-adds on the roadmap. Appreciating your feedback, and patience.

 

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[Dean Irwin]

@KiwiEC . This is a common question we get, and we are going to create a better answer in an FAQ section soon. In the meantime, I have quickly created a larger and cleaner version of one of the engineering papers behind this design of the habit task functionality. Let me know if you have any questions!



(Yes, this is the neatest my handwriting can get, sorry)

 

[KiwiEC]

I just realized I completely forget to send a feedback after the free trial period. Apologies for it, I have been quite busy working on my business which is about to go live by the end of the year.

I'm very satisfied with how GoalSumo works and the value it brings. It only took me a few days to get confident with it.
It is really useful to stay accountant to my objectives and to make regular progress. Gamification helps a lot on this.

My main struggle was not related to the tool iself, but more to my way to use it. My first power tasks were way too ambitious. It works better with more realistic small tasks.

A simple UX issue that can quickly be fixed:



I would set the calendar as open by default on the desktop version. There is plenty of room below it and no need to have it closed.

I took a monthly subscription using a beta voucher. I can't wait for a mobile app with a dedicated interface and notifications/alarms. I know it's on your roadmap (even if not the top priority) so keep up the good work guys!

 

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[Makaveli7]

May I ask, where did you hear about this?

I know you were asking the poster but I found it through one of your replies on one of the threads about execution that you were working on this and I signed up on the landing page.

 

[heavy_industry]

"Ask yourself if what you are doing today is enough to get you where you want to be tomorrow."

You have a very awesome website, quote, and picture. @MJ DeMarco

I love the glasses.

 

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[andyhaus44]

Had a SUCS event today with GoalSumo.

I emailed Dear from GoalSumo this morning and within a few hours, he emailed me back!

Expected it to take at least a couple of weeks before hearing back, but to get a response that fast is Superior Unexpected Customer Service

 

[MJ DeMarco]

1. I cannot figure out how to add task to the power task section. Dragging and dropping does not work.

A Power Task is the most important thing you can accomplish for the day.

You can only have ONE.

If your Power Task is a repeating daily habit, then technically, you cannot add any.

 

[MJ DeMarco]

@MJ DeMarco Your app is incredible! I'm the guy who interview Dean in his podcast and I'd like to have you as guest too. In Italy there are a lot of my customers who need an app like Goalsumo.

You and Dean are doing an incredible work!

Nice! Glad you think so considering we've only just scratched the surface of what we're trying to accomplish. Lots more in the pipeline (including AI, goal templates, more.)

As for an interview, thanks for the invite, however I stopped doing interviews last year and don't expect to resume until probably next year.

 

[Dean Irwin]

I am using GoalSumo.com since two days and I like it (like, possibly subscribe like it).

Love to hear it! We'd love to have you join as one of our 25% off for life beta members! This is available with the code "beta-discount".

2. I have trouble in formulating "numerical" dream goals. Most of them are lifestyle goals.

This has been an interesting observation we have made in training experimental AI models and working with GPT prompts. I have found (and others can feel free to disagree with me!) that there are different mixtures of what a good goal is based off of what the category is....

Without giving too many details, an example of this is a financial vs a romantic goal. I have found that a good financial goal is specific in long-term levels of the chain (Dream, mid-term, possibly short-term). A good romantic goal is going to be less specific in long-term levels, but more specific in short-term levels.

For example, a solid financial goal is (again, this is an example) 5 million net worth, a far-reaching target for myself and most likely others here, and it is a good big-idea goal. A good romantic long-term goal, might be "Marry my soulmate" (broad), and then you can work it down to something more specific, such as "Go on 15 dates".

All that being said, don't worry if you have to sometimes be a bit broad in your goals. In practice, we don't always know all details of a situation, and the goals can be modified to fit a different purpose later on. This is why our goals do not have ridgid time-frames, but rather a set-and-complete model (We are adding target dates to goals in the near future though for those who have requested it ).

As general advice, the weekly goal category should always have pretty measurable and completable goals, so use that section (and the monthly if it fits your workflow) to set the nitty-gritty and detail-oriented goals, and you can use more flexibility and judgement going higher up the chain. We're going to be implementing some AI suggestions as well in the near future to help people set more specific goals!

3. Do you think the product will go in the direction that will allow to replace other task / project management apps (like Todoist or Nozbe)? I would love it personally

I feel that we're heading in the direction of being an alternative system to Todoist or Trello for some folks, but our software is tackling somewhat different problems than they are, or rather, framing them from a different perspective.

Our goal insofar has been to stay human-focused, wheras some of the productivity tools I've used seem to be process-focused. Todo tools of the current are very good at helping people organize the known-details of their work life and MAYBE some of the known details of their personal life as well.

They are not good (in my opinion) at describing more abstract ideas such as bucket lists, Kaizen values, personal goals, personal thoughts, etc. Before bucket lists came out on GoalSumo, I used Trello for tracking my personal bucket list, and the process didn't feel fun or exciting. These are enchanting life experiences, they should be motivating! We want to keep solving problems that take a similar form to this in the near-term roadmap.

This being said, I use GoalSumo (and so does MJ) daily as a productivity tool, and we feel that it has been able to replace most of our usage of these other tools. I still use a daily calendar too where I can set more specific known details of my month or year. I also keep project-related todo items in Things3, and I think it's pretty good for that. I use GoalSumo as a more broad todo-list on top of it. We have had some people mention that they have moved from tools similar to Todoist and Trello to GoalSumo, and that's awesome to hear.

We are considering ways to bring in tools that will help for work projects, and more of the ridgid processes of life, but we've not settled on anything yet and have not put anything on the immediate roadmap in that space at the moment.

Right now, our priority is in making a more exciting goal system, which should be coming in the next major release. If you have any ideas on what you would like to see as far as productivity features, please leave some notes on our public idea center: ideas.goalsumo.com !


Thank you so much everyone for your feedback!

 

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[MJ DeMarco]

"Ask yourself if what you are doing today is enough to get you where you want to be tomorrow."

You have a very awesome website, quote, and picture. @MJ DeMarco

I love the glasses.

Thanks, hope it is as effective!

I heard about it by listening to an interview you did on Bookbits (sp.?) podcast.

Wow, totally forgot about that! Thank you for the reminder.

 

[Saad Khan]

Signed up! When will it be open for beta testing?

I have been using @LightHouse's GSD Trello system and it's working pretty well.

@MJ DeMarco will Goalsumo have an archive of accomplished tasks so we can look back on them whenever we feel like cutting ourselves short on our efforts? What other features do you plan to add on top of the 1/5/10 Planasy and the granular breakdown of the steps needed to get our dream life?

 

[MJ DeMarco]

I see that it shows as co-founder, is the other founder the dev?

Yes it is.

I tried to register but it didn't work, I didn't understand why. Please, tell how do you do it?

We haven't had problems accepting any pre-registrations so we're not sure the issue, however no worries, we added you manually.

 

[andyhaus44]

Hey MJ,
Goalsumo is great! Really liking the app so far!
The most important task, primary task and secondary tasks should only be focused on your top 1-3 goals and not general to-dos (like grocery shopping, getting the oil changed, etc.), correct?

 

[ZackerySprague]

The GoalSumo SAAS is absolutely amazing, I have found myself being more productive in a few hours that I have used it. I subbed immediately, plus the functionality to get a paper format is a blessing.

I love how they explain how to break down your goals, plus MJ's backstory on the page. Such a good mine, would definitely recommend to others to use!

 

[MJ DeMarco]

The GoalSumo SAAS is absolutely amazing, I have found myself being more productive in a few hours that I have used it. I subbed immediately, plus the functionality to get a paper format is a blessing.

I love how they explain how to break down your goals, plus MJ's backstory on the page. Such a good mine, would definitely recommend to others to use!

Thank you, so happy to hear this. My productivity has improved since using it too, and I've used a variety of systems. This "self use" was very important to me.

Question, did you subscribe? We saw your trial, but didn't see a subscription from you, so I just want to make sure there weren't any bugs in the process.

 

[MJ DeMarco]

@MJ DeMarco I've just been looking at the GoalSumo webpage. It's a great single-page site but noticed a couple of things you might want to check:

• The 1/5/10 Planasy link appears to be broken, returning a 404 error.
• You may want to make the link for the "Great Rat Race Escape " open to a new window. At the moment it takes the reader directly to Amazon, increasing the risk of losing them before they sign up.

I hope this helps.

Thanks on both!