Images courtesy of Wikimedia Commons: GorillaWarfare, Raymond, Michael Trolove, Julius Schorzman
Growing up, Maya didn’t drink much coffee. Her family drank tea sometimes, but not coffee. When Maya started working, her co-workers at the office took a coffee break every afternoon. They went to a nearby coffee shop. At first she went along for their company, but after a while Maya began to like the aroma of coffee. Pretty soon she started trying out different types of coffee. After a few months, she started enjoying a steaming hot cup of coffee whenever she stopped by.
Maya Has a New Habit
One day, she went to a kitchen appliance store shopping for a bread maker. She found what she wanted to buy and as she walked to the cashier, something caught her eye. It was a bright red K-cup coffee maker on sale. A sleek simple machine that can make a quick cup of coffee using k-cup pods. Maya liked the thought of an effortless cup of coffee at home. And she can experiment with a wide range of flavors while she figured out what she liked.
She bought the machine along with an assortment of k-cup coffee pods and started enjoying homemade coffee in the mornings. After a few months she realized that she had tried a large number of flavors and blends, but none of them really measured up to the flavor of the drip coffee she enjoyed at the coffee shop. Something was missing!
After all these months, Maya knew her favorite coffee flavors. She decided to get a drip coffee maker and two different ground coffee packs. The coffee was definitely tasting better. And she could make a larger cup to start her weekend mornings. The coffee machine was easy to maintain — a couple of minutes to clean the carafe and a few more minutes every few weeks to descale the machine.
Searching for the Best Coffee
This went on for a year. She’s not quite a Coffee Afficiando yet, but she definitely missed her morning coffee when she didn’t get her hands on a cup of brew. She figured out exactly what flavor she liked. But, there was still something missing. Maya realized that she liked her coffee a wee bit hotter than what her coffee machine brewed for her. There was no setting to make it any hotter. Heating up the coffee in a microwave was not an option. That would ruin the taste.
Maya researched her options for brewing a hotter cup of coffee. She considered a few options such as a French press and a coffee grinder and brewer. After a bit of research, she finally decided to get herself a simple pour over drip coffee maker. It turned to be a simple, elegant solution. Maya can now brew a hot steaming cup of coffee with little effort. When she traveled, she no longer had to wonder if her hotel or host had a capable brewer. She got herself another pour over to take with her on her travels.
Maya Had a “Task to Do”
Every morning, Maya wanted a hot cup of coffee. She had different ways to get it. She could drive over to her neighborhood coffee shop or she could use one of several different types of coffee makers to brew a cup. When she was in the office, she got her coffee from the coffee shop downstairs. When she visited her favorite shopping mall, she picked up a hot cup of brew from the coffee shop in the food court.
Making coffee was just one task to do for Maya. She had many other tasks to do every day. She ate breakfast in the morning. On weekdays, she ate some cereal with milk. On weekends, she cooked herself a hot breakfast after enjoying her hot cup of coffee. When she went to work, Maya preferred to ride the bus. But on occasion she drove herself or shared a ride with a colleague who lived nearby.
Tasks to Do
We all have numerous tasks to do each day. We use a different product or service to do each task. Like Maya’s cup of coffee, we might complete a task in many ways. Some tasks, like making coffee or preparing breakfast, are easy. But others, such as keeping up with news, take more time. They may require multiple products and services and some effort to focus on personal interests and filter out misinformation.
At work, we have more tasks such as organizing meetings or talking to customers. Again, we have a range of products and services to choose to complete these tasks. These tools might change when we switch jobs. And then we have job or role specific tasks each one of us needs to do.
Making Progress by Completing Tasks
Each one of us, in our daily lives, has a series of tasks to complete. Whether it’s the mundane, like preparing breakfast, or the more profound, like finding purpose in life, these tasks represent the gaps between our current state and a desired state. We seek out products, services, or solutions to help us bridge these gaps. Thus, progress in our lives can be seen as successfully completing these tasks, moving from one state to a desired better state.
A majority of life’s errors are caused by forgetting what one is really trying to do.
Charlie Munger
Understanding our own “tasks to do” on a personal level can be enlightening. It offers clarity on why we make certain choices and can guide us in selecting tools and experiences that genuinely contribute to our progress. It’s a lens through which we can view life, making conscious decisions that drive genuine progress and fulfillment.
Is this Jobs-to-be-Done?
Some of you might know the “Jobs to be Done” (JTBD) framework, and you’ve likely observed that “tasks to do” sounds quite like it. You’re right. We’re talking about the JTBD framework but with a couple of tweaks. First, we’ve switched out the term “job” for “task” to give the idea of a “job” a more tangible feel. Secondly, we’ve pulled out the emotional element, or aspirations, to stand on its own. So, in this context, envision the “job” as a combination of both “task” and “aspiration”.
“Tasks to Do” in Our Project
A Simple Project aims to help individuals make progress in their lives by championing simplicity as a remedy for the 3 Cs: Complexity, Complication, and Confusion. A key tool in our toolbox is aiding people in understanding the tasks they need to tackle in various aspects of life.
For example, people often ask, “Is now the right moment to invest in stocks?” or “Should I purchase this ETF?” The response usually centers around your financial objectives. In essence, the questions become, “What are your aspirations?” and “What task/goal do you want this investment to achieve for you?” Recognizing your financial aspirations can significantly streamline the process of selecting the appropriate financial tools to achieve those aims.
In the same way, we’re fortunate to have a vast array of product and service options to align with our needs and desires. If you’re in the market for a car, you’ll come across numerous models and trim levels. In the hunt for a coffee maker, a bike, a computer, a phone, or a TV? Once more, the options seem endless. Without a clear idea of the tasks you hope to accomplish, it becomes all too easy to become overwhelmed and confused.
When we talk about various topics, we’ll apply the Tasks to Do and Aspirations to be Met concepts. This helps us pinpoint what’s important for the current topic. For example, to help simplify the process of buying a car, we can identify all the tasks to do and aspirations to be met with that purchase. This approach makes it easier to decide which car to buy.
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