Pace
Objective
Elevating motivation
Team
Personal project
Timeline
Spring 2025
Contribution
Wireframing, prototyping, user interviews, user research, competitive analysis, user flows
The problem
When motivation turns to guilt
Day 1, you're all in - habit tracker checked, reminders set. By day 5, you're rolling. But by day 10, life gets in the way. The streak breaks, reminders keep pinging, and goals start to feel more like guilt than motivation.
According to research by the University of Scranton
User Interview
Interviewees validated the research, where 7 out of 8 people found it difficult to keep up with their goals
*Insights below supported by Dr. Itamar Shatz (PhD, Cambridge University)
01
Higher priorities
02
Tiredness
03
Perfectionist tendencies & fear of failure
And falling behind often leaves us feeling stressed, guilty, and even incompetent
solution
Don't chase distant goals
See your progress on an ever-growing journey
White paper research
Legault's research (PhD, Clarkson University) on Intrinsic and Extrinsic motivation captured 3 main keypoints that became foundational to the creation of the app:
survey
To understand user motivation, behavior and needs, I surveyed 35 people online.
Q
How do you usually track your progress or achievements? (multiple choice)
84.8%
Habit-tracking
app
18.2%
A physical
journal
15.2%
I don't track
12.1%
Q
How helpful are reminders in keeping you on track? (1 not helpful at all - 5 very helpful)
33.3%
12.2%
Q
Would you prefer to journal just for yourself, to share with a few close people, or publicly?
Solution
Research and survey insights helped shape the direction of the product.
This approach frames growth as a personal journey. It embraces rest, acknowledges setbacks, and focuses on the present — rather than striving for perfection or fixed outcomes.
Users said visible progress and personal purpose keep them motivated. Many already use notes and photos to reflect, which supports intrinsic motivation without external rewards.
The experience avoids streaks and rigid schedules, encouraging engagement through personal purpose. It supports reflection and progress at each user’s pace, allowing room for rest and setbacks.
user flow
A user flow was created to ensure the app remains simple and intuitive.
Usability tests
I conducted a series of mini usability tests with no more than two users at a time. The goal was to identify and remove recurring or critical issues early on, so that future users could surface new insights and needs.
Before
After
To solidify the app's identify as a journal, I decided to mold each journey in the shape of a physical journal.
After
Before
Final product
01 onboarding
Your journey begins with ease.
I created a simple onboarding flow to guide users through core concepts like journeys, how to start one, and how entries are organized.
03 VIEW JOURNEY
Reflect on your journey
Start by selecting a journey. Then choose how you'd like to view it - list view lets you see photos and text together, while grid view offers a more visual experience.
04 notifications
A quiet check-in
Pace’s AI tracks your progress, recognizing your efforts even when you don’t. When motivation dips, Pace is there to help you take a breath and begin again.
Reflective
From then to now
1m ago
Your last 5 fitness photos show clearer posture and more confidence.
Encouraging
Finding your rythm
1m ago
Your chord changes are getting quicker — you could start exploring more complex songs.
Mood-sensitive
Progress in the quiet moments
1m ago
You’re moving forward, even when it feels slow. Small steps add up.
Gentle
Your journey still continues
1m ago
It’s okay if motivation dips sometimes. Take it one step at a time.
prototype
Explore the prototype
Interact with the Pace App prototype and experience its features firsthand. Don't see it? Click on the button below.
reflections
What I Learned
User Testing Doesn’t Have to Be One-and-Done
Conducting multiple rounds of testing with 2 users per session helped uncover different usability issues each time, rather than having users point out the same problem repeatedly.
Staying True to the Product Purpose
With minimal features, I questioned whether it would be enough. However, I reminded myself that the app's goal is to avoid overwhelming users. If developed, I would slowly release more features based on continuous user feedback.
