Normally I don’t mind trends, so long as I don’t actually have to participate in them. However, there is one trend that needs to be over yesterday: turning everyday tasks into games.
For those of you who haven’t seen the onslaught of tasks-as-games app, here’s a brief run-down of some of the more popular ones:
- 0Boxer: Organize Your Gmail and Have Fun Doing It
- Epic Win: Level Up Your Life: Make Being Organized As Much Fun As Gaming with Epic Win-the to-do list app with an RPG setting
- Chore Wars: Finally You Can Claim Experience Points for Housework
They Drag Out Tasks
They Don’t Offer Any Incentive to Get Things Done Better, Faster, or More Efficiently
Maybe I’m asking for too much, but it seems that if you’re going to turn these tasks into a game with rules, they should at the very least come with a strategy guide.
If You Have Any Competitive or Obsessive Personality Traits, Kiss Productivity Good Bye
Why is this such a bad thing for them? These are the people who get so hooked on the game those mundane tasks are going to become a critical part of their everyday lives-which is fine, except, well, they’re mundane tasks. Do they have to be done? Absolutely! Are they going to change your life in the same way that big project you should be working on will? No. They aren’t.
And For Everyone Else
This tasks-as-games trend needs to end now. It’s not helping productivity and it’s not really improving anything. Want to improve those mundane tasks? Reward yourself with something you LOVE to do after. Don’t use the latest tasks-as-games trend to do it.
