I’ve been working on a similar problem in a slightly different way. The problem as, I would phrase it, is “What should I do next?” Instead of turning to heuristics, I’m writing a program that calculates the utility of each task and shows me a list sorted by utility.
The basic method I’m using to generate utility estimates is assigning tasks a significance value from 1 to 99. I multiply that by a function that increases with respect to the time the task was inputted into the program. That way, tasks naturally percolate to the top over time—and more important tasks rise faster.
My goal is to eventually input everything from my core values down to specific task components and chain them together using probabilities in order to arrive at a recommended task list that’s far more optimal than what I can do on my own.
One problem I’ve encountered is just as you described in your post; each feature is taking longer to complete than I initially expected. I continue to waver in my sense of whether working on it is worthwhile at all, but I work on it anyway because when I ask myself what I should do next, my first thought is usually to find a better way to answer the question.
I’ve been working on a similar problem in a slightly different way. The problem as, I would phrase it, is “What should I do next?” Instead of turning to heuristics, I’m writing a program that calculates the utility of each task and shows me a list sorted by utility.
The basic method I’m using to generate utility estimates is assigning tasks a significance value from 1 to 99. I multiply that by a function that increases with respect to the time the task was inputted into the program. That way, tasks naturally percolate to the top over time—and more important tasks rise faster.
My goal is to eventually input everything from my core values down to specific task components and chain them together using probabilities in order to arrive at a recommended task list that’s far more optimal than what I can do on my own.
One problem I’ve encountered is just as you described in your post; each feature is taking longer to complete than I initially expected. I continue to waver in my sense of whether working on it is worthwhile at all, but I work on it anyway because when I ask myself what I should do next, my first thought is usually to find a better way to answer the question.