My proudest achievement

Since high school, I've had a strong interest in productivity. In my final year, I was extremely sleep-deprived from constant studying, so I explored various productivity techniques to manage it better. After graduation, I decided that there had to be a better way. So I gathered a group of friends, and set out to create my dream planner and calendar that I wished I had in high school. I deepened my knowledge of JavaScript, taught myself React, and then taught what I’d learned with others. Encouraged by my father, a software engineer experienced with AWS, I learned DynamoDB and other AWS services to host Planda. My friends and I held weekly meetings to brainstorm, design, and start implementing.

That was the summer of 2021, and since then, Planda has transformed significantly. When I first started, I had minimal programming experience, so there were many things I wanted to improve, especially in the design. The following summer, I gathered the same group of friends, and together, we created the brand-new design that defines Planda today. This allowed me to completely rebuild Planda from scratch. I transitioned from React to Next.js, integrated TypeScript, and developed my own calendar instead of relying on a library. Additionally, I moved away from Serverless Framework to a self-hosted solution, using a Docker image on AWS ECR, ECS, and load balancers.

Another major shift occurred after that summer when I gained my first users, who genuinely loved Planda. Suddenly, I wasn't just building Planda for myself but for others, too. Although I had collaborated with others while developing it, they weren’t users themselves and didn’t share my passion for Planda. Seeing others excited about it was incredibly motivating. I learned how to gather feedback, conduct surveys, and use the insights to enhance Planda. Over the next few years, I continued building and refining Planda. While it began as a group project—and I’m deeply grateful to the friends who contributed—it has largely been an individual effort since. My vision for Planda has also evolved and become more defined over time.

Planda is my mission to empower people with the knowledge and tools to lead more productive and fulfilling lives. Drawing from productivity insights gathered from books and online resources, I’m designing a system to help users make more intentional use of their time. I envision Planda as a dynamic calendar that begins simply and adapts over time, evolving alongside each user's unique working style and preferences. Planda will guide users in selecting and applying various productivity techniques, ultimately helping them build a personalized system that truly works for them.