· personal  · 2 min read

How I Audit My Life Like a Product: UX, Bugs, and Feature Requests

DRAFT

Outline

Hook: Quarterly product reviews are standard in tech. Why not for your life? I treat my life like a product: What’s working? What’s broken? What feature requests have I been ignoring? What needs to be deprecated?

Core Argument: Product thinking isn’t just for software—it’s a framework for systematic life improvement. By auditing your life like a PM audits a product, you identify pain points, measure what matters, and ship improvements instead of just “hoping to be better.”

Key Sections:

  1. The Life-as-Product Framework

    • Your life = product
    • You = user (experiencing it) + PM (designing it)
    • Features = habits, systems, commitments
    • Bugs = pain points, energy drains
    • Metrics = health, happiness, output, relationships

  2. The Quarterly Life Audit (2-Hour Process)

    • When: Every 3 months
    • Where: Quiet space, notebook/Obsidian
    • Output: Action list of improvements
    • Mindset: Curiosity, not judgment

  3. Section 1: User Experience Audit

    • Question: “What friction do I experience daily?”
    • Examples: Morning routine chaotic, decision fatigue, email overwhelm
    • Log: Week of annoyances → Patterns emerge
    • Prioritize: Top 3 UX improvements

  4. Section 2: Bug Tracker

    • Bugs = Things that consistently don’t work
    • Examples: Never exercise, poor sleep, constant distraction
    • Not character flaws—system bugs
    • Root cause: Why is this broken? (Usually system, not discipline)
    • Fix strategy: Change system, not just try harder

  5. Section 3: Feature Requests

    • What do you want that you don’t have?
    • Examples: Learn X skill, start Y project, improve Z relationship
    • Score: Impact × Feasibility (1-5 each)
    • Top 2-3: Add to roadmap

  6. Section 4: Metrics Review

    • Health: Sleep hours, exercise frequency, energy levels
    • Output: Projects shipped, work quality, creative output
    • Relationships: Quality time with family, friends
    • Learning: Books read, skills improved
    • Trend: Up, down, or flat?

  7. Section 5: What to Deprecate

    • Commitments that drain more than they give
    • Habits that don’t serve you anymore
    • Relationships that are toxic or empty
    • Projects that will never ship
    • Permission: It’s okay to quit things

  8. Section 6: The Roadmap

    • Next quarter priorities (max 3)
    • UX fixes to implement
    • Bugs to address
    • Features to build
    • What to say no to

  9. Implementation (Weeky Check-Ins)

    • Monday: Review quarterly goals
    • Friday: Assess progress, adjust
    • Monthly: Mid-quarter check
    • Don’t: Set and forget

Examples/Stories:

  • Personal audit: Found “email 3x/day” was bug → Fixed with time blocks
  • UX improvement: Morning routine friction → Systematized, much better
  • Feature request: “Learn music production” → Actually did it
  • Deprecation: Quit commitment that drained energy for no value
  • Metrics: Noticed declining sleep → Made it priority → Everything improved

Takeaways:

  • Audit life quarterly: UX, bugs, features, metrics, deprecations
  • Approach with curiosity, not judgment
  • Identify 2-3 improvements per quarter
  • Track progress weekly
  • Deprecate what doesn’t serve you
  • Product thinking → systematic life improvement

Cross-Links:

  • ← “Why ‘Discipline’ Wasn’t My Problem” (Series 3-24)
  • → “The 99 Minds Principle” (Series 3-26)
  • ← “Personal Blueprint” (Series 3-22)
  • ← “40-Year-Old Brain, New Game” (Series 3-21)
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