Ikigai is a passion project that addresses a problem many busy people often face: busy people struggle to keep up with their hobbies because it’s hard to balance time. The name derives from a Japanese term meaning having a life purpose.
With Ikigai, users can find hobbies tailored to their needs and available time. It opens up new possibilities for connecting with like-minded people, sharing experience, and finding motivation.
To validate my hypothesis, I created a Lean Survey Canvas to helped me carry out an online survey. The results validated my thoughts. Most of the people feel like they don’t have time to entertain themselves with hobbies, therefore they want to learn hobbies that are low time-consuming and enjoyable.
After analyzing the quantitative data, I started working on an Interview Guide. My goal was to identify pain-points throughout users' everyday lives regarding the balance between their responsibilities and leisure/free time.
At this point, I have defined my target audience and their needs. With that in mind, I wanted to see how my competitors approached a similar problem. I created a hobby hunting task to help me navigate through their product to analyze what was working and what wasn't and see what I could learn.
The core pillars of Ikigai are Find, Experience, Share and Connect. Therefore, the product needed a series of features for these core parts to work and fulfil the user's needs. To define the MVP features and the future of the product, I used the following MoSCoW diagram:
The homepage showcases recommendations and popular hobbies. No matter what formats users decide to share their hobbies (i.e. pictures, videos, or articles). Ikigai always offers a consistent browsing experience.
Scenario categories allow users to discover hobbies that fit their interests and the time allotted. These low time-consuming hobbies can be picked up quickly to fill any time gaps.
Ikigai encourages users to participate in small daily challenges. Users can obtain a sense of achievement by sharing their progression and competing with others.
Users can join hobby groups where everyone shares common interests. The communities are dedicated to connecting like-minded people and creating a space for sharing.
