Building My Own Productivity Tools: A Procrastinator's Journey
After testing every productivity app under the sun, I did what any reasonable engineer would do—I built my own. Two open-source, privacy-first task managers to help procrastinators like me get things done.
Confession time: I'm a procrastinator. There, I said it!
Self-awareness is the first step to improvement, and I'm very aware of my procrastination habits. Over the years, I've built elaborate systems to outsmart myself - gadgets, apps, notebooks, and probably a few too many browser tabs.
Like many productivity nerds, I share Marques Brownlee's obsession with to-do list apps. If you've ever listened to the Waveform podcast, you know the running gag where Marques keeps searching for the "perfect" productivity tool. I feel seen.
So after testing every app under the sun and still not finding "the one," I did what any reasonable engineer would do…
👉 I built my own.
Actually, I built two. Both are open-source, privacy-first, and free to use:
The Tools
Cascade — A lightweight Kanban-style task manager that's simple, fast, and secure.
GSD — A task manager inspired by the Eisenhower Matrix to help you Get Stuff Done.
All your data stays local in your browser: no tracking, no accounts, no cloud. Just focus.
Try Them Out
I'd love your feedback! Try one (or both!) and tell me what helps you stay productive and on track.
And if you're the tinkering type, check out the GitHub repos, fork them, and send me your ideas for improvement.
Because let's be honest - procrastinators unite… tomorrow. 😄
Originally shared on LinkedIn
Links:
- Cascade: https://cascade.vinny.dev
- Cascade GitHub Repo https://github.com/vscarpenter/gsd-task-manager
- GSD: https://gsd.vinny.dev
- GSD GitHub Repo https://github.com/vscarpenter/kanban-todos
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Written by Vinny Carpenter
VP Engineering · 30+ Team Experience
I lead engineering teams building cloud-native platforms at a Fortune 100 company. I write about engineering leadership, AI-assisted development, platform strategy, and the hard lessons that come from shipping at scale.
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