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GEMI: ADHD Motivator

Help ADHD individuals stay motivated through reward system

ROLE
Solo UX Researcher & Designer

As the UX/UI, and Visual Designer, I identified the daily challenges faced by individuals with ADHD through in-depth research. Based on these insights, I created GEMI, an app tailored to address these pain points, and implemented it using a systematic approach to visual design and user interface development.

Type

Undergrad Senior Thesis

Duration

1 year (2023-2024)

Scope

User Research, Prototyping, Product Design, Branding

Guided by

Professor Li, Xinyi
Professor Hamilton, Duncan

The Problem

Michael Carter craft strategic design
Michael Carter craft strategic design
Michael Carter craft strategic design
Michael Carter craft strategic design
Michael Carter craft strategic design
Michael Carter craft strategic design
Many adults with undiagnosed ADHD struggle in relationships and blame themselves, often leading to low self-esteem, depression, and poor mental health.

The Solution

Design a self-tracking app tailored for individuals with ADHD, combining reliable information, holistic management tools, and personalized support to help users take control of their symptoms and thrive with confidence.
Design a self-tracking app tailored for individuals with ADHD, combining reliable information, holistic management tools, and personalized support to help users take control of their symptoms and thrive with confidence.
Design a self-tracking app tailored for individuals with ADHD, combining reliable information, holistic management tools, and personalized support to help users take control of their symptoms and thrive with confidence.
Michael Carter craft strategic design
Michael Carter craft strategic design
Michael Carter craft strategic design

Overview

Mockups and Key Features

Mockups and Key Features

What does GEMI mean

Born from “Gemstone” and pronounced “재미 (jaemi),” meaning joy in Korean, Gemi turns to-do tracking into a joyful, gamified journey. Like an unpolished gem, everyone holds potential within. Gemi helps craft that potential into brilliance. Built for ADHD minds, it empowers focus and motivation through meaningful rewards that celebrate every step forward.

Michael Carter craft strategic design
Michael Carter craft strategic design

Finding individual Needs & Pains

Users undergoes a brief self-assessment to determine their primary objective for enhancing productivity and identify the most significant barriers preventing them from achieving this goal

Michael Carter craft strategic design
Michael Carter craft strategic design

Level Up Your Focus: A Gamified Cave Experience

Michael Carter craft strategic design
Michael Carter craft strategic design
Michael Carter craft strategic design

Collect Your Gems

By consistently jotting down daily notes and leveraging our instructional tutorials, your 'Organi' gemstone will gradually transform, reflecting your progress. Accumulate these evolving gemstones as a testament to the barriers you've successfully overcome on your journey.

By consistently jotting down daily notes and leveraging our instructional tutorials, your 'Organi' gemstone will gradually transform, reflecting your progress. Accumulate these evolving gemstones as a testament to the barriers you've successfully overcome on your journey.

Michael Carter craft strategic design
Michael Carter craft strategic design

Case Study

Why I conducted this project and why is it important?

Why I conducted this project and why is it important?

Research/ Overview

Scientific understanding → Digital intervention

Scientific understanding → Digital intervention

A visual framework explaining ADHD-related challenges and how specific app features can address them. It breaks down the relationship between brain function issues in ADHD, the real-life challenges those cause, and potential digital solutions.

Michael Carter craft strategic design
Michael Carter craft strategic design
Ideate/ Storyboard

A journey to find their inner gemstones

A journey to find their inner gemstones

Michael Carter craft strategic design
Michael Carter craft strategic design
Ideate/ Sitemap+Wireframes

Designed to avoiding distractions with minimal information

Designed to avoiding distractions with minimal information

Michael Carter craft strategic design
Michael Carter craft strategic design
Michael Carter craft strategic design
Michael Carter craft strategic design
Michael Carter craft strategic design
Michael Carter craft strategic design

Takeaway

The Power of Empathy

At first, I focused on practical, task-based solutions to help users stay organized and improve focus. But soon, I realized that connecting with users on a deeper level was key. By making GEMI a companion on their journey, I used storytelling alongside thoughtfully designed tools to transform the experience from simply functional to truly engaging and supportive. This approach showed me how powerful empathy and understanding can be when tackling the real-life challenges of ADHD.

This project was a challenging yet rewarding experience that emphasized the importance of teamwork and communication. As a long-term project, we had to continuously align on design direction and make compromises to balance user needs with technical constraints.


Open discussions and A/B testing helped us refine our choices and find common ground. I learned the value of flexibility and collaboration, ensuring that our decisions remained focused on creating a user-centered, impactful design while fostering a productive team dynamic.

Michael Carter craft strategic design
Michael Carter craft strategic design
Michael Carter craft strategic design

Press

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