Hard work isn’t always efficient. Many times we put in a long day, only to look back and realise we didn’t accomplish all that much. Perhaps you’ve turned to well-worn ways to improve your efficiency. To-do lists, calendars, Pomodoro timers: you’ve tried them all, but none seem to work.


Leo Tumwattana, a former retail performance manager for Louis Vuitton, had the same problem. His job required a lot of coordination with other departments. Since every day brought unique tasks, he found it difficult to keep track of everything on his plate.

Leo couldn’t find the right app to fit his needs, so he decided to develop his own.

First, Leo took his own work into consideration. He understood that a planner was the key to an organised workday. So he focused on a single day, arranging all the necessary functions in a clean interface. This way he could schedule appointments and allocate specific amounts of time for tasks in one place.

Leo also created exclusive gesture controls for the app. It only takes a couple of movements to quickly perform things like adding new tasks or batch rescheduling. The design concept is similar to posting sticky notes to a calendar.

With encouragement from his partner Harry Ng (current COO of StaySorted), Leo uploaded his app to the App Store. Originally, it was just for fun. However, the app soon attracted a loyal user base, and they both realised there is real demand for this type of tool.

Even more surprising to them, the app was extremely popular among people diagnosed with ADHD. Many users wrote the team thank you letters. Leo attributes the app’s unexpected popularity to its simple interface, which saves on organising tasks and allows users to focus on the tasks themselves.

The app’s design also reflects American efficiency expert David Sparks’ hyper-scheduling method.

Hyper-scheduling, a combination of to-do lists and calendars, helps people organise all their daily tasks with detailed time allotments.

Unlike to-do lists, which simply list tasks to be accomplished, hyper-scheduling requires breaking down the tasks to more doable steps and giving each a time limit. (Be careful not to break things down too much.) This, together with added meetings and appointments, gives a complete view of our day in one place:

1. The entire day is presented in easy-to-follow steps
2. Forces you to prioritise and spend time on the most important tasks first
3. Prevents you from wasting too much time on a single task

With the help of Sorted³, you can adjust the allocated time to each task, making it even easier to get things done according to plan. The team suggests that everyone try the app for three days, starting today:

1. Plan out your next day before you go to bed
2. Try to follow the plan
3. Continue to adjust your schedule based on your progress

By updating your plans throughout the day, you’re keeping the list realistic and achievable. It’s much better than simply writing a to-do list that stays incomplete.

Keep at it, and hyper-scheduling will become an indispensable part of your life, too.

Hyper-scheduling has become a way of life for Leo and Harry. They joke that their lives would be messes without it, but are serious in saying this is a tool for everyone – no matter if you are a businessperson, homemaker or retiree.

Since the first version of Sorted, Leo and Harry have collected advice from fellow professionals needing to become more productive. For example, the popular Auto-scheduling feature was based on a user suggestion. It automatically orders and assigns time allotments for all the tasks in a day.

The development of Sorted³ is a story of growing together.

Leo and Harry plan to continue collecting feedback in order to provide a better user experience. Based on the many email requests they receive daily, their current focus is a Mac app.