Like many developers, I used to tell myself:
"I'll take a break after I finish this feature."
One feature became another. Before I knew it, three or four hours had passed without standing up, drinking water, or resting my eyes.
I wasn't alone. Many people working remotely or spending long hours at a computer have the same habit.
So instead of searching for another productivity app, I decided to build one myself.
The Problem
There are plenty of reminder apps, but I couldn't find one that fit the way I actually work.
I wanted something that could:
Schedule breaks around my real workday.
Sync with Google Calendar.
Keep track of breaks I actually took.
Help manage tasks and checklists in one place.
Stay simple instead of becoming another distraction.
Most apps solved only one of these problems.
Building Work Break
I started building Work Break as a side project.
The goal wasn't to create another to-do app.
The goal was to build a workspace companion that quietly helps you maintain healthy work habits.
Some of the features include:
☕ Smart break reminders
📅 Google Calendar integration
✅ Checklists
📝 Task management
🌴 Leave tracking
📊 Break history and insights
👥 Team support for small organizations
The Tech Stack
I enjoy learning modern technologies, so this became an opportunity to experiment with tools I use every day.
The stack currently includes:
Vue 3
NestJS
MongoDB
AWS Lambda
Serverless Framework
CloudFront
Cloudflare
Google Calendar API
One challenge was reducing cold starts in a serverless NestJS application while keeping deployment packages small enough for AWS Lambda. Optimizing the build process ended up improving both deployment time and API performance.
What I Learned
Building the product taught me much more than writing code.
Some lessons that surprised me:
Users ask for features you never considered.
Small UX improvements matter more than adding dozens of features.
Launching is only the beginning.
Marketing is much harder than development.
Listening to feedback is one of the fastest ways to improve a product.
Why It's Free
I wanted people to try the app without creating another subscription they would eventually cancel.
The core experience is free because healthy work habits shouldn't have a high barrier to entry.
I'd Love Your Feedback
I'm still actively improving Work Break and adding features based on user feedback.
If you'd like to try it, you can visit:
I'd genuinely appreciate any suggestions, feature requests, or criticism. Every piece of feedback helps make the product better.
Thanks for reading!
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