How I Turned My Life Into a Kanban RPG

Where task management meets game design — an RPG-inspired system for managing work, life, and everything in between.

Introduction

Most people keep to-do lists. Some scribble in notebooks. Some lean on apps. Me? I needed something more visual, tactile, and rewarding — something that feeds my brain the same way games do. So I built my own real-life quest system: part Kanban board, part RPG.

What You Need

You don’t need fancy software or expensive tools — just a few simple components:

  • A board or surface (whiteboard, pin board, or side of a desk).
  • Pink sticky notes → Main Quests.
  • Blue sticky notes → Active Missions.
  • Yellow sticky notes → Fetch Quests.

Story Arcs - Objectives(Pink)

Pink notes are for the big goals — the main objectives. In game terms, they’re the chapters or zones that shape the story arc. In real life, they’re our objectives: the things we want to achieve that carry meaning beyond the day-to-day. Creating a pink feels like a story worth pursuing — the map opens, the stakes rise, and I know I’m committing to something worth the grind.

Main Quests - Actions (Blue)

Blue notes are the quests that drive progress. In game terms, once a new zone or chapter is unlocked, you don’t just have one mission — you have a chain of quests that need to be completed to be able to conclude the story . Each pink story arc or objective will contain multiple blue quests that move the narrative forward.

On my board, blues move across lanes like To Do → In Progress → Blocked → Done. If one gets stuck, I don’t force it. I park it in Blocked Lane, create yellow fetch quests to clear the obstacle, and then pull the blue back into play. Finishing a blue note is always satisfying — I crumple it and feel that instant reward, knowing I’ve progressed the larger arc.

Mini Quests (Yellow)

Yellow notes are the mini quests, errands to be done in order to complete our Main Quests. they can also be the unforseen . In game terms, they’re the small fetch quests or diversions that clutter the map but still need doing to 100% a zone. In real-world terms, they’re the chores, interruptions, and quick wins that don’t deserve the weight of a full blue quest — but they still have to be cleared.

Sometimes, though, yellows also serve as reminders of dependencies. A blue quest may be blocked not because of a minor chore, but because it relies on the completion of another blue first. In that case, I use a yellow as a marker: “before you can unlock this door, you must first find the key” It keeps the flow visible and stops me from losing track of why something is stalled.

Clearing yellows doesn’t give the same satisfaction as finishing a blue or concluding a pink — but it keeps the quest log clean, unblocks progress, and lets me focus on the missions that matter.

Why This Works

This system works because it mirrors the way games structure progress — and that’s how my brain likes to process work:

  • Story arcs (Pink) give me a sense of purpose — I know which chapters or zones I’m playing through, and why they matter.
  • Main quests (Blue) break that story into clear actions — I can see exactly which steps move the objective forward.
  • Mini quests (Yellow) keep the flow unblocked — whether they’re chores, diversions, or reminders of dependencies.
  • Together they create a reward loop — pinks are epic unlocks, blues give steady dopamine hits, and yellows keep momentum moving.

Final Thoughts

I used to think I needed sticky notes and boards because I wasn’t as capable as people who “just keep it in their head.” Now I know the opposite is true: I built a system that matches how my mind works.

Each colour plays its role in keeping my life on track: pinks mark the chapters or zones that matter most, blues are the quests that push those objectives forward, and yellows are the mini quests that keep the flow unblocked. Together they turn a messy list of chores into a living quest log — one that feels less like pressure and more like progress.

Some call it Kanban, some call it task management. I call it My QuestLog .