Unlocking iPhone Focus: Your Path to Distraction-free Productivity

Do you find yourself checking your phone constantly? Whether you are at work, at school, or in bed, does that wonderful pinging sound have you reaching for your phone? If the answer is yes, then this is the perfect read for you. Did you know that you can set focuses on your iPhone? You can set a focus for just about anything! At school? There’s a focus for that. At the gym? Yep, they have one for that too. How about getting ready to take a nap? Yes! You can set up a focus for that as well. It is pretty simple to do and there are tons of ways to customize it.

First, let’s talk about what a “focus” is. On iPhone, there is a feature where you can set up what they call a “focus.” It is a customizable Do Not Disturb feature. For the different focuses, you can allow specific contacts to reach you, specific apps send you notifications, and you can have a default screen saver pop up when this focus is toggled on. With this, you can let others know that you have a focus turned on or you can hide this status from them. If your focus is toggled on and they go to call you, the call will go straight to voicemail. On the other hand, if they are trying to send you a text message, there will be a message at the bottom of their screen in purple saying, “Alice has their notifications silenced.”

As previously mentioned, you can set up whatever type of focus you would like. However, the max allowed is ten focuses. Here are the steps taken to create a focus:

1. Set up: You have two options to start: either open the Settings app or swipe down from the top right corner of your screen.
   • For this example, we will use the Settings app route.
2. Find Focus: Once you are in the Settings app, scroll down to the second section of toggles. Look for the “Focus” option with a crescent moon icon next to it. Tap on it.
3. Existing or Custom: On the focus page, you will find a few pre-set focuses. You can keep them as they are or create your own.
4. Create a New Focus: In the top right corner, tap the “+” icon. A screen will appear, asking what kind of focus you want.
5. Choose or Customize: You can select from the list or click “customize.”
6. Personalize: Name your focus, choose an icon, and pick a color.
7. Further Customization: On the next page, fine-tune your focus. Set a default screensaver, allow specific contacts to reach you, and manage app notifications. You can even schedule when this focus automatically turns on based on location or time.
8. Filters: Lastly, add filters like dark mode or low battery mode to your focus for extra efficiency.

If you are manually turning on the focus, you need to swipe down on your screen starting from the top right-hand corner. There you will see a bubble that says “focus.” Click on this bubble and your preset focuses will come up. Simply choose the one you want to use, and it will set to on!

Setting up these focuses can help you put the phone down when needed. I find these the most useful when I am at work or in bed. If I don’t hear my phone pinging or even see the screen light up with a notification, I am less likely to reach for my phone, in turn lessening my screentime. And remember, don’t let digital noise drown your focus! Set your focus today and reclaim your productivity! They are easy to set up and wonderful to use.