Eight tips to use the best of Apple's Focus modes

Apple's “Focus” function is a powerful instrument to reduce distractions and interruptions on the task. However, the establishment of different focus options requires some time invested and tinkered because many functions are available. We have summarized a handful of suggestions that can help you to make more blurred.

Manage focus modes

You will find the focus section in the settings app. Apple has some pre -made focus options, but you can create custom modes by tapping the “+” button in the upper right corner. User -defined focus modes are an empty table so that you can select your own name, your own symbol and skills.

We will go through some of the useful options below, but it is worth searching every section to determine which functions are best suited for your needs.

Silence or unmistaked people

If you are at work and want to silence personal text messages and calls to reduce distractions, or if you are at home and want to exclude labor reports, you can best use the Musting functions.

There are two options. You can silence notifications from a list of people who choose, allow everyone else, or you can allow notifications from everyone, with the exception of the people you choose.

With both options you have to add people one after the other, and there is no intelligent group option that does this for you. It can take some time depending on what you want to set up. It is best to choose the option that is least the case. So if you are at work, you may want to choose colleagues, important family members and your boss while you switch off notifications from everyone else.

At home it could make sense to enable all your notifications except for people from work.

If you “silence” a person with a focus, you still get the text message, it is only hidden on a certain section on your lock screen and you do not receive any audible or haptic ping if the notification is received.

Select apps

Similar to the silent circuit, you can silence or allow notifications from apps for certain focus modes. They have the same options as people and Apple suggests some of their most frequently used apps.

In view of the fact that most of us have installed a lot of apps, they almost always use the “notifications from” function to select apps that you want to hear from, but there are exceptions. If you have a few apps such as mail and slack for a local focus mode that are loud, you can only mute those while allowing all other apps.

The careful selection of the apps that you can pinge in every focus mode is one of the best ways to manage distractions.

The pre -configured Apple does not disturb the mode by default all apps and people if you only want to switch off everything without any problems.

Reduce the use of interruptions

If you have a device that supports Apple Intelligence, you can switch on a pre -configured “reduction of interruptions” focus. It blocks all notifications, with the exception of those who find in the intelligence ‌ ‌ -Apple adaptation that they are “priority notifications”.

Reducing interruptions can be adjusted to expressly allow certain apps and people or to silence. The use of this function will overwrite the AI-based sorting for these selections. Reduction of interruptions can be a good compromise between all notifications and cannot be disturbed.

Intelligent breakthrough and mute

The main feature when reducing interruptions, intelligent breakthrough and mute can actually be applied to one of your user -defined focus modes.

Limit the app access with custom start screens

It takes a few additional steps, but focus modes can be set up to show you only certain apps. Under the “Adaptation screens” option, you can select a page with the start screen to display when a focus mode is active.

If you only want to see work during work, you can set up a page with your work treatments and select them as the main screen for focus mode. You can select all apps you want to see and others are hidden from the point of view while the focus is active. Note that the dock remains available regardless of your selected apps and that you can also edit your custom ‌home screen while the focus is on the focus if you have to make optimizations.

While you can open other apps in a focus mode by wiping into the app library. By default, distractions are not hidden.

This can be a good way to exclude distracting games and social media apps at certain times of the day as an alternative to the screen time.

Add focus filters

With focus filters you can really drill into what is available in each of your focus modes. If you have a work receipt for work and a personal e -mail input in mail, you can use filters to block your personal inbox if you are at work or your job when you are at home.

There are filters for apps in which you may want to share different accounts such as safari, calendars and messages. You can filter certain conversations into news, a certain calendar or a tab group. There are also filters for third -party apps.

Focus modes can be linked to system settings that are always included, dark mode, low power supply mode and quiet mode. So you can set up things like a working focus that always activates quiet mode, or set up a focus that blocks all notifications and activates the low power mode.

planning

All focus modes can be set so that they are automatically activated so that they do not have to switch them down and off manually. You can focus on the time of day, your location or when an app is opened.

If you want your work to concentrate from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., this is an option, but you can also set it up to turn on when you arrive at a specific location or if you open an app like Slack.

If you manually activate a focus from the Control Center, you can select options that leave an hour to evening (or in the morning) or until you leave a specific location.

Special focus modes

Apple has several preconfigured focus modes that you cannot replicate with custom modes because there are clear activation functions.

Sleep

The sleep coat is unique because it is bound to Apple Watch Sleep Tracking. The schedule that you set up for the sleepok determines when your watch will follow your sleep, when your alarm will fail in the morning and when to prepare a “Wedd -Down” willingness for the bed.

This is a focus that is set up when you activate sleep tracking functions and set a schedule. However, like any other focus, you can edit it to select people and apps with which breakthrough notifications can be presented.

Drive

By default, the driving focus blocks all communication and is automatically activated when driving when your iPhone is connected to the Bluetooth of your car or when CarPlay is activated. It can also be set up in such a way that it is switched on manually, and it can be configured in such a way that notifications from certain people, but not by apps, are made possible.

fitness

The fitness focus can be set up so that they are automatically activated when training is started on the Apple Watch.

Mindfulness

The mindfulness focus is on when you start a mindfulness session on the Apple Watch.

Gaming

The gaming focus is activated when you connect a Bluetooth-based gaming controller to your ‌Iphone‌ or another device.

Read and work

The pre-configured reading and working focus modes have a function called “Smart Activation”, with which you can switch on at certain times of the day, based on your location and your app use.

Both modes have not set up apps or people who are permitted by default. Therefore, they have to be configured even further or they work like not disturbing by switching off everything. These focus modes can be activated based on your location. So if you are at work, you can automatically use the working focus on arrival if you leave.

Alternatively, you can have this modes activated if you open a certain app like books.

Devices escape

By default, the focus is shared on all devices in which you have registered for your Apple account. If you turn on, for example, disturb your ‌Iphone‌, which you also switch on for your Mac and Apple Watch, for example.

If you want to silence focus modes on a single device such as your ‌iphone‌ and not your Mac, you have to overdo the release via devices if you set up the focus.

Spend the iPhone and Apple Watch

If you don't want to reflect your ‌iphone‌ focus mode at Apple Watch, you can switch to General> Focus> and “SPIEGEL My ‌iphone‌”.

Diploma

The focus can save you a lot of trouble in the long run, but only if you take the time to set it up properly. It is definitely worth it if you want to be able to better divide your digital experiences, to switch your work at home and to remove distractions during work.

If you have tips for the best of the focus function, share them in the comments below.