1. Write the task down in one line
“Work on the app” can’t be finished, so everything feels close enough to count. “Fix menu bar bug” can. A one‑line task gives you something to check yourself against, and it’s the line FocusNod judges every window by.
2. Turn on a Focus
A Focus silences notifications except from the people and apps you allow. Add Focus filters so Mail shows only your work account and Safari only the Tab Group for this task. What Focus does, and doesn’t, do.
3. Keep one window in front
Drift usually starts with a glance at another window. Put the work in full screen with the green button at the top left of its window, or turn on Stage Manager in Control Center so other apps wait off to the side.
4. Give each task its own tabs
Old tabs are open invitations. Keep a Safari Tab Group for each task, and close what you’re done with before you start the next thing.
5. Block only what’s never work
If a site is never part of your work, block it during working hours with a blocker such as SelfControl (free) or Cold Turkey. Keep the list short: the moment it blocks something you need, you’ll switch it off. Why that happens.
6. Look at where the time actually went
Screen Time (System Settings → Screen Time) shows which apps and websites took your time. Look once a week, not once an hour. The point is to spot the one site that keeps winning, then deal with it using steps 2 to 5.
7. Get a nudge when you drift
Everything above lowers the pull. None of it tells you, in the moment, that twenty minutes have gone to something else. That’s the gap FocusNod fills: it checks each window you settle on against your task, puts a dot on its menu‑bar ring after a minute of clear drift, and asks once at three minutes. Tutorials and docs pass; detours get a question.
What doesn’t work?
- Relying on willpower. Drift doesn’t feel like a decision, so there’s nothing for willpower to push against.
- Blocking everything. A long list stops real work, and a blocker you switch off protects nothing.
- Checking your stats every hour. Watching the clock becomes its own distraction.