Focus Pocus

Get something done without disappearing into it

Turn an open-ended task into a clear stopping point, work toward one concrete result, and stop without losing your place. Focus Pocus helps define what “enough for now” means, gives you one next move if you get stuck, and saves a restart breadcrumb when time is up.

See what Focus Pocus gives you

Real output from an actual run on the task below. Nothing is reworded.

The task

Reply to the messages I have been avoiding. Enough for today: answer the three that have been open longest. 15 minutes.

Real run, 2026-10-08 — one of the tool's own built-in examples.

Stopping point

Answer the three messages that have been open longest.

First step

Open your messages and identify which three have been waiting the longest.

Done when

You have written and sent replies to all three of the oldest open messages.

In a Nutshell

When

You need to start something, and you know you will not stop on your own.

You give

What you are working on, how long, and what would make this session enough.

You get

A bounded session with a stopping point you set in advance — and a note telling you where to pick up if you do not finish.

The edge

It is built to get you out, not to keep you going. The extensions run out on purpose.

Good to Know

• Pick the stopping point before you start; it is much harder to judge once you are absorbed
• 'Enough for now' should be something you can answer yes or no to when the timer ends
• Finishing early is a real outcome — the session is a boundary, not a quota
• The three extensions are the whole budget; when they are gone that is the answer

Questions people ask

How do I start a task I keep avoiding?

Shrink it to a session you can finish: decide what "enough for today" means, name the very first physical step, and set a short timer. Starting is the hard part; a clear stopping point makes it smaller.

What happens when the timer ends?

You can stop, extend with a new promise, or say you're stuck and get help with the blocker. A finished session ends with a short review.

Is it a Pomodoro timer?

It's a timer built around a stopping point you choose, not a fixed 25 minutes.

Can I extend a session?

Up to three times. That's the whole budget on purpose: when the extensions run out, that's the signal to stop, and the restart note tells you where to pick up.