Published 2023-04-05 by TechNet New England
Constant notifications disrupt focused work. Both Windows and Mac have built-in tools to silence notifications when you need to concentrate. ## Windows 11: Focus 1. Click the **clock** in the taskbar to open the notification center. 2. Click **Focus** to start a focus session. 3. Choose a duration (15 minutes, 30 minutes, 1 hour, etc.). 4. During focus, notifications are silenced and a timer runs. ### Customize Focus 1. Go to **Settings > System > Focus**. 2. Set rules for what happens during focus: hide notification badges, hide flashing on taskbar apps, show a timer. ### Do Not Disturb For simpler notification silencing without a timer: 1. Go to **Settings > System > Notifications**. 2. Toggle **Do not disturb** on. 3. Set automatic rules: turn on during certain hours, during presentations, or when using a full-screen app. ## macOS: Focus 1. Click the **Control Center** icon in the menu bar (top right). 2. Click **Focus**. 3. Choose **Do Not Disturb** or another focus mode. ### Customize Focus Modes 1. Go to **System Settings > Focus**. 2. Create custom focus modes for different scenarios (Work, Personal, Sleep, Meeting). 3. For each mode, configure: **Allowed Notifications:** Choose which people and apps can still notify you. **Schedule:** Set the focus mode to activate automatically at certain times or locations. **Focus Filters:** Hide specific mail accounts, calendars, or Safari tab groups during the focus. ### Share Across Devices If you enable a Focus on your Mac, it automatically activates on your iPhone and iPad too (if "Share Across Devices" is enabled in Focus settings). ## During Meetings Both Windows and Mac can automatically enable Do Not Disturb during calendar events: **Windows:** Settings > System > Notifications > automatic rules. **Mac:** System Settings > Focus > Do Not Disturb > add a schedule or automation based on calendar events. ## Tips Set a meeting-specific Focus that allows notifications from your calendar app and messaging app (Teams, Slack) but blocks everything else. Use scheduled Focus modes for recurring deep work blocks. Remember to turn Focus off when you are done, or set a time limit so it turns off automatically.