A Mac window layout for deep work
Focus modes silence notifications, but the windows are still there. How to set up your screen so one task fills your view and everything else waits.
Focus modes in macOS silence notifications. They do nothing about the six windows still peeking out behind the one you are meant to be working in.
Three rules for the screen
- One window is clearly the main one.
- What you need for it is close, but not in the way.
- What you do not need is out of sight, not just behind.
Built in
Hide other apps with ⌘ ⌥ H, or go full screen. Both work for a while, until you need a second window and everything comes back.
Focus layout
ClutterFreeMac's Focus layout (the default) puts the window you are in centre stage, about 80 percent of the screen, with a sliver of its neighbours either side so you never lose your place. Dim other windows in Settings fades everything but the focused window. Messages and mail live at the far end of the row, out of view until you swipe there.
Pair it with a macOS Focus mode for notifications, and the screen and the alerts agree.
Questions
How do I focus on one window on a Mac?
Make it the largest thing on screen and put everything else out of view. A focus layout or dimming the other windows both help.
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