Focus Blocker

A focus blocker is a rule set that makes distracting sites and apps unavailable during hours the user chooses. The value is not the tool but the decisions made in advance: what to block, when, how hard to make it to override, and what still gets through. This skill designs those rules and a setup the user can finish today.

Input required

• The distractions, named specifically: sites, apps, and which devices (phone, laptop, tablet).
• The work or purpose the hours protect, and the hours themselves.
• Platforms in use, so the setup can use built-in features first.
• Legitimate needs that overlap with the distractions, such as messaging for work or a video site used for study.
• Past attempts and how they failed.

Questions to ask first

Ask in one batch of at most five questions, skipping any already answered:

1. Which sites and apps pull you away most, and on which devices?
2. Which hours do you want protected, and on which days?
3. Which of the blocked things do you sometimes genuinely need?
4. Have you tried blocking before, and how did you get around it?
5. Who else is affected (a team, a partner, someone who must reach you)?

Method

1. List the offenders by cost. Rank by time lost or by how often they break concentration. Block the top few, not everything. A long list is resented and then disabled.
2. Choose the unit of blocking. Block a whole site or app, a part of one (a feed but not messages), or a category. Partial blocks fit sites with mixed use but are easier to circumvent.
3. Set the schedule. Pick recurring windows tied to the work, such as morning deep work on weekdays. Start with one or two windows. A rule that is on all day usually gets removed.
4. Choose strictness. Pick the least strict level that still works: - Warning page: shows a reminder, one click to continue. - Delay: a wait of a minute or so before access. - Hard block: no access until the window ends. - Locked: the user cannot change the rule during the window. Stricter suits repeated failure; gentler suits people who resent control. Escalate only after a lower level fails.
5. Write the exceptions first. Allow-list the sites and contacts the work truly needs, and agree an emergency route (calls from favorites, a second channel) before the block starts, not during it.
6. Cover the leaks. Check each device, each browser, and app versus website of the same service. Blocking one door while another is open only moves the habit.
7. Pick a tool. Prefer built-in options first, such as phone screen time limits, downtime schedules, and focus modes. Browser extensions and desktop blockers are examples of the next step. The user's own platform decides what exists; confirm in their settings.
8. Trial and adjust. Run it for a week. Log each override and why. Repeated overrides for the same site mean either a missing exception or a block that needs to be stricter.

Output format

• Block list: each item, device, and block type.
• Schedule table: days, start, end, purpose.
• Strictness level and why.
• Exceptions and emergency route.
• Setup steps for the user's platforms, in order.
• One-week review prompt: overrides, leaks, adjustments.

Ground rules

• The user chooses the rules. Do not impose a stricter level than asked for; suggest it with a reason.
• Never ask for passwords or account details. Setup happens in the user's own settings.
• Tools are examples, not endorsements. Do not state prices or features; they change.
• Protect reachability. If the user must be reachable (a carer, an on-call duty), build that exception in first.
• Be honest about limits. A blocker reduces easy access; it does not fix the reason the user reaches for distraction. Persistent compulsion or distress is a matter for a clinician or counselor.

Self-check before answering

• Is the block list short and ranked?
• Does every window have a stated purpose?
• Are exceptions and an emergency route written down?
• Did I check for leaks across devices and app versus web?
• Is there a review date?

Common pitfalls

• Blocking everything at once — the rules feel punitive and are turned off within days.
• No exceptions — the first real need leads to disabling the blocker.
• One device only — the phone fills the gap the laptop closed.
• Easy override — a one-click bypass at the moment of weakest will.
• Overly hard lock without an escape — an unreachable user on a day something urgent happens.
• Treating the blocker as the goal — blocked time still needs a task chosen in advance.

Example prompt

I lose my mornings to news sites and social apps on my laptop and phone. Help me design a focus blocker for weekday 8:00 to 12:00: what to block, how strict to make it, and what exceptions to allow, using the settings already on my devices if possible.

Learn more

• Grayscale Mode for reducing the pull of the phone without blocking.
• Tab Management for keeping the browser itself calm.
• Information Diet for deciding which sources deserve time at all.
• Deliberate Practice for what to do with protected hours.