Focus guides
Short answers first, then the long version. Written by the team behind Stint, the focus app with real stakes.
Problem
- How to block apps on iPhone so you cannot just turn it off
Every iPhone app blocker can be switched off by the person who set it up. The fix is not a stronger lock. It is a reason not to unlock. Here is how that works.
- How to stop ignoring Screen Time limits
You set a Screen Time limit, it pops up, you tap "Ignore Limit". Here is why that keeps happening and the two changes that stop it.
- How to do deep work without checking your phone
A practical method for 90 minutes of uninterrupted deep work on the days you do not feel like it, using sessions, shields and a small group with money in the pool.
Alternatives
- Opal alternatives for when blocking alone is not enough
Opal is a strong Screen Time blocker. If you keep switching it off, the problem is stakes, not the block. Honest look at Stint, Forest, one sec, Freedom and Focusmate.
- Forest alternatives that actually block apps
Forest is lovely until you realise the tree dying does not stop you. Alternatives that shield apps for real, and one that adds a prize pool: Stint, Opal, Freedom, one sec.
Roundup
- The 7 best focus apps with real stakes
Focus apps where something is actually on the line: money, a partner, a contract. Stint, Beeminder, Forfeit, StickK, Focusmate, Flow Club and Opal, ranked honestly.
Use case
- A focus app for students who keep opening their phone
Study sessions with your apps actually blocked and something on the line, with friends in the same pool. How students use Stint through exam season.
- A focus app for remote workers and founders
Nobody is watching when you work from home. Stint gives remote workers and founders defined deep-work sessions, real app blocking and a small group with money in the pool.