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Focus tools in Plexii

Tools that help you start, stay with and come back to work: focus sessions, the hard-to-start prompt, Welcome back, long stretch reminders and body doubling.

All plansUpdated

PlexiDesk has a small set of tools for the moments that make work hard: getting started, staying with it, coming back after a break and knowing when to stop. Most of them work on their own, without you setting anything up. This page introduces each one and where to find it.

Before you start

  • Focus sessions, the hard-to-start prompt, Welcome back and long stretch reminders are part of every plan. None of them needs AI to work.
  • Body doubling with another person is part of the Pro and Team plans, and you need to be signed in. See Body doubling: work alongside someone.
  • None of these tools has a setting to switch it on. They are ready as soon as you open PlexiDesk.

The tools at a glance

Tool What it does When you meet it
Focus session A short timed run at your work, usually five minutes, that counts only the time you are on it. When you click Focus on a desk, Focus mode on Home, or 5 min on a task.
Hard-to-start prompt Asks What would make this 10% easier right now? and offers a five-minute start. When you open a high-stakes desk you have not started.
Welcome back Greets you with how long you were away. When you come back after three minutes or more.
Long stretch reminder Offers a three-minute stretch after a long run without a break. After 90 minutes of work with no break of five minutes or more.
Body doubling Pairs you with another member who is also working, on camera. When you click Body double in the header.

Start: focus sessions

A focus session is a promise to work on one thing for a few minutes. A timer sits at the top of the window, the rest of PlexiDesk fades back, and on a desk the desk's name shows as your objective. When the time is up, you choose Done for now or keep going for 5, 15 or 25 more minutes.

You can start one from many places:

The timer pauses while you are away from the work, so five minutes always means five minutes of work. See Start a focus session.

Start: when a desk is hard to start

When you open a desk that is still To do and has an Importance of four or five dots, PlexiDesk shows a short card before the desk: What would make this 10% easier right now? Click Just 5 minutes to start a focus session on it, or Just open it to go straight in. The card closes on its own after 15 seconds. See When a desk is hard to start.

Stay with it: body doubling

Some work is easier with someone else in the room. Body doubling pairs you with another member who is working at the same time, on camera, in the mode you choose. Click Body double in the header, the button with three people, or press ⌘ K on a Mac or Ctrl K on Windows and choose Find a body double.

Stay with it: long stretch reminders

Working for hours without a pause wears you out. After 90 minutes of work in PlexiDesk without a break of five minutes or more, a banner offers a 3-min stretch with its own timer, or lets you keep going for another 30 minutes before it asks again. See Long stretch reminders.

Come back: Welcome back

When you return to PlexiDesk after three minutes or more in another app, or after ten minutes with no clicks or typing, a Welcome back pill near the bottom of the window tells you how long you were away. It closes at your first click. To see where you were, use the Where was I widget or a handoff note. See Welcome back: pick up where you left off.

Look back: focus insights

Every focus session is kept. Open the Brain area and choose Insights to see Focus insights for the last 7 or 30 days: how much time you spent focused, how many sessions you completed, the hours you focus best and the desks that got your focus. See Start a focus session.

Focus mode for a widget is something else

Focus mode on a widget opens that one widget full screen, with the rest of the desk blurred behind it. It does not start a timer. Use it to work on one document or note without distractions. See Open widgets full screen and side by side.

The Focus mode button on your Home dashboard is different again: it starts a five-minute focus session.

Common questions

Which tool should I use first?

If you find it hard to begin, start with a five-minute focus session. Click Focus on the desk and do the first small step. Everything else here comes to you when it is needed.

Can I turn the prompts and reminders off?

There are no settings for them. The hard-to-start prompt closes by itself after 15 seconds, the Welcome back pill closes at your first click, and the long stretch banner waits 30 minutes when you choose keep going.

Can other people see that I am focusing?

While a focus session runs and you are signed in, people in your workspace see In a focus session beside your name, for example in the Team status widget.

Guides in Focus tools

Still need help? Contact support at [email protected].