Calibrate About the app

Guides

Attention, explained gently.

Short, honest guides on focus, distraction, starting, and reflection, and where Calibrate fits in when a tool actually helps. Original numbers live in our focus app statistics.

20 guides · comparison pages disclose that Calibrate publishes them and review every app by the same criteria.

Starting

The door in: task paralysis, tiny first steps, and borrowed presence.

Task paralysis: how to start when you can'tTask paralysis, the 2-minute rule's quiet catch, and a 3-minute door with real permission to stop.Read the guide → Body doubling, explainedWhy working next to someone works, and what to do when no one is around.Read the guide → How to set daily intentionsA daily intentions practice that survives real life: did it, carry, or let go.Read the guide →

ADHD

Why the standard advice backfires, and shapes that fit.

ADHD-friendly focus, without shameWhy streaks backfire for ADHD brains, and what a gentler loop looks like.Read the guide → Pomodoro and ADHDWhy the 25-minute box keeps failing ADHD brains, and the five fixes that make blocks work.Read the guide → The ADHD to-do listWhy lists rot at four predictable points, and the shape that survives a bad week.Read the guide →

Choosing a focus app

Honest comparisons: same criteria for every app, ours included and disclosed.

Best Pomodoro apps for iPhoneTen timers matched to use cases instead of ranked, with market numbers from our census.Read the guide → Forest alternatives, no gameSeven focus timers compared honestly, routed by your reason for leaving the trees.Read the guide → Calm Pomodoro apps, comparedSix gentle timers with no gamification and no scoreboards, judged by the same criteria.Read the guide → Opal & one sec alternativesBlockers compared fairly, and the third philosophy: notice why you reach, instead of blocking the reach.Read the guide → Digital wellbeing beyond Screen TimeScreen Time tells you how long. Calibrate helps you notice why.Read the guide →

To-dos & capture

Getting it out of your head, and keeping a list that survives.

How to do a brain dumpEmpty a full head in five minutes, and the sorting step most advice skips.Read the guide → Does time blocking actually work?Nobody has tested it. What the planning research really shows, and where the hour-grid breaks.Read the guide → “When did I last…?”Keep track of rare chores like filters, mattresses, and backups, without reminders or overdue badges.Read the guide → What is interstitial journaling?One timestamped line between tasks. Why the ADHD internet swears by it, and where it needs help.Read the guide →

Methods, habits & reflection

Blocks without bells, habits without streaks, weeks without grades.

A calmer Pomodoro alternativeWhen 25-minute boxes fight your attention instead of helping it.Read the guide → What to actually do on a breakFive, ten or fifteen minutes, what the research supports, and the part nobody says.Read the guide → What is a mindful focus timer?Focus with awareness instead of pressure, and why noticing beats forcing.Read the guide → Why do I get distracted?Find your real pulls (phone, noise, thoughts) by naming them in the moment.Read the guide → A habit tracker without streaksDone, partial, or skipped: why honest marks outlast unbroken chains.Read the guide →