Protocols / FOCUS
The Focus Reset
Take your attention back from your phone in 14 days.
There is no such thing as a dopamine detox, but there is good evidence on what pulls your attention away. This 14-day programme starts by measuring your screen time, pick-ups and sleep, then changes one thing a day: notifications, the phone in the bedroom, social media limits, boredom practice, short focus blocks and a caffeine cut-off. On day 14 you compare and keep only the rules that worked for you.
€9 · one-time payment · instant PDF · by Anthony Falcone
What's included
- 14-day day-by-day plan with a baseline and day-14 review
- Phone and notification settings, in 3 levels
- First deep-work blocks (25-45 minutes)
- Caffeine cut-off times by bedtime, within EU limits
- Sleep rules for focus, plus creatine as early evidence
- 32 peer-reviewed references
Built for
More Energy · Better Focus
Inside the PDF: 11 chapters
- Before You Start: This programme is for everyday habits: a phone that pulls at you, scattered attention, late nights and too much coffee. It is not a treatment for any condition. Read this page first.
- What a 'Dopamine Detox' Gets Wrong: You cannot fast from dopamine: your brain makes it all day, whatever you do. What you can change is the cues and habits that keep pulling your attention away. That is what this programme works on.
- Days 1-2: Your Baseline: You can't tell what helped unless you know where you started. For two days, change nothing. Just record.
- The 14-Day Plan: One new change a day, building on the day before. If a day goes badly, carry on with the next one. Missing a day does not undo the plan.
- Phone and Notifications: Your phone is designed to be checked. You don't need to throw it away: change the settings so it interrupts you less and tempts you less.
- Your First Deep-Work Blocks: A focus block is a set time for one task with nothing else open. The Focus Reset starts you with short blocks; The Focus & Flow Protocol builds them up.
- Sleep for Focus: Sleep is the biggest focus tool most people ignore. Attention is the first thing that suffers when you are short of it.
- Caffeine, Timed Right: Caffeine works: it improves alertness and attention. The trick is to use it without losing the sleep that your focus depends on.
- Creatine and the Brain: Early Evidence: Creatine is best known for strength training, but the brain uses it for energy too. The evidence for thinking and memory is early and the effects are small. It is optional.
- Move and Get Outside: Short walks and time outdoors are the easiest breaks between focus blocks, and they help a little with attention and ideas.
- After Day 14: Fourteen days starts new habits; it doesn't finish them. This chapter turns what worked into rules you keep.
Safety notes
- If you have thoughts of harming yourself, contact a doctor, an emergency service or a crisis line today. You do not have to wait until you finish anything.
- Caffeine is not for you without a doctor's OK if you have heart rhythm problems, heart disease, uncontrolled high blood pressure, or an anxiety or panic disorder. Palpitations, shaking or anxiety after caffeine: cut back. Never combine high-caffeine energy drinks or pre-workouts with other stimulants or alcohol.
References (32)
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- Kreider, R.B. et al. (2017). International Society of Sports Nutrition position stand: safety and efficacy of creatine supplementation in exercise, sport, and medicine. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, 14(1), 18. doi.org/10.1186/s12970-017-0173-z
- Berridge, K.C. & Robinson, T.E. (2016). Liking, wanting, and the incentive-sensitization theory of addiction. American Psychologist, 71(8), 670-679. doi.org/10.1037/amp0000059
- Hunt, M.G. et al. (2018). No More FOMO: Limiting Social Media Decreases Loneliness and Depression. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 37(10), 751-768. doi.org/10.1521/jscp.2018.37.10.751
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General education, not medical advice. If you have a medical condition, take medication, or are pregnant or breastfeeding, talk to your doctor before you start.