It might seem counterintuitive to use Do Not Disturb on your iPhone — after all, it’s a device designed to help you stay in touch with people — but in our always-connected world, turning it off is becoming increasingly important.
Many of the best phones allow users to turn on different profiles and settings according to their needs, and Apple devices have some of the most comprehensive and customizable Do Not Disturb features. However, as with many of the iPhone’s best features, you have to do a little hunting and tinkering to make sure they’re set up just right for you.
If you’re ready to set some boundaries and create more time for yourself away from your phone’s screen, or even to calm down on the number of distractions you might encounter while using it, we’ve got you covered — here’s how to turn on and set Do Not Disturb and Focus modes on your iPhone.
Want to just manually turn on the default Do Not Disturb mode? Skip to step seven – but you’ll be missing out on some of the coolest focus features on your iPhone!
Steps on how to customize Do Not Disturb and Focus modes on iPhone
- Open the Settings app and go to the Focus menu
- Choose the focus file you want to set up
- Adjust the settings to meet your needs
- Set a schedule or run it manually
Step by step guide
1. Head to the Focus menu in Settings
(Photo: © Future)
to start, Head to your settings Implementation (it’s the gray logo with a gear) on your iPhone, which should be on your home page. If you only recently activated your phone, it will probably be in the penultimate row on the far right.
next one, Scroll down to the second group of options And you find the person who is called to focus.
2. Choose a profile from Do Not Disturb, Personal, Work, or Sleep
(Photo: © Future)
Here you will find four different focus profiles, each serving a different purpose.
The first is the general do not disturb Mode, which is the one you have to optimize for universal general use when you want to be left alone. the other three – PersonalAnd The job And asleep – Allows you to create different profiles based on your needs for the respective settings. You can also add new profiles by clicking the “+” icon at the top right of this page.
The process for customizing focus modes is the same across all profiles, though Choose a profile to customize and you’ll be taken to that profile’s settings dashboard. From this dashboard, you can customize a number of settings from notifications to aesthetics and scheduling.
If you own other Apple products like the Apple Watch, iPad, or MacBook, you can too Switch to share focus modes across devices from this list.
3. Customize the Do Not Disturb and Focus notification settings
(Photo: © Future)
In the notification settings group on the dashboard, you can Select People & Apps The selected focus mode can be overridden with notifications, texts, and calls. You can also click Options from dashboard to customize How do you want notifications to appear on your lock screen.
Once these settings are modified, Return to the main control panel.
4. Customize lock and home screen pages
(Photo: © Future)
From the dashboard, you can Edit or choose the lock and home screen setting Either by limiting the existing lock screens you set up or creating new ones that reduce the number of distractions you encounter, or Show selected widgets that let you check things in a jiffy.
For example, we set up our Do Not Disturb profile to show the weather, phone battery percentage, and any birthdays from our Facebook friend lists.
Once you select or create a lock screen and home screen, Click Done in the upper-right corner of your screen.
5. Determine the schedule
(Photo: © Future)
Especially for sleep and work profiles, you may want to set up a schedule that automatically turns on your focus modes.
You can do this by clicking Add a schedule from the Dashboard, then choose whether to turn on focus mode by time, location or application usage. For example, you might want to set up your work profile to start at 9:00 AM each day, or when you arrive at the office.
You can too Turn on Smart Activationwhich will see your iPhone intelligently and automatically turn on the selected focus mode when it thinks you’ll need it based on your use of the iPhone in similar settings.
6. Set up focus filters
(Photo: © Future)
Click Add Filter To set up focus filters, which are more specific settings that control how your iPhone behaves when you’re in focus mode.
From here you can Set specific behaviors for Apple apps Including Calendar, Messages, and Safari as well as some other select applications such as Outlook or Set up system filters Like low power mode and dark mode.
7. Turn on Do Not Disturb focus mode
(Photo: © Future)
Finally, we’re ready to turn on the new Do Not Disturb focus mode. Swipe down from the top-right corner of your iPhone Where it shows battery usage is to reveal the command center – If you’re new to the iPhone, this is a really useful dashboard that you can customize with shortcuts to help you get things done quickly on your phone.
To quickly turn on Do Not Disturb mode, Just click on the icon with a moon, a circle inside, which will toggle focus mode on and off. If you want to select a specific on/off trigger or use a different focus mode, Click anywhere else in the same button.
This will display a list of focus mode profiles, with which you can Select the profile that best suits your needs. You can too Click the ellipses to the right of the profile name Sets the on/off triggers for this mode.
questions and answers
What is the best way to set up my focus profiles?
This really comes down to personal preference, but there are some easy wins, especially for sleep and work focus schedules.
Being able to set a schedule and be level specific about what your iPhone does or doesn’t show can really change how you act when it comes to bedtime or prime time in the office, but sometimes it’s also important to be closer. Your dearest can hold on to you even when others cannot.
Our best tip is to spend a few weeks adjusting your focus positions and seeing what strikes a healthy balance between work, life, play — and of course, your favorite iPhone apps.
Final thoughts
With so many distractions cluttering our daily lives, it’s easy to end up spending hours glued to your phone playing the latest games, texting your friends, or even just scrolling on Twitter or Instagram.
However, this can end up affecting your habits, routines, and even your mental and physical health, which is why developers at Apple and other device manufacturers are becoming more aware and supportive of user device usage.
iPhone Focus modes and Do Not Disturb mode are valuable tools if you want to put your life back in your hands and away from your phone.