Focus Bell
A Mac timer that takes over every screen when it's time for a break, then waits for me to start the next round.
Side project · 2026
Why I built it
I wanted a timer I couldn't ignore. One that would get me out of my chair to stretch, and then send me right back to work.
What it does
It sits in the menu bar. Click Start Focus and the countdown runs up there while you work. When the 25 minutes are up, a bell rings and the break alert comes up. Start Break gives you 30 seconds. Then another bell, and End Break starts the next round. You can change both lengths in Settings.
The alert you can't ignore
The alert is the whole point, so it gets the whole screen. Every screen. Focus Bell opens one window per display, above everything else, menu bar included. Plug in another monitor while it's up and that one gets covered too.
But it's not a lock. Press Esc or click Dismiss for now and it closes. The timer doesn't move on without me, though. It waits in the menu bar, and nothing starts until I click. When the alert goes away, it switches back to whatever app I was in.
It doesn't ask for any permissions either. No Accessibility, no Screen Recording, not even notifications. It's an ordinary window... just a really big one.
And the timer pauses while the Mac sleeps, then picks back up where it left off when it wakes.