MacFreedom (Mac, Windows, Android) – Shut down your internet access (by choice) for up to eight hours at a time. Free with upgrade options. This clever application shuts down your internet access when you tell it to, and to get your internet back before the timer runs out, you’ll actually have to reboot your computer! If you struggle with discipline because of the internet’s endless entertainment offerings, this is worth a shot. They have a free trial. I haven’t personally tried this out, but I’m considering it. I have no affiliation with MacFreedom and no incentive to promote them.

WriteOrDie (Mac, Windows, Linux) – Eliminate writer’s block by providing consequences for procrastination or rewards for accomplishment. Free. This is an intriguing idea for writers—especially those who struggle with the dreaded “writers block.” It forces you to continuously type, because if you don’t, it will play an annoying sound until you start writing again (or in the new version, writing triggers serene sounds and nice pictures). I like this because I’m a firm believer that your first draft should be “vomited” out and then cleaned up in revisions. I don’t get writer’s block, so I haven’t bought this, but I wonder if it could spur me on to another level of first draft speed? Perhaps. If you want to try it out, they have a free demonstration on the website. I have no affiliation with WriterOrDie and no incentive to promote them.

Kill News Feed for Facebook (Google chrome) – block the news feed on Facebook.  This browser extension has been wonderful for me, as the Facebook news feed has been a major distraction for me. Instead of showing the news feed, it reminds you not to be distracted by Facebook. Alternatively, check out FB Purity (all browsers) for a more robust customization of how you use Facebook. But if you just want to remove the news feed, check out Kill News Feed. Or if you use Firefox, check out the Hide FB Ticker extension.

RescueTime (All platforms) – track your computer behavior to see and fix your unproductive habits. This is perhaps the ultimate focus tool.

It monitors your activity on the computer and lets you label productive and unproductive tasks.For example, Facebook is a -2 distraction and my writing software, Notational Velocity, is a +2 productive. It has a detailed stats and charts to help you understand your behavior.

Unlike strict workflow (see below on this list), it allows you to determine how long to block out distracting websites. And it blocks sites based on your designation of which ones are -2 distracting, which is a nice integration feature.

Timer Tab (website) – Set aside a block of time to focus. This is a simple, effective timer that displays the time left in the browser’s tab. When I use timer tab to focus, I’ll say, “For the next X minutes, I’m going to do Y.” Instructions: Set your time in the left box, and hit start countdown. If you’re working online, you’ll see the time in the tab and it will play an alarm when time is up. When I use this, I forget about it because I’ll be focused (which is the point). It’s a great tool to give yourself a trigger to start working. This is a simple and highly recommended tool for focusing.

Because the timer displays in the tab as well as the page, it is very useful for online work.

Notational Velocity (Mac) – Use for writing notes, ideas, lists, entire books, everything!  

 

This is the best, most intuitive program a writer will ever see. Imagine wanting to write anything from a note to a novel, and having a program that saves everything as you type it, doesn’t make you “open a new blank document.” Switching to this from a word processor resulted in me writing much more. In notational velocity, you click on the top bar and type in a title, press enter, and start typing. It has made me a better writer because it removes all of those tiny, annoying steps that you’re used to taking. You really need to use it to understand all of the great things it does.

UPDATE: I now use and love nvALT. nvALT is the same as Notational Velocity with some excellent added features, such as WORD COUNT! Sorry, I get excited about word count because I like to keep track of how much I’m writing per day. Since Notational Velocity is open source, people can make these cool features and share them.

 

nvALT uses the same folder for notes as the standard notational velocity, so you can install it and have access to your previous notes. Being a separate program, you can even use both of them if you want (but why?). My only complaint is a slightly buggy font modification system. It is the only bug I’ve come across. You can click in the middle of a bolded sentence and start typing and it will be normal (not bold) text. This happens vice versa too. It doesn’t bug me enough to switch back, and the word count feature was something I wanted sooo badly. Anyway, you can download nvALT right here.

F.lux (All platforms) – “Wind down” at night and avoid over-stimulating your eyes before bed. F.lux “makes the color of your computer’s display adapt to the time of day, warm at night and like sunlight during the day.” I tried it and used it for a little while, but the screen turns a bit orange at night, and sometimes I’m productive at night, so I stopped. It’s a great idea though, and it does fix the problem of staring at an overly bright screen at night. The screen changes very gradually too, which is cool.

Strict Workflow (chrome browser add-on) – block popular websites like Facebook (you can manually set which sites to block) for 25 minutes while you focus (then you get a 5 minute break). I have not used this yet, but I plan to try it soon. At your word, this app “enforces a 25min/5min workflow: 25 minutes of distraction-free work, followed by 5 minutes of break. Repeat as necessary.” This seems like a great idea, and many of the reviews are positive (4 star average). This is an automated version of what I suggest doing with the timer tab. My only possible gripe is that I’d rather set the times myself (i.e. 40 minutes of work and a 10 minute break if I want).