In 2022, mindful productivity startup Beams asked me to investigate why their early ‘Focus Mode’ feature failed to gain traction with beta users. My work revealed user needs that weren’t being articulated, reframed their initial approach, and equipped the team with a clearer, more differentiated path to product–market fit.
Beams was a pre-seed productivity startup with a mission to “improve focus and reduce distraction”. Their early product combined a calendar with lightweight meeting tools and a Focus Mode designed to help knowledge workers carve out distraction-free time.
Built on early research suggesting customers valued reducing distractions and working single-mindedly, Focus Mode struggled to gain traction in practice, with only a small fraction of users trying it more than once — leaving the team searching for clarity on why.
Beams' beta product
Select Focus Mode
Work
Configure duration, intention
Beams' beta product
8%
Users who completed more than one Focus
Beta test result
Improve Focus and reduce context switching
Beams' mission
Beta product “Focus Mode” user flow
I analysed Focus Mode using Nir Eyal’s Indistractable model — a framework that outlines 4 complementary strategies for managing distraction. Through this lens, it was clear that Beams’ product addressed only a narrow slice of the focus problem: it subdued some external triggers but overlooked the deeper internal drivers and barriers to focus. In parallel, a hands-on review of the experience revealed conceptual flaws and UX limitations that reduced its practical value. My hypothesis? Users weren’t rejecting the idea of Focus Mode, but rather its narrow scope and limited execution.
Indistractable strategy
What it means
Focus Mode implementation?
Master Internal Triggers
Manage emotions
❌ Not yet
Make Time for Traction
Schedule priorities
⚠️ Partially with intention setting, but no ability to plan
Hack Back External Triggers
Control your environment
✅ Yes: Slack Do Not Disturb integration
Prevent Distraction with Pacts
Attach costs to distraction
❌ Not yet
Mapping competitors validated the model 's relevence
While we love to blame external triggers, the fact of the matter is most of our distractions begin from within.
Nir Eyal, Indistractable
Indistractable strategy
What it means
Focus Mode implementation?
Master Internal Triggers
Manage emotions
❌ Not yet
Make Time for Traction
Schedule priorities
⚠️ Partially with intention setting, but no ability to plan
Hack Back External Triggers
Control your environment
✅ Yes: Slack Do Not Disturb integration
Prevent Distraction with Pacts
Attach costs to distraction
❌ Not yet
Mapping competitors validated the model 's relevence
While we love to blame external triggers, the fact of the matter is most of our distractions begin from within.
Nir Eyal, Indistractable
Beyond the feature feedback, a critical insight emerged: users appeared to recognise that their biggest barrier wasn’t just external distraction, but their own difficulty staying accountable and following through — something not captured in Beams’ earlier research.
To test my hypothesis, I designed a concept testing exercise to evaluate the viability of new focus solutions and expand Beams’ understanding of user needs. I facilitated a team ideation session in which we generated feature ideas across three categories - Accountability , Environmental Controls and Coaching. From this, I created mockups for six concepts and tested them with users, evaluating each by perceived value, stress potential, and novelty.
Targeted Blocker
ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROLS
Access to apps and websites that are not on-task are blocked when in focus.
Focus Prompts
ACCOUNTABILITY
Beams informs you when you reach a distraction threshold.
Visual Emphasis
ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROLS
Apps and websites that are not helpful to your task are dimmed or desaturated.
Progress Reports
COACHING
Analytics show how you've spent your focus time and offer goals and tips.
Live Focus Monitor
ACCOUNTABILITY
A menu bar widget shows you how closely your behaviour matches your intended task.
Feature-by-feature evaluation
User stories that emerged from testing
The findings revealed a broader opportunity for Beams: moving beyond muting distractions to helping people commit to what matters and follow through. To bring this vision to life and show the team what it could look like in practice, I created a proof-of-concept blueprint for a reimagined Focus Mode.
End-to-End Focus
Unlike the original Focus Mode, which was limited in scope and execution, the reimagined version:
Proposed next steps
To de-risk the concept before major investment, I recommended a staged path to validate both usability and feasibility:
This project reinforced the value of stepping back and using the right frameworks at the right time. Behavioural analysis gave me a quick way to diagnose why Focus Mode was underperforming, while showing users concrete solution ideas helped surface needs they wouldn’t normally voice. Turning those insights into a sharper value proposition and an end-to-end blueprint gave the team clarity on where to go next.
Key learnings