Visual focus timer
Watch the time actually go. Pick a length, or just tap five minutes and start, no setup, no account, nothing to configure first.
It stays on screen while the timer runs, so the tab you come back to still knows what you were doing.
That's the session
You did the thing. Take the win.
Why a shrinking circle beats a countdown
Time blindness isn't about not knowing what the clock says. It's that a stretch of time doesn't feel like anything until it's gone, so "I'll start in a minute" and "I'll start in an hour" land identically. A number counting down is still just a number. A shape that visibly empties gives duration a size, which is why the physical disc timers turn up in so many ADHD toolkits and classrooms. This is the same idea, without the plastic.
About body doubling
Body doubling means working while another person is present, in the room or on an open call. It isn't accountability or supervision, and they don't help with the task, their presence just keeps you tethered to it. It genuinely works for a lot of ADHD people. A web page can't be a person, so this tool doesn't claim to be one. The check-in option is a substitute for the smallest part of it, the periodic "still on it?", and for the real thing you want a friend on a call or one of the free co-working rooms.
If the timer isn't the problem
Sometimes you can't start because the task has no edges yet, and no timer fixes that. Run it through the Task Breakdown tool first to get a next step small enough to be obvious, then come back and give that five minutes. If what's in the way is a head full of everything at once, read why you can't start even when you want to.
Questions people actually ask
Why does a visual timer work better than a clock?
Because a number tells you the time and a shrinking shape tells you how much is left. Time blindness isn't an inability to read a clock, it's difficulty feeling duration pass. A disc that visibly empties turns an abstract twenty-five minutes into something you can see going, which is why the physical versions are a staple in ADHD and classroom settings.
What's body doubling, and is this it?
Body doubling is working alongside another person, in the room or on a call, where their presence keeps you anchored to the task. It works, and a web page cannot do it, so this tool doesn't pretend to. What it does instead is the part that can be automated: you name the one thing you're doing, it stays on screen while the timer runs, and optional check-ins ask if you're still on it. For real body doubling, call a friend and leave the line open, or join one of the free co-working rooms people run for this.
How long should I set it for?
Shorter than feels sensible. The point of the five-minute option isn't five minutes of work, it's getting past the start, which is where the whole thing actually breaks down. Most people keep going once they're moving. If five feels like nothing, that's the feature: nothing is easy to agree to.
Does it keep running if I switch tabs?
Yes. The countdown is worked out from the clock, not from the tab being awake, so switching away or locking your phone won't lose your session. Leaving the page entirely will, though, since nothing is stored on a server.
What happens when the time is up?
A soft two-tone chime, which you can mute, and the option to take five or run it again. No blaring alarm, no streak to break, no guilt if you stop after one.
