The Focused Productivity Workflow: How DigTek's Apps Complement Your Existing Tools

In our hyper-connected world, the challenge isn't finding productivity apps—it's finding focus amidst the noise. Our ability to concentrate on cognitively demanding tasks is becoming increasingly rare, yet it's precisely this skill that drives real value creation.

At DigTek, we've designed our apps not to replace your existing productivity ecosystem, but to act as focused supplements.

For us some of our most used apps are the excellent Bear, MindNode and Things. Here's how NoteToSelf, FocusAnchor, Mikro, and DayRater can transform your daily workflow when combined with others of your favorite tools.

The Morning Launch: From Planning to Pure Focus

Our day typically begins with a consultation — checking Things for task queue or reviewing weekly overview note in Bear. These tools excel at comprehensive organization, but they can also overwhelm with their sheer volume of information. This is where FocusAnchor becomes essential.

Instead of keeping Things, the tool for our entire task universe, visible (and thus mentally taxing), we copy or enter the chosen focus task into FocusAnchor. During the next designated focus period, FocusAnchor becomes our single source of truth — holding only what matters for the next 90 minutes, 2 hours, or whatever block we've committed to deep work.

The power of FocusAnchor is enhanced when combining with a focus mode. With focus mode we can limit our home screen to only a few essential apps, creating what we call a "cognitive perimeter" around focus time. No notifications from other apps, no tempting task rabbit holes in Things — just a minimal home- and lockscreen, for the work that matters most.

Why an app for such a novel and simpel thing? Because our phones has become a steadfast companion, and why not choose to use in a manner that helps us recognize it more like a tool under our control, then we under its.

Capturing the Emergent: Ideas Without Interruption

Throughout focused work periods, ideas inevitably surface. The traditional advice is to jot them down quickly and return to work, but even opening Bear — with its thousands of notes and rich feature set — can trigger attention residue.

NoteToSelf serves as a friction-free capture tool. It's deliberately minimal: when an idea emerges, we quickly enter it without being tempted by other notes, formatting options, or organizational decisions. It's the digital equivalent of keeping a simple notepad beside us during deep work sessions.

This isn't about replacing Bear's (or your favorite's) note-taking app — it's about preserving our cognitive momentum while ensuring valuable thoughts aren't lost.

The Development Bridge: From Capture to Creation

When a focus session ends, it's time to process. Thoughts that have gained substance in NoteToSelf need a proper development environment. This is where our existing tools shine:

Bear is our meeting notes repository, project documentation hub, and personal knowledge management system. Those quick captures from NoteToSelf get expanded, linked, and integrated into our broader note ecosystem.
MindNode takes over when we need to visualize relationships, brainstorm connections, or map out complex ideas that started as simple captures.

Bear's power as a "Swiss Army knife" of note-taking is actually enhanced when it's not competing with the urgent need to quickly capture fleeting thoughts. Instead, it can focus on what it does best: rich, interconnected knowledge work.

The Evening Reflection: Meaning and Measurement

We believe in the importance of what he calls "periodic shifts and reflections" — deliberate practices that help us transition from work mode or process the day's experiences. This is where Mikro and DayRater complete the workflow.

Mikro serves as a meaningful activity tracker. Rather than logging every minute of our day, it helps us identify and record the activities that felt most significant — whether professional breakthroughs, personal connections or moments of learning. It's less about productivity metrics and more about recognizing what matters to you.

DayRater provides the broader reflection layer, prompting you to evaluate your day holistically. At the end of the day, how do we feel about how it turned out?

Why This Hybrid Approach Works

The key insight here is that no single app should try to do everything. Bear, MindNode, and Things represent powerful apps precisely because they're comprehensive. But comprehensiveness can be the enemy of focus.

DigTek's apps serve as "focus amplifiers" in your existing workflow:

FocusAnchor creates bounded attention spaces
NoteToSelf preserves cognitive flow during capture
Mikro and DayRater provide intentional reflection without overwhelming detail

This isn't about minimalism for its own sake — it's about which tools you use when, and why.

Implementation: Your First Week

To try this workflow:

Morning: Start with your existing planning ritual in task manager og notes system, then transfer your primary focus task to FocusAnchor

Focus periods: Use FocusAnchor and a focus mode with restricted app environment, with NoteToSelf as your only capture tool

Processing breaks: Move developed ideas from NoteToSelf to your preferred tool for expanding and working on ideas

Evening: Log meaningful activities in Mikro, then use DayRater for overall day reflection

The goal isn't to abandon your current tools — it's to create what we call "attention zones" where each tool can do what it does best without cognitive interference from the others.

After all, in our age of infinite distractions, the ability to focus deeply isn't just a competitive advantage — it's a superpower. And like any superpower, it can use just a little help from a friend — the right tools used at the right time.