DeepFlow — A Deep-Working Timer App for Deep-Work Professionals
Time
2-week design sprint
Role
Product Designer
Team
Solo project
Focus
UX Research,
Usability testing,
Mobile design,
Why design matters
Many focus tools optimize for control, but deep-work users need awareness without interruption.
Who the project is for
The primary audience is deep-work professionals managing long-term, self-directed projects, relying primarily on internal motivation.
How I approached
Use UX research to challenge assumptions and translate insights into a minimal, system-driven interaction model.
Goals
Design a focus tool that supports deep work without interruption, helping users stay aware of time without pressure.
Quantitative Research
19 valid responses out of 24 survey participants (knowledge workers)
The survey aimed to validate common struggles around long sessions, losing track of time, and difficulty maintaining tools over time. Since this was a niche user group and access was limited, I shifted toward fewer, deeper interviews to strengthen insight quality rather than scale.
Qualitative Research
4 interviews with 3 PhD candidates, 1 freelancer. Here are some insights that guided the direction:
Fixed interval often creates resistance rather than support.
“Pomodoro feels like the morning alarm on a phone… it interrupts you in the middle — kind of annoying, an unnecessary action.”
Fixed interruptions feel disruptive once users enter flow
“A single notification or even just thinking about lunch can pull me out of focus. Once I lose that flow, it’s so hard to climb back into that deep working mode.”
Long, uninterrupted work can feel productive but is not always healthy
“The times when I felt really productive were when I worked for 3 or 4 hours without noticing the time passing or pausing. But I don’t think that’s healthy. Now I value physical health more. This PhD is a marathon, not a short race.”
Recording time and repeated effort creates emotional reassurance of continuity and progress
“Doing self-guided project feels like setting up a street stall, no matter what, I have to show up at my desk. But unlike a real stall, it’s hard to see the daily earnings, no sense of progress. That’s why I rely on recording my hours and tasks, just to prove to myself that I moved forward.”
Challenging Assuptioins
During research, a recurring question challenged my direction:
“If people want to work freely, why do they still need reminders at all?”
Interviews revealed that uninterrupted deep focus and time awareness are not opposites, users want freedom in the moment, but reminders to sustain long-term health and progress.
The challenge was not choosing one over the other, but supporting time awareness without interrupting deep focus, and reflection without pressure.
Key learnings
Problem is not motivation or discipline. Problem is how tools handle time awareness during deep focus.
Autonomy Timer
Users decide when to start and stop, not the system.
Awareness Countdown Timer
Time should be visible without demanding attention.
Emotion Design for Reflection
Feedback should reduce guilt and support continuity, not evaluate performance.
Minimal Interaction Design
One or two core interactions that feel intuitive and emotionally low-friction.
Information flow refined
The core challenge was not adding timers, but separating different meanings of time so they would not compete for attention. I chose to design system logic and information flow before lo-fi wireframes, clarifying what should run automatically, what required user input, and how different time layers interact.
Mid-fi testing
Key learnings
• The concept was understandable
• Multiple time indicators felt visually overwhelming
• Verbal explanation was often required, signaling excessive cognitive load
The issue was not the idea itself, but presenting multiple meanings of time simultaneously.
Key Refinements
Tradeoff: Minimalism vs Usability
I initially aimed for strict minimalism. However when testing showed that users needed clear pause and reset actions to feel safe and in control. After comparing both variants, I chose to add these action buttons, making the system less rigid while preserving its core simplicity.
Start Focus
One tap begins a focus session. The timer runs quietly in the background with a calm rhythm indicator.
Gentle reminders
A soft countdown reminder appears at the top. When it ends, the session continues automatically. Users can stay in flow or switch to a break without interruption.
Deep Focus mode
If users continue working after the reminder, the session naturally shifts into Deep Focus mode, with the rhythm indicator changing to reflect sustained focus. The countdown resets, allowing users to keep working in their own rhythm without additional actions.
Emotional visual reflection
Users see a visual summary of focus, deep work, and breaks, with layered visuals reflecting rhythm and continuity rather than performance. Daily, weekly, and monthly views highlight patterns over time, while blank days are treated as meaningful pauses, reinforcing awareness without pressure and progress users can feel.
