SwitchDeck

Every interruption costs more than its minutes. When you switch tasks, part of your attention stays behind on the one you left. Psychologists call it attention residue, and it's why getting back into deep work can take so long. SwitchDeck is a five-card system for leaving a task cleanly and coming back without the fog. It's based on research showing that a quick "ready-to-resume" plan, written before you switch, cuts that residue. SAVE STATE IN SECONDS When someone says "got a minute?", write a yellow PAUSE card: the task, and your CUE, the first thing to do when you're back. Add the state of the work, what you were thinking, and any references if there's time. A gentle 90 second timer keeps it short. RESUME WITHOUT RE-READING EVERYTHING Interruptions nest, so your yellows form a stack: the attention deck. The top card is always your resume point. Open it and the cue is right there, in large type. Do it first, then mark it resumed or discard it. SCOPE THE INTERRUPTION An orange INTERRUPTION card records who pulled you away, what it is and how long it should take. End it with the outcome, and SwitchDeck takes you straight back to the top yellow. DECKS FOR WORK, SCHOOL AND HOME Keep separate decks side by side, each with its own cards, day card and wins. School words are written for middle and high school (ASSIGNMENT, a PARKING LOT for stray thoughts, HOMEWORK TIME); Home words for parents keeping a house and kids going (WHO NEEDED ME, REMEMBER, MY QUIET TIME). Switch decks from the title, with a one-tap offer to leave a cue on the deck you're leaving. A home interruption in the middle of work can go on the Home deck, and ending it brings you straight back to your work card. PARK STRAY THOUGHTS "Oh, and I also need to…" goes on a pink OPEN LOOP card, one line, so you can keep going instead of acting on it. KEEP YOUR DAY IN VIEW A white DAY CARD anchors the deck: your top 3, a protected focus block (with an optional heads-up before it starts) and a simple tally of the day's interruptions. On iPad and Mac it sits beside your cards, so your priorities stay visible mid-interruption. CLOSE THE DAY End day takes about two minutes: carry or discard each yellow, turn unfinished Top 3 items into open loops so tomorrow starts fresh, sort stray thoughts, and bundle the day's wins. Every step is optional. Miss a night and SwitchDeck quietly offers to close yesterday the next morning. Old open loops say how long they've waited, so nothing sits forgotten. REMEMBER WHY YOU DO IT Green WIN cards record what you finished, who it helped and why it mattered. Each week, flip through them in a short "Why I Do It" review, with the week's day cards alongside. Export any week to Markdown for Obsidian or your notes, or send a day to Apple Journal with Shortcuts. FAST CAPTURE EVERYWHERE • Siri and Shortcuts: "Pause in SwitchDeck", "Interruption in SwitchDeck", "I'm back in SwitchDeck", "What's my cue in SwitchDeck", or name a deck: "Pause Home in SwitchDeck" • Widgets on iPhone, iPad and Mac show the CUE on top of your deck; tap to resume • Control Center: one tap for a new Pause card • Mac: a menu bar item and global shortcuts that open a card over whatever you're doing • Works with the Action button through Shortcuts QUIETLY HONEST No streaks, badges, scores or leaderboards. Interruption counts are evidence for protecting your focus time, not a game. PRIVATE BY DESIGN Your cards stay on your devices and sync through your own private iCloud. No accounts, no analytics, no tracking. PREFER PAPER? SwitchDeck began as five colours of index cards, and it still works that way. Settings → Analog Deck has free printable cards for work, school and home, and a guide to running the deck by hand.