Gentle Start: Focus Timer
Beat procrastination, calmly
Free · In‑App Purchases · Designed for iPad. Not verified for macOS.
Some days the task isn't hard - starting it is. Gentle Start makes starting one quiet tap, then counts up while you work. No streaks, no goals, no guilt.
Starting is the hardest part. Gentle Start makes it one tap.
When a task feels too big to begin, this is the smallest possible push. Open the app, tap once, and a calm focus timer counts up from zero. That's it - you've started, and starting was the whole battle.
There's no goal to reach. No streak to keep alive. No countdown racing you to a finish line. Gentle Start counts UP, not down - so there's nothing to fail and no way to fall behind. Stay thirty seconds or thirty minutes. Both count. Both are real.
HOW IT WORKS
- Tap to begin: one button, no setup, no plan, no account.
- The timer counts up quietly inside a living, animated scene. Nothing on screen pressures you - it's just proof that you're doing it.
- Stop whenever it feels right. You showed up, and that's enough.
WHY IT'S DIFFERENT
Most focus timers and productivity apps are built around finishing - streaks, daily goals, charts, pomodoro countdowns, reminders that nag. For a brain that already feels behind, that pressure is the very thing that makes starting feel impossible. So Gentle Start leaves it out. No metrics staring back at you. No guilt. No catching up. Just a gentle way across the one line that actually matters: from not-started to started.
WHO IT'S FOR
Made for procrastinators, people with ADHD and executive dysfunction, students facing down an assignment or a long study session, writers staring at a blank page, and anyone who knows the strange, heavy weight of simply beginning. Whether you call it procrastination, task paralysis, or "I just can't start" - if "just start" has never once worked as advice, this was built for you.
CALM BY DESIGN
- 28 living themes: drifting clouds, falling snow, rising bubbles, a quiet night sky, and more - soft animated scenes that are easy on the eyes while you work. Or pick random and come back to a fresh space each session.
- Ambient soundscapes: rain, fireplace, forest, and other gentle audio to ease you into focus.
- A companion while you work: a tiny animated sun keeps you company in the Dynamic Island and on your Lock Screen during a session - with a whole sky of suns to choose from.
- Home Screen widgets and Live Activities keep your session calm and glanceable without opening the app.
- Works with Siri and the Action Button, so you can start without even looking.
WHAT GENTLE START WILL NEVER DO
- No streaks
- No daily goals
- No guilt, no shame
- No ads
- No subscriptions
- No account or sign-up
- No tracking
Your sessions stay on your device. There's nothing to log into, and nothing watching you work.
Gentle Start isn't here to make you do more. It's here to make starting feel possible, especially on the days it doesn't.
Tap once. Start small. That counts.
Gentle Start is on iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch. Wherever you are, make your next start a gentle one.
Ratings & Reviews
New animated pets that sit in the dynamic island and on your lock screen while a timer runs.
The developer, JOHNNY LI, indicated that the app’s privacy practices may include handling of data as described below. For more information, see the developer’s privacy policy .
Data Not Collected
The developer does not collect any data from this app.
Accessibility
The developer has not yet indicated which accessibility features this app supports. Learn More
Information
- Seller
- JOHNNY LI
- Size
- 43.1 MB
- Category
- Productivity
- Compatibility
Requires iOS 18.0 or later.
- iPhone
Requires iOS 18.0 or later. - iPad
Requires iPadOS 18.0 or later. - Mac
Requires macOS 15.0 or later and a Mac with Apple M1 chip or later. - Apple Vision
Requires visionOS 2.0 or later. - Apple Watch
Requires watchOS 11.0 or later.
- iPhone
- Languages
- English
- Age Rating
4+
- 4+
- In-App Purchases
Yes
- Gentle Start Premium $4.99
- Copyright
- © Johnny Li
