Fear Of A Notifications Badge

I’ve probably mentioned this a few times before on the blog, but one of the best decisions I took in recent years was to turn off notification badges on all the apps I use, on all devices.

For some people, this might seem counter-productive — “When will you know when someone has sent you a message or response?”

The answer, of course, is when I next open the application in question.

(I do allow some notifications to go to my lock screen or notification centre, but I only see those when I choose to look.)

Be in no doubt, those innocuous little badges can sap your attention and focus if you let them, and instil dread in your heart. They are perhaps the most well-intentioned yet pernicious inventions of the last few decades.