As someone who's tested dozens of productivity tools, I know the internet's endless distractions—Twitter rabbit holes, Wikipedia deep dives, Reddit scrolls—can derail even the best intentions.
Incoming email notifications are a major culprit, but the Boomerang extension for Gmail lets you temporarily hide them from your inbox, giving you uninterrupted focus.
The Boomerang browser extension from Baydin empowers you to schedule emails and now reschedule already-scheduled messages directly in Gmail. It's available for Chrome, Firefox, Opera, and Safari.
Installation is straightforward: connect your Gmail account and complete two quick authentications—one for core scheduling and another for the pause feature.
To pause emails, click the new Pause button in Gmail's left sidebar, just above Compose. Grant access, then tweak your settings.
Hit Pause to hide incoming emails. Optionally, send an auto-reply to senders (Boomerang suggests a polite template you can customize).
Set it to auto-resume after a duration or specific date/time for seamless control.
Pro users ($14.99/month) unlock extras like delivery exceptions for key contacts and custom pause schedules.
Note: Browser pausing works great, but mute your phone and close other email apps for total email-free zones.
What's your top tip for online productivity? Share in the comments.
