When both kinds of alert make the same sound, the sound makes the decision for you.
You can test that distinction without turning off everything. Pick one category of notification that often breaks a block of useful work. It might be a shopping app, a social feed, or updates from a group conversation. Leave calls from people who may need you and any safety-critical alerts alone.
For seven days, change only that category. Turn off its push alert and choose a time to check it deliberately. If a message in that category actually needed an immediate response, write down what happened. That exception tells you whether the rule needs changing.
Here is a worked example, not a reported result. A person who checks a shopping app whenever it announces a sale could silence that app and check it on Saturday. At the end of the week, they can ask: Did I miss anything that mattered? Did I return to my task more easily? The answer may support keeping the rule, changing the check time, or restoring the alert.
Your action: Choose one nonessential alert category today. Write down your check time and what would count as a genuine exception. Review both in seven days.
If you want help identifying a recurring interruption, use the 15-Minute Time & Attention Audit. It is free to read on the web.
A question for you: Which alert have you kept on because it might be urgent? If you receive the Field Note by email, reply and tell us what makes it hard to change.
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