The Disorienting Workspace Shift
macOS features a robust virtual desktop system called Spaces, allowing you to organize different workflows (e.g., a “Work” desktop and a “Personal” desktop) across multiple virtual screens. By default, macOS tries to be helpful by automatically rearranging these Spaces based on your most recent usage. If you are focused on Desktop 1 but receive a notification for an app currently running on Desktop 3, clicking that notification will cause macOS to instantly and automatically swoop you across virtual desktops, forcefully switching your active Space. For many users, this unexpected, high-speed visual transition is deeply disorienting and completely derails their current train of thought.
Anchoring Your Virtual Desktops
To maintain spatial consistency and stop macOS from automatically switching between desktops when an application demands attention, you must disable the auto-switching behavior within the Mission Control settings.
Click the Apple logo in the top-left corner of the screen and select System Settings (or System Preferences on older macOS versions). In the left-hand navigation sidebar, scroll down and click on Desktop & Dock. In the main panel, scroll down to the section labelled Mission Control. You will see several toggle switches governing virtual desktop behavior. Locate the switch labelled When switching to an application, switch to a Space with open windows for the application. Turn this toggle Off. Now, if an app on another desktop requires your attention, its icon will simply bounce in the Dock. macOS will wait for you to manually swipe over to the relevant Space when you are ready, rather than violently ripping you away from your current work.