Do NOT put your phone on permanently silent so that phone calls don't ring.

Disable most notifications altogether, especially: email and any form of group messages (like WhatsApp group).

For 1-on-1 instant messages / SMS, display a silent notification.

For specific email, create a special notify tag and sparingly assign it to urgent threads and some sent messages. You can also use filters to assign the tag automatically.

Deny notifications for most apps.

All calls should ring. It may be something urgent even if you don't recognize the number. It may be someone close to you calling with a hospital phone before heading out to emergency surgery. It may be the police. This is why you don't want to default to blocking hidden numbers unless you really have to.