I generally use the bar settings for tempo changes. When I want to end a song by slowing it down to a final hold..... this is extremely useful. Most rit endings happen over no more that 2 measures.

To do my endings.....assuming for this example that the song tempo is 120 BPM in 4/4 time.... I will add a number of measures to the end of the song.... maybe 8 or so.... I then change the last 4 measures of the song to 2 beats per measure. Each 2 beat measure gets reduced tempo by 10 BPM or so.... some more, some less, it's not super important to have the reduction exactly the same. But each measure is slower than the one before it. The last measure is a hold.

The reason for the change from 4 beats per measure to 2 beats is so that the tempo change is not in "steps" that the listener hears. By using 2 beats per measure, the change sounds natural. A little bit of experimenting and adjustment may be required to get it sounding right. But when done right, it sounds really nice.

This is an example of this method. Dust On The Floor

You can find my music at:
www.herbhartley.com
Add nothing that adds nothing to the music.
You can make excuses or you can make progress but not both.

The magic you are looking for is in the work you are avoiding.