Typescript, how to pass "Object is possibly null" error?

I've got the "Object is possibly null" error many times and usually I use a safety "if statement" in case it returns null. I've got the following function: const ModalOverlay = (props: any[]) => { const overlayEl = useRef(null); useEffect(() => { overlayEl.current.focus(); }); return <div {...props} ref={overlayEl} />; } But overlayEl.current gets the error "Object is not defined". So I've tried: