Mornings 101:
How to Create Your Ideal Evening Routine

This is the fourth article in the six-part Mornings 101 series that focuses on how to implement the most effective strategies for dominating your day before breakfast.

The best morning routines begin the night before.

If you want to wake up early and literally bounce out of bed with enthusiasm tomorrow morning, then you want to make sure you end today in the best way possible.

Photo Credit: Pixabay

I have a terrible habit of staying up late for no good reason and I waste more time in the last few hours before bed than at any other time of the day.

For me, a solid evening routine is not a fluffy addition to my daily productivity, it is an essential ingredient that protects me from myself.

How to Create Your Ideal Evening Routine

The first step to waking up early is going to bed early, and with a solid system in place each night you can guarantee better sleep and a more effective beginning to the following day.

1. Make a Big List

Start by listing all of the activities that you ideally would like to complete each evening. Keep in mind that the evening routine tends to much more flexible than the morning routine as schedules are likely to evolve more dramatically as the day progresses.

This means that you may not have strict time requirements for each activity and what you do each evening could vary considerably from day-to-day. The key is to identify what core habits are essential for you to end your day effectively and repeat those habits with increasing consistency.

9 Potential Habits to Include in Your Evening Routine

1. Review your tasks for the following day in your calendar and task manager.
2. Implement Equilibrium Zero by putting everything away, including all work-related materials and personal stuff around your house.
3. Set your alarms for the following day (I use multiple alarms to guarantee I get up).
4. Turn off any bright visual screens (computers, phones, tablets, etc.) around one hour before bedtime.
5. Practice yoga, stretch, invert, and prepare your body physically for sleep.
6. If you shower at night like I do, be sure to record that as well.
7. Read or listen to fiction to allow your mind to transition into more a care-free state.
8. Meditate on gratitude, pray, or think about how much great work you were able to accomplish today. Keep these thoughts positive and focused on your successes so you fall asleep free of stress and anxiety.
9. Create an ideal sleeping environment to fall asleep faster and easier (cooler temperatures, dark room, comfortable bed, etc.).

2. Set Your Boundary

Without a solid evening boundary it’s likely you will stay up later than you intend, which will lead to a lack of sleep or sleeping past your alarm. I set an evening boundary for myself at 8:00 pm each night, which means at that time I must end all work projects for the day.

I also turn off all electronics (TV, computer, phone, tablet, etc.) and officially begin working through my set evening routine.

The evening boundary is critical if you want to end your days with more intentionality, effectively get to bed on time, and get enough sleep for the next day. The evening boundary is really the first and most important step in tomorrow’s morning routine.

It’s usually best to set an evening boundary 1 to 2 hours before you plan to be asleep, and then plan to execute your evening routine activities between your boundary and bedtime.

3. Finalize Your Plan

Based on the boundary you set and the list of activities you would like to complete, it’s now time to formalize your evening routine.

Just like you did with your ideal morning routine, get out your favorite notebook, task manager, and/or calendar and record your ideal system for ending each day.

Keep this simple by writing down a prioritized list of the activities you would like to complete between your evening boundary and the time you would like fall asleep. Also note how long you expect each activity to take.

It’s best to formalize a specific order for these habits in order to form a ritualized process. Rituals are great for allowing your mind to slow down while letting your muscle memory take over, which further prevents you from distracting yourself.

What Keeps You Up?

Like I mentioned earlier, I waste more time during this part of the day than at any other. Wrapping up the days activities doesn’t have to take very long, but it’s crucial to stay diligent throughout this process because this is the time of the day when you are most likely to get distracted and veer off course.

Many people are awake late at night for silly reasons like watching television, doing work they could have finished earlier in the day, or just letting themselves get distracted by things that should be dealt with at another time.

Think about your typical evening and identify what keeps you awake. What prevents you from going to sleep on time? What distractions, obstacles, or procrastination techniques are you mastering instead of just focusing on getting to sleep?

Next Week

On the blog next week I will be sharing Part V of the Mornings 101 series: five healthy habits to begin your day.