Does Your Evening Routine Support Your Success?

Sure, the way we spend our time at the office contributes to our success, but our out-of-office time supports our success too — maybe more than we think. Routines help us to maximize our time. They’re built of almost automatic actions that can promote our efficiency and effectiveness or detract from it. Even though a routine may be made of small actions, over time they can lead to significant results. A while back I wrote about how your morning routine can support your success, here. This week I wanted to write about how we can take advantage of the evening hours to give us an advantage. Here are a few things to consider:

Evaluate Your Existing Habits

The first thing we need to do is look at any evening routines we may already have. Then, we need to see if they are useful or if they detract from our ability to perform at the best of our abilities. Once you have a sense of where you are, you can start building from there. Think about some things that you can incorporate to set you up for success the following day. Maybe you’d like to get a night-before overview on the day ahead, or perhaps you’d like to leave the house feeling less rushed or more rested. These are exactly the sort of things to build your evening routine around.

Stay Consistent

Routine gets its power from consistency. While getting to bed at a sensible hour a couple times each week is helpful, it’s when you start doing it every night that you’ll see the best results. You’ll start the day with more energy, you’ll establish a definitive sleep cycle for your body, and you’ll know what time you need to begin winding down. If you don’t have clear routines in place already, don’t dive in and try adding too many things at once. Start slowly with one or two new additions, then add more when those new additions become habit.

Disconnecting is Important

Disconnecting is particularly tough these days, and we have technology to thank for that. It’s too easy to continue checking our email after dinner or to knock out some paperwork before (or in) bed. We might think that we’re getting more accomplished, but these habits aren’t helpful. While they’re rooted in a dedication to our work, we need to be dedicated to giving ourselves what we need to function at our best. We all need time to decompress, focus on non-work things, and relax if we really want to perform at our best. When we give ourselves the opportunity to disconnect, we give ourselves an opportunity to recharge. Then, we’re truly setting ourselves up for a more productive tomorrow.

Plan Ahead for Tomorrow

For many of us, the evening before is the best time to plan ahead. Which things didn’t get done today that need to be priorities tomorrow? What things do you need to accomplish tomorrow to make progress towards your goals? When we can see the day ahead from a distance, we have an easier time shaping it to support our success. Rather than barreling through each day with your head down, taking care of things as they arise, when you create a night-before plan for the following day, you’re creating a roadmap that will lead you exactly where you want to go. Developing a plan in advance puts you in charge of your time.

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Whether we know it or not, our evening routines can play a sizable role in our success. The key is that we learn how to maximize them. If you already have a routine in place, or if you’re just starting to create one, these ideas can help you as you move forward.

If you’d like to talk more about evening routines, or if there’s another matter I can be of assistance with, please reach out. I’m always happy to set aside some time to connect.