Why I Ditched my Evening Routine

If you have a solid morning routine, chances are you’ve had incredible results. Taking time for yourself in the morning gives you energy and ambition to commit to your goals and be there for other people. 

Something I’ve tried and failed to do is create an evening routine. 

Over the past year, I’ve attempted many different nighttime routines. 

Some of them may work for you. 

But for me, that block of time in the evening wasn’t productive. 

Plan Tomorrow Today

We all know if we want a free-flowing morning routine, we also need to prepare the day before. Plan Tomorrow Today (PTT) is a block of time for you to go through your calendar, familiarize yourself with important tasks, and make any necessary changes. 

When I completed PTT at night, my morning was much smoother. Yet, when I got home at the end of the day, the last thing I wanted to do was pull myself away to plan tomorrow’s work day. Simply put, when I scheduled PTT for 7:30 pm, I was not consistent with it. 

That means, instead of jumping right into my day and attacking tasks, I was spending time in the morning planning the rest of the day. This took away time from my morning routine and felt rushed. 

An Afternoon Session

Instead of blocking time for PTT at night, when I am more likely not to do it, I put it in my calendar for 1:00 pm. 

I schedule my days, so I am in the office all morning and book my appointments in the afternoon. This allows me to get all my morning work in the office completed, and then I Plan Tomorrow Today at 1:00 pm, before I head out to meetings. 

We put pressure on ourselves to create an extravagant evening routine. Many of us are waking up at 5:00 am or earlier, and carry work with us right up until we go to bed. 

So what has shifting my PTT to 1:00 pm allow for?

Two big things. 

Be Home

It allows me to be ready for morning stress-free. I am prepared for the day as soon as I open my eyes.

More importantly, when I go home at the end of the day, I can be home. 

That has been the most significant difference for me and my family.

I don’t want a complicated evening routine. I want my nighttime routine to be simple: go home, be with loved ones, eat dinner, shower, and get to bed early. 

What routines are you willing to implement into your evening?