A few weeks ago, I wrote about establishing a morning routine. I’ve found that a simple morning routine sets the tone for a productive day. After seeing some of the benefits to having a morning routine, I started thinking about things that I could do in the evening that might set the stage for a successful morning.
My evening routine is laid back, because let’s be honest, who wants to do a whole bunch of work at the end of a long day.
Benefits of an Evening Routine
1. End your day well
I don’t know about you, but I don’t like going to bed with certain tasks undone. It feels so good to head to bed knowing that the kitchen and the main living areas are tidy.
Having an evening routine allows me to end the day knowing that the most important tasks have been done, and that I’m waking up with a clean slate. Waking up to a sink of dirty dishes is a nightmare!
2. Prep for the next day
The evening is a great time to do any prep or planning for the next day. Especially if your day begins early in the mornings, it can be really helpful to have a few things prepped for the morning. It helps make your morning run a little smoother, whether you have an official morning routine or not.
3. Finish up any leftover tasks
If your morning or afternoon didn’t quite go as planned, the evening is a great time to tie up any loose ends from the day.
4. Allows for rest in the evening
Once you are finished with your evening routine, then the rest of the night is yours. I try and get mine started as soon as I can after we eat our dinner. That way, I am “off the clock” when it comes to housework and can spend my evenings on things I enjoy.
Determining Your Evening Routine
When trying to figure out what you should include in your evening routine, think through ways that your evening routine could help you. Just as with your mornings, you don’t serve your evening routine, it should serve YOU.Here are some questions you could ask yourself.
- What would you like to have completed before heading to bed?
- Anything else you could do in the evening to set you up for a successful morning?
- What would make it easier for you to fall asleep at night?
- How much time do you have in the evenings for your routine?
When determining what your evening routine should be, make sure you evaluate your season of life. Your routine will change as your family dynamic changes, and that’s okay. I’d even consider making it a habit to re-evaluate your routines every 6 months and make changes accordingly.
Also, make sure your evening routine is realistic. Don’t make your evening routine too long or complicated. I would keep your evening routine to 5-6 things that could be finished up in about 30 minutes or so. At the end of the day, you’ll likely be tired. If your evening routine is too lengthy, then it’s less likely you will actually do it! 🙂
My Sample Evening Routine
My evening routine is very, very basic. I try to do more than this, but this is my bare bones list of things that I really want to have completed before heading off to bed. I keep both my morning and evening routines on my phone so that I can check and re-focus if I get sidetracked.
1. Wipe kitchen counters
I like my kitchen to be clean, so wiping down the counters is a must.
2. Clean sink
I despise waking up to a sink of dirty dishes, so I make sure to clean the sink before heading to bed.
3. Start dishwasher
Since I start the day by unloading the dishwasher {so that we can load it with dirty dishes throughout the day}, I make sure to end the day by starting the dishwasher. I usually do this right before bed, in case we use any dishes late in the evening.
4. Quick tidy up in living area
I am certainly not a neat freak, but I do like a tidy house. At the very least, I like the main living areas to be tidy before we head to bed. We have the kids help clean up their toys before bed, so that helps quite a lot.
5. Load washing machine
I like to have my load of laundry ready to go before I go to bed at night. If I treat any items with my laundry stain remover, this gives it time to set in before starting the load in the morning.
My evening routine is really basic and it doesn’t happen perfectly every day, but it has been big step in helping my household run a little more smoothly.
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Do you know where that white comforter in the top picture came from.
I'm sorry, but I don't know. Feel free to check the source at the bottom of the post and maybe you can find out from there?