Introverted Entrepreneur Evening Routine

In the last newsletter, I described my introverted entrepreneur morning routine. BUT I neglected to mention one critical component of my morning routine…

My evening routine!

You see, all good productivity experts know the best morning routines actually start the night before.

With that in mind, I thought it would be remiss of me to not let you in on the secrets of my evening routine so you can understand just how much it impacts my mornings.

So, here it is…

4pm: No more caffeine.

Ummm what? Does your evening routine begin at 4pm?!?!

Haha, yes and no. Because while my routine doesn’t necessarily begin here, something else ends… consuming caffeine.

If you’ve been around these here parts for a bit, you’ll know I drink a bucket of coffee every day. I love coffee and while it doesn’t seem to have a huge effect on me, I still like to switch it up after 4 pm. Mostly to make sure I actually drink some water for the day, because if I let myself, I’ll literally only drink coffee all day every day.

5.30pm: Hard stop.

At 5.30pm my alarm goes off to remind me to finish work for the day. Admittedly, I don’t always do so (I know, I know… I’m working on it). I have this alarm set to remind me that I should be finishing for the day, so it’s a good reminder to check what I’m doing and ask myself if it can wait until tomorrow. Most of the time it can, so I finish for the day.

I find this stopping time harder to abide by when Charlotte, my partner, is at work on an afternoon shift. It’s too easy to decide I may as well keep working while she’s at work. I really need to fix that—not sure how yet.

6.00pm: Training.

Recently, I’ve started working out at 6pm, but this is still a work in progress. 

As an entrepreneur, I want to get all of my work done first so I can concentrate fully on training afterwards rather than having to rush back to work.

As an introvert, I want to exercise earlier in the day so I can avoid busy times at the gym and train before my mental fatigue sets in.

As you can see, it’s a bit of a catch-22, but I’m working on it.

7.30: Take medication.

I take my medication in the evening because it makes me drowsy, but I have a bad habit of forgetting to take it, so I have an alarm set for 7.30 to remind me to take my meds. I have to take them early in the evening because they also cause insomnia for about 2 hours after taking them, so it requires a level of mastery to manage my sleep and fatigue.

7.33: Medication reminder.

I’m rather good at ignoring my alarms, so I have another to remind me to take those all-important meds.

7.40: Medication ultimatum.

This alarm says ‘STOP what you’re doing and take your damn meds’, and it’s generally the alarm that forces me to get up, wander to the bedroom and take my meds.

22.00: Begin wind-down routine.

Between 7.40pm and 10pm I make dinner, eat, feed the animals and sometimes we take them for a walk. After that, I usually watch tv, tidy the kitchen and/or read a book until bedtime.

My final alarm goes off at 10 pm and it signals the end of my evening, and the beginning of my wind-down routine, which looks a little like this:

• If I’m watching tv or on my phone, it's time to turn off those electronics.
• I put my phone on charge in the kitchen where I have to get out of bed to turn my alarm off in the morning.
• I take the dogs out for their pre-bed toilet break or clean the cat litter trays (both if Charlotte is at work).
• Once back inside, I  get my clothes ready for the morning.
• I brush my teeth.
• I get into bed.
• I talk to charlotte, read, do puzzles or write in my journal for about 30-45 minutes.
• Lights off and sleep. 

Aaand that’s it. When I wake up in the morning, my morning routine begins.

Why so serious?

This might sound a bit over the top. But over the last 12 months, I’ve realised just how important sleep is to my ability to perform well at work when I’m training and in day-to-day life. I know I need at least 9 hours in bed to achieve the amount of sleep I require, which means I have to start winding down well before that or my manic introvert brain will keep me up all night.

Having a collection of habits I work through in the evening allows me to signal to my mind that it’s time to prepare for sleep, and I’ve noticed I sleep much better when I work through this routine. More importantly, I wake up refreshed and find tackling the following day to be much easier than when I don’t complete my evening routine.

If you’re an introvert and you’re struggling to get enough sleep or switch your brain off in the evenings, try creating and following an evening routine. It might just be the trick you need to get a good night's sleep.