7 Steps to Make an Evening Routine Stick

Adding a new habit to your evening routine takes more than good intentions. In this episode, you’ll learn seven practical principles to make the habit attractive, focused, exciting, and easier to repeat—while staying clear on your why, making a real commitment, and setting a deadline. 

Transcript

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Shift with Justin King, How to Transform Your Life One Night at a Time. Tonight I'm going to talk about how to add a new evening habit. And this comes from some ideas I learned today in a book writing workshop. I believe these ideas are taken from atomic habits. If you are trying to add a new habit, that's definitely a good book you can check out. There were seven things mentioned. The first is start by making it attractive. Pair it with something you already enjoy, like tea, soft lighting, music, or a comfortable space. Next, keep it focused. Add one habit, not five, not ten. Read for 10 minutes. Works better than creating the perfect evening routine. Add here, also keep it focused on one specific outcome. What is the habit trying to accomplish? Is it better sleep? Turning off thoughts in your mind. Is the area of your life is that new habit addressing? And keep it exciting by giving yourself something to look forward to. Is it a new guided exercise? Do you enjoy this part of the habit? Is it simple progress? Is it a new book you get to explore? Be aware of your focus. Notice what distracts you and remove it before the habit begins. You can know what's going to come up. Know your why. Why are you creating this habit? Is it better sleep? Is it to stress less? Is it for more energy tomorrow? Having a strong reason makes consistency easier, and the more wise, the better. Then make a commitment. Decide exactly when and where you will do it. When will you do the habit? If you're adding something to your bathroom routine, you can say, after I brush my teeth, I'm going to start using mouthwash. Also, having a specific time, like I'm going to go to bed at exactly 11 11 p.m. every night. Finally, set a deadline. Give yourself a specific date to practice the habit consistently and evaluate what worked. Are you starting tonight? Tomorrow? Are you starting five days from now? And make it attractive. Keep it focused. Keep it exciting. Protect your attention. Keep your why commit. Set a dial deadline. So to review, make it attractive, keep it focused, keep it exciting, protect your attention, know your why, commit, and set it set a deadline. That's how an evening habit becomes an evening routine. For tonight's night shift, review these seven things and pick one habit you want to solidify in your evening routine and go through the seven questions with that habit. That's it for tonight's episode of Night Shift. My name is Justin S. King, and I help entrepreneurs find peace tonight, tomorrow, and for the rest of their lives through sleep optimization, emotion regulation, and discovering their purpose. Good night.