Calm · 5 min
A clean end to the working day
Three small actions at the end of work that tell your mind the day is done, so it is less likely to follow you home.
When work never quite ends, it tends to come home with us: half-finished tasks in our heads at dinner, messages checked in bed. A short, repeated ending, the same few steps every day, can help draw a line between work and the rest of life.
The steps
Four small steps,in your own time.
Ten minutes before you stop, write down where you have got to on anything unfinished, and the first thing you will do tomorrow.
Close the things you work on: shut the laptop, put papers away, and turn off work notifications on your phone if you can.
Do one small thing that marks the change: change your clothes, wash your hands and face, step outside, make a drink.
If a work thought comes back later, add it to tomorrow's note instead of acting on it tonight.
The reason
Why it helps
The mind tends to hold on to unfinished tasks, and writing them down can let it put them down. A clear ending, done the same way each day, becomes a signal that work is over. Over time it can make evenings feel more like your own.
A gentle variation
If your work does not end at a fixed time, for example shifts, or work fitted around caring, use the same steps whenever you stop, even if it is late. If you work from home, close the door on the room or put the laptop out of sight.
WE · TRIBE
Try itwith someone.
Tell the people you live with about your ending, so they know when you are back. You might make the last step something you do together, like a cup of tea or a short walk.
Try it today
Today, before you stop work, write down the first thing you will do tomorrow and close everything else.
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