On Wednesday, I published a post about morning habits worth starting in college. A lot of you guys seemed to like it, so I’m sure you’ll enjoy this post too. Here are 9 evening habits worth starting in college (in no particular order).
(May I just say I hate writing blog post introductions. That was so awkward to write!)
//Lay Out Clothes Night Before
I waste a ridiculous amount of time in the mornings whenever I don’t do this. Make sure to lay out EVERYTHING. Clothes, jewelry, socks (I spend way too much time looking for socks.) Everything! Seriously! If you don’t follow any other habit, I’ll be fine if you do just this one. Doing this one thing can save your morning.
//Plan Out The Next Day And Make A To Do List
Even if you don’t physically write it down in your planner, visualizing the next day will help. I make sure to write a to-do list for the next day every night. It gives me peace of mind. A huge reason why I do this is that there is a “To-Do” list section in my planner. That motivates me to write one every day. Whenever I don’t write out or visualize the next day, my mind starts reeling and I start stressing out. I like having an idea of what’s happening next.
Related – How I Use My Simplified Planner In College
//Clean Up
You know the drill. Wash your face. Brush your teeth. Take off your makeup. The usual stuff. There are some nights where I’m too exhausted (or lazy) to do this. I don’t really wear makeup, but I skip or postpone washing my face and brushing my teeth sometimes. That’s not a good habit and we all should take care of our bodies in college because it’s a huge part of self-care.
//Create An Evening Routine
This is just as important as your morning routine. Having an evening routine every night signals to your body that it’s time to sleep. I personally can’t go from doing homework to sleep immediately. Even if I just spend ten minutes brushing my teeth, changing clothes and getting ready, I’ll fall asleep faster. It helps me wind down.
Related – My College Evening Routine
//Read
I like to read every night. I read more in the mornings now that I’m in college, but I always read 15-30 minutes on my kindle at night to wind down. I can’t fall asleep without reading (or daydreaming) anymore.
Related – How To Start Reading More Books In College
//Take Off Contacts + Put On Retainer
This is a separate point because anyone who wears contacts and has a retainer knows how hard doing this every night is sometimes. I’m good at taking my contacts off when it comes to going to sleep, but I struggle to remember to take them off for naps. My retainer, on the other hand, is another story. It’s been hurting to put on recently, so I’ve been doing it at the last minute, but sometimes I forget. Even so, I do both every night for my health and I really don’t want to get braces again.
//Set An Alarm
I’m good about going to sleep at a decent hour during the school year, but all bets are off once summer starts. Last month, I stayed up way too late. It’s kind of ridiculous. I’m terrible at waking up but can stay up all night. (Well, maybe not all night, but really late) To combat this bad habit, I’ve set an alarm for 11 PM on my phone to remind me to prepare for bedtime. I’ve been trying to get to sleep by midnight every day and this method has worked thus far so long as I actually follow the alarm.
//Not Snacking Before Bed
I have a bad habit of snacking. Chewing gum helps, but if I don’t have gum, I’m a bottomless pit. Not eating anything sugary will help you fall asleep faster and you won’t use up too much energy digesting more food. I need to work on this because snacking before bed is not a good idea.
//Set A Bedtime
Go to sleep at around the same time every night. Many college students gloat about being able to survive on no sleep, but I am not one of those people. The reason why I’ve been able to get eight hours of sleep every night in college is that I have a set bedtime. I was always in bed between 11-12 last year and woke up between 7-8 every morning. Establishing this habit will help you immensely in college.
Bonus//Journal
Habit #10 is to journal. The reason I didn’t include it with the other nine is that I don’t journal that much anymore. I used to journal a lot more in high school, but blogging really takes up all my writing energy (which is not necessarily a bad thing). I do want to eventually get back into writing about my day-to-day in a journal because it’s fun to look back on the mundane details. College is an exciting time, so keep a record of all the fun.
I hope you’ve enjoyed. I’ve done a really good job at posting three times a week. I’m really proud. Hopefully, I’ll be able to keep this up once classes start.
Related – 13 Morning Habits Worth Starting In College
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Which of these habits do you plan on incorporating into your evening routine? Is there anything you’d like to add?
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- 6 Things All College Students Should Make Time For
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- Day In Life Of A College Freshman
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- How To Write A College Essay
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- How To “Survive” Living With Your Parents In College
- 11 Things All College Commuters Need
These are such great tips! I also find myself snacking before bed and I never sleep well when I do. I started replacing it with a cup of tea and found that that helped tremendously! http://carleehebert.com/
That’s a really good idea.
Habit 10: stop downtalking yourself.
I was just thinking that i liked your intro, it’s short, concise, and it makes the reader feel important, by showing that you try to give them what they want. Then i read your think about how awkward you felt writing it, and i was kind of dissapointed. So stop doing that!
But in the end it worked, i decided to leave a comment, i relate to you since i also don’t like intros, and it’s still a good intro. Keep up the good work! And don’t ever start writiting two paragraph long intros about your whole life story before you get to the point.
Hugs and kisses ?
Uh, thanks? I’m not really in the habit of downtalking myself, but I get what you mean. I’m glad you liked this post and hope you keep reading. Hugs and kisses!