HabitsTime

Shutdown routine

A shutdown routine is a short list you go through at the end of the workday, so work stops in one clear moment and tomorrow already has a starting point. The builder below starts with 6 steps that take 10 minutes; add the time you stop work to see when each step happens.

Free · No account · What you type stays on this device

Name your routine
Start time (optional)

Add one and each step shows the time it starts. Leave it empty for minutes only.

Your steps

Change, add or remove anything, and put the steps in your order.

Total: 10 min

A 10-minute work shutdown routine

The builder's starting point. The last step is a phrase you say, or write, that marks the end of work for the day.

My work shutdown routine

  1. Look over what I got done today2 min
  2. Write tomorrow's top 32 min
  3. Note where I'll start tomorrow1 min
  4. Close the tabs and apps I'm done with2 min
  5. Tidy the desk2 min
  6. Say a closing phrase: "Done for today"1 min

Total10 min

How a shutdown routine works

Same steps, same moment

Habits form as people repeat the same response in the same context. This routine belongs to “when I finish work”, whatever time that is today, and the steps run in the same order each time.

Write tomorrow down, then close it

Looking over today and writing tomorrow’s top 3 puts open tasks on paper. Noting where you will start means the next morning begins with one known step.

End with a closing phrase

A fixed phrase, like “Done for today”, marks the end of the list. Pick your own words in the builder; the card prints them.

Work shutdown checklist ideas

Close out today

  • Look over what you got done
  • Move unfinished tasks to a list
  • Reply to anything that only needs one line
  • Check for messages that need an answer today

Set up tomorrow

  • Write tomorrow's top 3
  • Note where you'll start
  • Check tomorrow's first meeting or deadline
  • Close the tabs and apps you are done with
  • Tidy the desk

What this routine leaves out

It closes the workday only: no bedtime, screens-off or wind-down step. Those belong to sleep; goodsleep.today has sleep tools such as a bedtime calculator and a sleep diary. Working from home? The work from home routine plans the day before it; the daily routine plans the whole day.

What happens to what you type

Your routine stays in this browser and is never sent anywhere; it lives on the card you print or save. “Start tracking” adds it as one habit to the habit tracker on this device only, with “when I finish work” as its cue. To add one new habit after a step you already do, stack it.

If you need help now

These tools are for everyday habits. They are not a crisis service. If you are struggling or don't feel safe, you can contact:

  • 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline

    988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (US): call or text 988, or chat online. Free and confidential, 24/7.

  • Emergency services (911)

    US: call 911 if you or someone you know is in immediate harm or danger.

  • Samaritans

    Samaritans (UK and Ireland): call 116 123, free, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

  • Emergency services (999 or A&E) · NHS 111, mental health option

    Call 999 or go to A&E if someone's life is at risk or you can't keep yourself or someone else safe. For urgent help that isn't an emergency, call 111 and select the mental health option (NHS).

Elsewhere, call your local emergency number.

Sources

  1. Wood W, Rünger D (2016). Psychology of Habit. Annual Review of Psychology 67:289–314. PMID 26361052
  2. 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. 988lifeline.org
  3. Contact Us. 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. 988lifeline.org
  4. Contact a Samaritan. Samaritans. samaritans.org
  5. Where to get urgent help for mental health. NHS. nhs.uk