Inspiring Workplaces 
The Way Work Ought to Be!

#1,025 - June 12, 2024

Last week I wrote about the importance of starting your workday right, so it seems fitting that we now take a gander at how to end your day on the right foot. Ending your day with a clear break helps you declutter your mind so you can focus on what really matters, such as answering the question, "What's for dinner?" 

1. End each day with a quick phone call to check in on someone - a client or a colleague - just to say you were thinking about them. It'll make you and them feel great. 

2. Send a 'thank you' email to one person as a daily ritual.

3. Spend the last ten minutes to start an item you've been putting off, so you feel like you've taken that first bite out of the elephant awaiting you the next morning.

4. Tidy up your workspace so you return to a more welcoming space. 

5. Knock off one last small task from your to-do list to give you a sense of accomplishment.

6. Write down your top-3 priorities or intentions for the following day. 

7. Write down three things you are grateful for or three small wins that happened that day. Tracking gratitude is perhaps the single biggest thing you can do to boost your happiness. And the lousier the day felt, the more important it is to do this! 

8. Research shows that ending the workday with a specific, consistent end-of-day ritual - something that symbolically represents you "locking up shop" and mentally throwing away the key for the day - is a powerful way to shift your mental state. 

9. Stand up, do your own version of "the fun dance," then yell out at the top of your lungs, "I'm outta here suckers" as you dance your way out of the office while blasting "We are the Champions" through the loudspeakers. OK, I jest of course, unless you are working from home, in which case I suggest you go for it. But know that doing something fun or silly really truly can help create a divide between your work and personal life.