A good night’s sleep is what determines your mood and energy level the next day, hence, strategic bedtime routines are essential for many successful people. According to Business Insider, successful people understand that their success starts and ends with their own mental and physical health, which is mostly achieved by getting enough sleep.

“It’s really less about your activities and more about your state of mind,” organizational psychologist Michael Woodward, Ph.D., told BI. To help people find the right state of mind by adopting some of the habits of successful people, BI reported a list of things that successful people do before retiring for the night.
1. Reading

Michael Kerr, an international business speaker and author of “You Can’t Be Serious! Putting Humor to Work,” told BI that his acquaintances who are popular business leaders block off time just before bed for reading. He added that “Successful people find value in being browsers of information from a variety of sources, believing it helps fuel greater creativity and passion in their lives.”

2. Meditation

“It’s a great way to relax your body and quiet your mind,” Dale Kurow, an executive coach said. He told BI that many successful people use the 10 minutes before bed to meditate.

3. Reflecting on the day

A “gratitude journal” is a diary in which you jots down three things that you’re grateful happened that day. Kerr said, “It reminds people of the progress they made that day in any aspect of their life, while in turn serving as a key way to stay motivated, especially when going through a challenging period.”

4. Making a to-do list

Clearing away your thoughts before bed will help bring about a good night’s sleep. Organizing your thoughts will prevent them from invading your mental space during the night. Kerr explained that this is why successful people make long to-do lists.

5. Disconnecting from work

Truly successful people do anything but work right before bed, Kerr said to BI. He suggested creating a buffer period between the time you read your last email and the time you go to bed so that you’re not thinking about work before you lay down to go to sleep.

6. Spending time with family

“This is a common practice among the highly successful,” said Laura Vanderkam, author of “What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast.” Chatting with family and connecting with loved ones can help you unwind.

7. Budgeting for sleep

“One habit I know several highly successful people do is to simply make it a priority to get enough sleep -- which can be a challenge for workaholics or entrepreneurs,” Kerr said. Hence, Vanderkam suggested planning when you are going to wake up, counting back however many hours you need to sleep and then setting an alarm to remind yourself to get ready for bed. “The worst thing you can do is stay up late then hit snooze in the morning,” she added.

8. Laying down on a positive note

Typical successful people manage to avoid a pessimistic attitude as they know it will only create more stress. “Remember to take some time to reflect on the positive moments of the day and celebrate the successes. Even if they were few and far between,” Woodward told BI

9. Picturing tomorrow’s success

Envisioning a positive outcome for ongoing projects can boost your willpower, bringing the vision closer to reality. “For most, this is not a task or exercise; they’re wired with a gift of solid resolution skills that come naturally,” said Lynn Taylor, a national workplace expert in the U.S.

By Ha Ji-won, Intern reporter (jiwonha@heraldcorp.com)