A Step-by-Step Guide to Maximizing Your 5-9 After Your 9-5

After logging off at 5 p.m. or getting home after the commute back, there’s nothing more appealing than kicking your shoes off, putting your feet up and turning on your favorite show. While there is zero shame in taking the relaxation approach to your post-work evening, sometimes it can feel like our weekdays are being taken over by work. Looking forward to Friday becomes the norm because it feels like the start of having your own uninterrupted time separate from the corporate world. But eventually, not having other activities planned into your Monday through Thursday schedule can feel like you’re missing out on life outside of work. Whether you want to start up a new hobby, a side hustle or get back into working out (maybe all of the above), here’s a practical step-by-step guide to taking back your time and making the most of your post-work 5-to-9.

Avoid the Couch

The most dangerous thing you can do at 5:01 p.m. is sit down on your oh-so-cozy couch. As soon as your body hits the plush cushions, it’s game over. In order to maximize your evening, make a self-contract to stay on your feet or, at a minimum, avoid the couch until you complete at least one task on your list. Try keeping your shoes on for a bit; it sounds ridiculous, but staying semidressed tricks your brain into thinking the active part of the day isn’t over yet. Use that immediate post-work momentum to head straight to the gym or open your laptop at the dining table before you even consider the living room.

Change Into Active Wear

We often underestimate the psychological power of our clothing. If you stay in your work clothes, you’ll likely stay in a stressed, work mindset. Conversely, once you change into pajamas, you’re basically signaling to your body that it’s full-on relaxation time. Instead, try a happy medium. If your goal is a side hustle, put on a casual outfit that you wouldn’t mind being seen wearing out in public. If it’s going to a workout class, leave your favorite activewear set lying out to change into as soon as you’re done with work. Changing your clothes can serve as a mental cue to help you shift from 9-to-5 stress to your 5-to-9.

Make Decision Making Easier

Decision fatigue is the ultimate productivity killer. By the time you get home, your brain has made thousands of choices, and "What’s for dinner?" is often the last choice of the day you want to make. To avoid an expensive DoorDash evening, have a high-protein snack ready or ingredients ready to prepare a dinner. When you aren't fighting a hunger strike, you have more mental clarity to get things done.

Use Micro-Commitments to Start

The thought of an hour-long workout or creating that digital product you want to sell on Etsy can feel exhausting when you’re already tired. To lower friction, try committing to any activity for just ten minutes. Usually, the hardest part of any task is just mustering the energy to start. Once you've spent ten minutes doing the thing, you’ll likely find it easy to keep going and might even reach a flow state. If you’re still miserable after ten minutes? You have full permission to stop without the guilt since you only committed ten minutes anyhow.

Put Your Phone in the Other Room

You can’t maximize your 5-to-9 if you spend two hours of it scrolling through your FYP. Try putting your phone in a drawer somewhere or at least setting it across to the other side of the room. In moving your phone out of sight, it’s easier to focus on whatever task is in front of you. Whether you’re cooking a nice dinner, working out or getting a side project done, the quality of that time increases when you aren’t being distracted by the notifications coming through your phone.

Set Up a Bed Time Routine

Having an intentional 5-to-9 doesn’t mean squeezing more time into the day to grind things out. It’s also about creating a routine that prioritizes “you” time and makes you feel like there is more to the workday than just your job. Make it a point to have a wind-down time to start getting to bed and take it slow. Create a new skincare routine, carve out reading-in-bed time, brew yourself a cup of tea—however you dedicate this time, it ensures there is a nice bookend to your day where even if you didn’t get much done, you can check much-needed self-care off the list.