When you’re launching a business you’re always on call, probably hearing your phone notifications in your sleep. But you work at your highest level when you give yourself a break and separate your home from your office, even if your office is technically your living room. Whether it’s cueing up an episode of guilty pleasure TV, going for a run or touching base with your family, everyone has a routine that helps them recharge and strengthen themselves for the day ahead.
Check out how these entrepreneurs unwind after a long day’s work:
1. Grab a snack and unwind.
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Name: Daniella Yacobovsky
Company: BaubleBar
Evening routine: I usually end my day on the couch with my boyfriend. Whether it’s a television show or a movie, we snack and watch. I think it’s important to find those moments where you’re not just thinking about work all the time. We don’t have our phones with us, and I try to not actively check on work or anything that’s going on. We need to have those moments where you clear your head.
Read more about Yacobovsky: This Co-Founder of BaubleBar's Secret for Inspiration? Always 'Keep Your Eyes Peeled.'
2. Have an evening out.
SeatGeek
Name: Jack Groetzinger
Company: SeatGeek
Evening routine: It is very unceremonious -- usually at work, out with friends or some social thing and then come home and go straight to bed. I try to avoid T.V., because it’s inherently addicting and ultimately unfulfilling. It’s a digital narcotic.
Read more about Groetzinger: The Simple Trick This CEO Uses to Prevent Burnout
3. Get ready for the next day
Porch
Name: Matt Ehrlichman
Company: Porch.com
Evening routine: After leaving work I try to go home, put the work away fully and be a great husband and dad for a couple of hours. After I get the kids to bed, I have an opportunity to get my work stuff done. This is when I can crank through emails, get any projects done that I need to get done and make sure I am set to go for the next day.
Read more about Erlichman: How This Founder Uses His Competitiveness to Succeed in Business
4. Learn something new
Casper
Name: Jeff Chapin
Company: Casper
Evening routine: Some nights I watch Game of Thrones, but when I’m better behaved, I read. I read a lot of non-fiction, so I can keep learning. Mostly I read about science, technology, design and sometimes history. Anything that tells me how the world works.
Read more about Chapin:
5. A little reality TV with a glass of wine
DogVacay
Name: Aaron Hirschhorn
Company: DogVacay
Evening routine: I am cuddling on the couch with my wife watching Game of Thrones, House of Cards, Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, Daily Show, anything fun. She makes me watch occasional reality T.V. shows, drink a glass of red wine and just try to sink into the coach and get ready to do it again.
I do have my phone, but I try to really connect with her because that's our only time and that also is just critical. You have to recharge with your family. So my kids, my wife at the bookend of the day puts everything into perspective as to what is important and what's not.
Read more about Hirschhorn: This CEO Says the Key to Being a Good Boss Is Getting Out of the Way
6. Go to bed early
Name: Melissa Ben-Ishay
Company: Baked by Melissa
Evening routine: I tell my husband to turn the TV off, so I can fall asleep. That’s honestly the last thing I do. I try to go to bed as early as possible, because I operate best with a good night's sleep.
Read more about Ben-Ishay: How Getting Fired Turned Into Sweet Success for This Entrepreneur
7. Unplug
Gusto
Name: Josh Reeves
Company: Gusto
Evening routine: I end the day spending time with my wife. No smartphones. Because of my schedule and her schedule it’s hard to say we’re just going to wing it and take three hours in the afternoon. So we try to be more proactive and deliberate. I’m not my best self if I don’t see my wife and spend time with her.
Read more about Reeves:
The CEO of Billion-Dollar Startup Gusto Believes Passion Should Come Before Revenue
8. Take a look in the mirror
Name: Jerrod Blandino
Company: Too Faced
Evening routine: At the very end of my day I always take a shower and wash the day off. I start my 25-minute beauty routine.I get to be just me. I feel like after I take a shower, it’s all off. My hair is back into a crazy fro -- just like a 12-year-old kid looking into the mirror.
When you create a global brand sometimes you identify yourself as that one thing and when you look and see yourself with all of that off, you see that goofy kid. It reminds you of who you are and how grateful you should be for where you are.
Read more about Blandino: This Entrepreneur Found His Way Into the Beauty Industry by Accident and Then Built a Worldwide Brand
9. Start up the Netflix cue
Wally Skalij | Getty Images
Name: Damien Patton
Company: Banjo
Evening routine: I end my day by watching something brainless on my iPad, like a YouTube video or some show on Netflix. I do it just to get my mind from work, so I don’t keep thinking about it. If I don’t, then I’ll be solving problems in my sleep, and I’m not dreaming or relaxing and getting my mind off things.
Read more about Patton: The Boston Bombings Inspired This Entrepreneur to Use His Application to Make a Difference in the World
10. Clean out your inbox
Sup
Name: Richard Pleeth
Company: Sup
Evening routine: I have a lot of events to attend in the evenings, so the timing of the end of my day varies. It's super important to attend as many as possible to really get out and network, meet investors and press.
I also call my 97-year-old grandma each evening to check how her day was as she likes to hear me from me. Lastly, I finish all my emails, I try and operate inbox zero, which I think is a really healthy way to work. I then usually get into bed with my phone to read some blogs and have a catch up with friends.
Read more about Pleeth: After Flying 74 Times in One Year, This Entrepreneur Developed an App to Make Traveling Less Lonely
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