If you need some R&R, keep your Sunday reset for rest focused on a few basics. Take a look at tomorrow, get what you need ready, and leave room to read, watch a show, or do very little.
I'd start with the things you'll use first on Monday. Your clothes, your lunch, your bag. Then I'd put the rest of the list away.
Take a quick look at your calendar
Check when you need to be up and where you need to be tomorrow. Look for anything that needs a little prep, like a work shift, practice, an appointment, or a school deadline.
If something needs your attention tonight, choose the next step. Put the signed form in your bag. Set a reminder to bring your shoes. Keep this to a quick check so you can get back to your afternoon.
For college students who like a calendar they can fill in, Cornell's weekly planning resources include room for classes, meals, sleep, and free time. For today, a look at tomorrow may be all you want.
Get your clothes and lunch ready
Set out an outfit you want to wear, including socks and shoes. If you need something washed, throw in that load early enough to dry it and put it away before bed. If tomorrow's clothes are ready, the laundry can wait for its planned day.
Pack lunch with food you already have. A sandwich, fruit, and something crunchy can be enough of a plan. Put anything that needs to stay cold in the fridge, with your lunch bag nearby.
Check your backpack or work bag while you're there. Keys, charger, notebook, whatever tomorrow calls for. This is a good moment to plug in the device you'll need in the morning.
Get a drink and settle into something you enjoy
Fill your water bottle or get a glass of water. Make yourself something to eat if it's mealtime. Then pick what sounds good: a book, an episode of a show, a bath, or time on the couch.
I like leaving the choice open here. You might want a few chapters of the book you're halfway through. You might want the comfort show you've seen enough times to quote. Both fit the afternoon.
If reading sounds good, put your book where you'll sit. If you're watching something, choose it before you settle in. Spend the time on the thing you wanted to do.
Leave time to go to bed
Choose when you'll turn off the show and start getting ready for bed. The CDC includes a steady bedtime and wake-up time in its sleep habit guidance. Keep your usual bedtime in view when you decide whether to start another episode.
Before you head to bed, take one look at your morning things. Clothes ready, lunch in the fridge, bag packed, alarm set. Then leave the next load of laundry and the longer planning session for another day.
Your short Sunday reset list
- Look over tomorrow's calendar.
- Wash tomorrow's clothes if needed, or set out an outfit.
- Pack lunch and your bag.
- Get a drink of water.
- Read, watch a show, or choose another way to rest.
- Go to bed at your usual time.
