Startup & Wind-Down Routines

Overview

Routines are the bookends of a productive day. The Startup Routine prepares you for success each morning, while the Wind-Down Routine helps you reflect, recover, and set up tomorrow.

Key Capabilities

• Morning structure: Consistent daily startup
• Evening reflection: Process the day
• Journaling integration: Built-in reflection sections
• Outcome setting: Plan daily results
• Configurable sections: Customize your routine

Startup Routine

"Win the morning, win the day."

The Startup Routine is your morning ritual for setting intentions and preparing for a productive day.

Location

Navigate to Startup Routine from the sidebar.

Routine Sections

Mindset

Prepare your mental state:

• Affirmations
• Mindset reminders
• Mental preparation notes

Configure: Toggle doMindset in settings

Considerations

What to keep in mind today:

• Important meetings
• Key deadlines
• People to contact
• Things to remember

Configure: Toggle doConsider in settings

Not-To-Do List

Things to avoid today:

• Distractions to eliminate
• Bad habits to resist
• Time wasters to skip

Configure: Toggle doNotToDo in settings

Questions

Reflective questions to answer:

• What's most important today?
• What would make today great?
• What am I grateful for?

Configure: Toggle doQuestions in settings

Daily Outcomes

Set measurable results for the day:

• 3-5 key outcomes
• Specific and achievable
• Linked to weekly outcomes

Use Cmd+Enter to quickly add multiple outcomes.

Morning Workflow

Recommended time: 15-30 minutes after waking

1. Open Startup Routine
2. Review yesterday (if not done in wind-down)
3. Set mindset for the day
4. Add considerations for awareness
5. List not-to-dos for focus
6. Answer questions for clarity
7. Set daily outcomes (3-5 items)
8. Review and commit

Wind-Down Routine

"End your day with reflection. Your evening routine shapes tomorrow's success."

The Wind-Down Routine helps you process the day, capture learnings, and prepare for restful recovery.

Location

Navigate to Wind-Down from the sidebar.

Routine Sections

Journal

Free-form reflection with rich text:

• Process thoughts and feelings
• Document the day's events
• Write without structure
• Use formatting for clarity

Gratitude

Practice appreciation:

• What are you grateful for today?
• People, experiences, things
• Big and small gratitudes
• Cultivate positive mindset

Outcome Review

Review daily outcomes:

• What did you complete?
• What remains unfinished?
• Why or why not?
• Adjust for tomorrow

Exercise

Document physical activity:

• What exercise did you do?
• Duration and intensity
• How did it feel?
• Tomorrow's plan

Not-To-Do Review

Review avoidance list:

• Did you successfully avoid distractions?
• What tempted you?
• Adjust for tomorrow

Evening Workflow

Recommended time: 15-30 minutes before sleep

1. Open Wind-Down Routine
2. Complete journal entry
3. Write gratitudes (3 items minimum)
4. Review outcomes completion
5. Log exercise if applicable
6. Review not-to-do success
7. Save all progress

Configuring Routines

Startup Configuration

Customize which sections appear:

1. Go to Startup Routine
2. Click Configuration or settings icon
3. Toggle sections on/off:
   • doMindset - Mental preparation
   • doConsider - Daily considerations
   • doNotToDo - Avoidance list
   • doQuestions - Reflective questions
4. Configuration saves automatically

Section Persistence

Your configuration persists across sessions:

• Settings saved per user
• Applied automatically on load
• Editable anytime

Rich Text Editing

All journal sections support rich formatting:

Text Formatting

• Bold: Emphasize important text
• Italic: Subtle emphasis
• Underline: Additional emphasis
• Strikethrough: Mark removed text
• Code: Technical snippets
• Highlight: Important passages

Structure

• Headings (H1-H4)
• Bullet lists
• Numbered lists
• Blockquotes

Alignment

• Left align
• Center align
• Justify
• Right align

Keyboard Shortcuts

Day-Based Organization

Routines are tied to specific days:

Daily Entries

• Each day has its own entry
• Navigate between days
• Historical view available
• Automatic date detection

Week Grouping

Days grouped into weeks for:

• Weekly review preparation
• Pattern recognition
• Progress tracking

Integration with Other Features

Daily Outcomes

Set outcomes during startup that link to:

• Goals & Outcomes
• Weekly outcomes
• Project milestones

Journal

Routine sections feed into your Daily Journal:

• Gratitude entries
• Energy reflections
• Learning capture
• Challenge processing

Actions

Connect routine to task management:

• Review today's actions in startup
• Process inbox in startup
• Set priorities for the day

Weekly Review

Routines prepare you for Weekly Review:

• Accumulated journal entries
• Daily outcomes completion
• Week's gratitudes
• Energy patterns

Best Practices

Startup Routine

Timing:

• Same time daily (within 30 min)
• Before checking email/messages
• After morning essentials (coffee, etc.)

Duration:

• 15-30 minutes
• Don't rush
• Protect this time

Focus:

• Start with mindset
• Limit outcomes to 3-5
• Be realistic about the day

Wind-Down Routine

Timing:

• Same time each evening
• Before screens/entertainment
• Allow transition time before sleep

Duration:

• 15-30 minutes
• Don't skip sections
• Complete the full routine

Focus:

• Process the day completely
• Practice genuine gratitude
• Set up tomorrow mentally

Consistency

• Never skip routines
• Brief routine > no routine
• Track completion streak
• Adjust timing as needed

Customization

• Enable only sections you'll use
• Add sections as habits form
• Remove sections that don't serve you
• Evolve routine over time

Environment

• Quiet, distraction-free space
• Same location when possible
• Remove phone notifications
• Create ritual around routine