The Evening Routine
Establishing a clear evening routine is just as important as your morning habits—especially when it comes to setting boundaries after work hours. For real estate agents, separating work and personal life can feel impossible, but learning to disconnect is essential for your wellbeing and success. In this episode, Katy and Alissa open up about their evening routines, from dinner and bedtime rituals to email wrap-ups and digital boundaries.
Why Evening Routines Matter
Evening routines create space for rest, reflection, and reconnection with family. Alissa believes the evening routine might even be more important than the morning routine, yet no one’s writing bestselling books about it. With work creeping into our nights and clients calling at all hours, we must intentionally reclaim our time.
Katy and Alissa share how they transition from work to home life, including shutting down their email, tying up loose ends, and refusing to walk into daycare mid-negotiation. Setting boundaries after work hours ensures they can be fully present with their families without sacrificing professionalism.
What a Real Evening Routine Looks Like
Alissa picks her daughter up at 4:30 p.m. and won’t walk into daycare until work issues are addressed or postponed. She clears out her email inbox or notifies clients of delayed responses—using phrases like, “If we can’t talk in the next 10 minutes, it’ll be later tonight or tomorrow morning.” These micro-boundaries protect her peace and teach clients to respect her time.
Katy emphasizes the importance of recognizing urgency. Just because a client messages at 6 p.m. doesn’t mean you must reply at 6:01. Most tasks can wait. Clear communication, like “I’ll handle this first thing in the morning,” closes the loop while protecting personal time.
Unwinding Without Guilt
Both hosts agree: your business will survive if you’re unavailable for a few hours in the evening. Between dinner, bath time, bedtime stories, and winding down in the bath, both Katy and Alissa prioritize family and self-care.
Alissa’s phone stays away from 4:30–7:30 p.m., her daughter’s bedtime window. After that, she relaxes in the tub, reviews the day’s texts, responds with polite deferrals, and clears out photos from her phone—a digital decluttering ritual that brings her peace.
How to Handle Work That Sneaks In
Sometimes work returns at night—especially if spouses work late or you have a busy day ahead. Instead of avoiding it completely, both Alissa and Katy recommend using scheduled emails or text apps to prevent after-hours disruptions for clients and colleagues. It’s a practical way to keep up while still maintaining strong boundaries.
Evening work, when necessary, is best done quietly and mindfully—with future-you in mind. Don’t let it bleed into family time if it’s not urgent.
Bedtime Goals and Sleep Boundaries
Sleep isn’t just for rest—it’s the key to better decision-making, creativity, and productivity. In this episode, Alissa shares six research-backed ways sleep supports success: enhancing learning, improving creativity, reducing mistakes, and boosting productivity. One surprising takeaway? Sleep-deprived professionals may operate similarly to those under the influence of alcohol.
Setting a consistent bedtime and honoring your sleep needs is just another way to practice after-hours boundaries. For Alissa, that means being in bed by 9:30 p.m. Most nights. For Katy, it’s closer to 11. Either way, winding down includes checking tomorrow’s schedule, prepping mentally, and letting the brain shift out of work mode.
The Secret to Long-Term Balance
Whether it’s sharing a calendar with your partner, scheduling your next-day game plan, or simply saying “Good night” to your inbox, your evening routine shapes your next day’s success. Katy and Alissa’s routines might look different, but the outcome is the same: better boundaries, less stress, and more joy.
Your routine doesn’t have to be perfect—it just has to work for you. And remember: setting boundaries after work hours isn’t selfish—it’s necessary.
Real Estate Bedtime Story: The Remodel Surprise
This episode wraps up with a hilarious real estate bedtime story. A miscommunication leads to an investor’s worker remodeling an entire foreclosure before closing—without ever being told the deal had been delayed. Spoiler alert: the VA listing agent was pleasantly surprised.
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