Set the alarm clock for 4:55 am

How to use the online alarm clock

You are only just waking at 4:55 am, with the bar still to be closed after the final drinks have been served. The alarm marks the point to get up and collect your thoughts before dealing with tills, glassware and the last few customers. With 5:00 am only five minutes away, there is little room for drifting back under the duvet, but enough time to become properly alert before the closing routine begins.

A bar at the end of a long night may be quiet in one corner and noisy in another, so the signal should suit where you will hear it. A gentle tone can avoid startling anyone nearby, while a more persistent sound makes sense if music, cleaning or conversation could mask it. Check the volume beforehand. If the browser page is closed, or the phone or laptop falls asleep, no signal will sound and the bar may be left without its closing prompt.

Because this wake-up falls deep in the night, the useful buffer comes after closing as well as before it. Allow a clear gap between locking up and the next commitment later that day, including travel home, food and a chance to settle. Writing that next time down before the shift reduces the temptation to treat the remaining hours as unplanned spare time.