So you roll out of bed, groggy and a mess, wiping drool of your face and you remember, crap! It’s Monday again! You can’t help but groan as life hits you in the face. Commitments, responsibilities, work; it’s all there, smiling like the devil waiting for you to remember. Being an adult can suck, and when it does, it sucks hard! Don’t fret; believe me it is possible to get through the Monday Blues with some simple secrets you can implement in your life.
1. Plan ahead! Give yourself time on Sunday before you sleep to list out what you need to do on Monday morning and in what order. It really won’t take more than ten minutes of your time on Sunday night, and believe me, it is better to wake up knowing that you have a plan to face not just the day, but the week ahead.
2. START EARLY! Let’s face it; sometimes it isn’t the Monday Blues that drags us down. It’s our laziness. Or, what I like to call “inertia from the weekend.” We sleep in on Saturdays and Sundays and have a leisure weekend, our body expects Monday to be the same.
So, we hit the snooze button and before you know it you are rushing again on Monday morning. This leads to skipping breakfast, having small mishaps, and before you know it, your week is starting of the wrong note. We blame it on Monday, but it is not about Mondays – it is simply lack of effort. Start your Monday early and see how that changes.
3. Eat like a King! Breakfast is the one meal you are allowed to have without being embarrassed about pigging out. If you wake up earlier it also gives you time to prepare something that you will enjoy, but if you are not a breakfast person, I strongly urge you to try it to tackle Monday blues. Delicious food that is also a source of fuel for your body energizes you in ways that you would not expect.
4. Socialize. Career realism shares that humans are social animals. Even if you are an introvert and prefer to keep to yourself most of the time, you still need some social contact once in a while. Engaging in a conversation stimulates the mind enough to actually kick-start it for the day. If you dive straight into your work the moment you reach the office, chances are that your brain is still trying to ‘wake up’. Like a car engine, your brain needs to warm up before it can function optimally.
5. Plan only interesting, engaging activities on Mondays. Do the work that stimulates your brain as a gentle nudge, have that lunch date with the friend whose company you enjoy, and listen to, and watch people who inspire you on YouTube.
6. Plan a Monday evening event. This honestly keeps me going on bad days, or bad weeks. Creating something to look forward to creates a sense of anticipation and excitement to do what you need to do so that you can finish and move on. Plan something for after work so that you have something to look forward to. If you feel that you’d be too exhausted for a night out, consider doing something at home; something relaxing. Watching a movie with a loved one, cooking for your family, reading a novel you’ve been dying to finish, or indulging in a long bath while you listen to soothing music.
7. Be grateful. Have you ever heard the saying it is the simple things in life that make it beautiful? Learn how to say thank you. Remind yourself why you do what you do, and why you love your life. Surround yourself with positivity and thank God that you are as blessed as you are.
