Remember the classic scene in Office Space, when Peter wants to go for coffee upon arriving at the office on Monday? He says that he has to get out of there because he’s about to lose it. A coworker overhears him and remarks, “Uh oh, sounds like someone’s got a case of the Mondays!”
This iconic scene captures how many people feel on Mondays. They’ve had a great weekend, but are now back to the grind, and they can barely stand it. The thought of slogging through the day drives them to their cubicle, where they spend the first two hours scrolling through Instagram.
But what if there was a way to beat the Monday blues? What if you could even prevent the Monday blues before they happen?
Here are 5 simple, yet powerful methods to crush the Monday blues in their tracks.
One way to set yourself up for success for the entire week is to rise early on Monday. Rising early allows you to get a jump on the week, to prepare for all that's coming, and to get yourself in the right frame of mind.
Sleeping in on the other hand, leaves you feeling rushed, chaotic, and completely out of sorts.
Of the high achievers that I’ve interviewed, almost all inevitably rise early as a way of dramatically increasing their productivity. Increased productivity on a Monday will give you a surge of energy and excitement about all that you will accomplish during the week.
Rising early, however, means that you absolutely must get enough sleep the night before. Failing to get enough sleep will leave you exhausted, dragging, and relying on Red Bull, all of which will deepen your profound sense of the Monday blues.
Few things will energize and fire you up you like exercise. By beginning your Monday morning with exercise, you are quickly priming yourself for a hugely powerful and productive day.
Exercise raises energy levels, increases blood flow, alleviates depression, increases dopamine, and clarifies thinking. It’s the not-so-secret tool in every high-achiever’s arsenal.
Rise early enough so that you can include at least 30 minutes of exercise in your Monday morning routine. You don't need to run 10 miles, just get your heart rate elevated for at least 30 minutes.
When you arrive at the office, you’ll be shocked by your energy levels and ability to dive in immediately. Rather than spending the first hour sucking down coffee and idly staring at your email, you'll hit the ground running.
When you arrive at your office on Monday morning, take at least five minutes to visualize all the things that you will accomplish in the following week. Picture your wins and your successes. Imagine in vivid detail what it will feel like to get those things done.
Too often, Monday's begin with a bleak awareness of all that must be done. You encounter an inbox overflowing with urgent emails, dozens of Twitter direct messages to reply to, and a big deadline to hit by Friday.
If you don't take time to visualize your success, you may begin to feel immediately overwhelmed and anxious. This can be hugely detrimental to your productivity and sink you deep into a case of the Monday blues.
When you arrive at work on Monday, pull out a sheet of paper or open up a blank document. Write out in precise detail exactly what you plan to achieve that week and how you will accomplish those things. At my web development agency, this visualization of recent victories and upcoming successes help to energize and focus our team to crush the coming week.
If you don’t set your own agenda on Monday, someone else will set it for you. Everyone comes into the office on Monday with a list of things that must get done. If you don’t choose what you’ll work on, others will begin dumping tasks on you. Don’t let this happen.
A simple way to avoid this is to identify your three most important tasks that you’ll accomplish on Monday. Do this either on Sunday night or first thing in the morning before others begin pummeling you with requests.
Identifying your most important tasks allows you to have laser focus on what you must accomplish without being easily distracted. Once you’ve accomplished the things that are most important, you'll feel a deep sense of accomplishment, which will help eliminate the Monday blues. You'll also be able to give time and attention to the requests of others without resenting being pulled away from your own tasks.
Finally, it’s essential to identify the source of your Monday blues. Are you unhappy with your job? Do you feel stressed and overworked? Is a relationship with a coworker making it difficult to come to work?
If you don't identify the source of your blues, you’ll never be able to effectively change the problem. You’ll only be papering over the symptoms.
Identifying the root of the problem allows you to make significant changes that can significantly improve your overall job satisfaction. Maybe you need to ask your boss for some additional help with the company’s new blog or getting traffic. Maybe you need to have a heart-to-heart discussion with a co-worker. Maybe you need to even make a job change.
You'll never discover these solutions if you don't do the hard work of identifying the problem.
The Monday blues shouldn’t be a way of life. You should be able to go to work at the beginning of the week excited for all that you’re going to do. You should look forward to hitting the ground running on Monday morning.
These 5 simple, yet powerful ways to crush the Monday blues, you truly will set yourself up to dominate your week.
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Looking for more tips and strategies like this? Learn more at Metapress and X3 Digital, or connect with Alex Jasin directly on Twitter and LinkedIn.