These strategies will improve your Mondays
Mondays start at a crawl.
The alarm starts chiming at 5:30 a.m. My wake up call. Getting out of bed is a struggle, but this particular Monday, I was a little more surly than normal. Groggy. Grumpy. Gravelly. I was definitely off to a rocky start, snapping at my husband and son and complaining about every little detail. On my morning run, I was listening to a podcast when I realized. Mondays are only miserable because I make them that way. I made it through last week, accomplishing a lot and checking items off my list. Why would this week be different?
Instead of thinking of Monday as only one day, we often think of it as the first of five days. Monday represents getting back to the grind, and it represents same routine repeating itself once again. It’s like ripping off the Band-Aid to reality, which, in our mind, is cold and unforgiving. But imagine creating Monday into a magical day that sets the tone for the rest of the week.
It’s time to ask yourself: What will make your Monday great? If you’re looking for some ideas, here are a few based on the type of day you have planned.
The Manic Monday Remedy: If the beginning of your week is filled with tasks and meetings that leave you cringing, then what is one break you could schedule or what is a treat with which you could reward yourself? Give yourself a breather, a chance to catch your breath and get your thoughts together. Rushing through your list could result in mistakes or burnout. Neither will leave you as a top performer or help you when you go home to an equally daunting to-do list. Plan something you will look forward to such as grabbing your favorite coffee, a 5-minute meditation, or a brief walk outside during lunch.
The Feeling Stuck Monday Remedy: Walking into Monday without a plan when you’re feeling like you’re stuck will only make you feel even more stuck. Plan one small step toward what you see as your most important goal on Monday. If that is starting a workout routine or habit, then plan a short workout that seems fun, or maybe more tolerable than most. If you are starting a reading habit, plan to read 5 pages and decide on the time and place you will read. Whatever the goal, plan one small step to get you there. If you do it on Monday, you more likely to do it again on Tuesday and throughout the week.
The Recovery Monday Remedy: Everyone has been there. Coming back to work on a Monday after a bad week at work. Maybe you lost your best client. Maybe your sales numbers didn’t add up to your goal. The list of losses here could be endless, but they leave your confidence at an all-time low. Now is the time to be kind to yourself, and remind yourself that mistakes or missteps are signs that you are trying something new or different. So, ask yourself these questions and take note:
What was one thing I am most proud of from last week?
What did I learn from the mistake or misstep?
What is a solution that could help me grow or prevent that mistake from happening again? (Sometimes, this could take self-coaching or hiring a coach to work through this process.)
So next time you find yourself feeling blah on a Monday, ask yourself “Why?” Dig a little deeper. Try some strategies to take back control. It might just make Mondays a little more magical than miserable.
