Monday blues, or is it your job?

Does Sunday evening make you sad, anxious or stressed out because you have to go to work the next day? If your answer is yes, then you are feeling the pain of ‘Monday blues’.

If you do not like the job you are in, Mondays can give you excruciating mental agony. Mondays can be extremely brutal, especially if you have had a great weekend. Have you ever thought of how you could reduce these Monday blues?

Identify your problem

What do you have a problem with? Is it the job that you have a problem with, or is it the fact that you have to wake up and dress up after a weekend? Do you dislike your job or are you finding it difficult to work when you have a specific target to complete at a specific point of time?

Question your lack of motivation

What is it that irks you? List all the things that bring you down in office and in day-to-day life. Understanding this can help you find a solution. Is it an overbearing boss or a demanding colleague? In that case it would be worth scheduling a meeting with them. Sometimes it can also be the daily traffic that annoys you through the day.

Prepare for Monday on Friday

Having a lot of complex tasks to deal with on a Monday morning will definitely dampen your spirit. Instead of pilling a lot of work for Monday, try and complete as much as you can before you break for the weekend. This will help to reduce anxiety levels on Monday.

Organise activities beforehand

Set yourself to complete the difficult tasks first and move onto the simpler ones. Allocate some time to each task depending upon its nature. Thus, your focus won’t get diluted to multiple tasks.

Declutter your work space

Make sure the place where you sit is organised in terms of stationery, documents and files. Keeping it clear will reduce last-minute running and hassle.

Make a list of things that you look forward to

It is easy to get bogged down thinking about all the difficult tasks that you need to do on Monday morning. Why not make a list of things that you look forward to, such as playing a sport, cooking or catching up with a friend?

Positive self-talk

Every weekend, you hear people say ‘TGIF’ or Thank God It’s Friday. Why not try and initiate positive self-talk on a Monday? Being cynical or forwarding memes about how boring Monday is on social media is definitely not going to make it any better.

Me time on Monday morning

Try and wake up a little early from your regular time, have a good breakfast, and listen to soothing music. Dress up well, because if you look good, you will feel good. Doing this will raise your confidence and drive away your Monday blues.

Plan fun activities

We all plan for the weekend and complain about how boring Monday is, but technically, we didn’t plan anything special, like we did for the weekend. Make sure you plan something exciting on a Monday too. So, even if you do wake up with Monday morning blues, looking forward to the evening will definitely make you feel a lot better and you won’t dread Monday so much.

If you dislike your job…

If you are working at a place and realise that it is never going to work out for you irrespective of whatever you do, it is time you start working on Plan B. This may involve searching for another job or setting up something of your own. First you need to figure out what next?

It is very important to have a back-up in terms of finances before you leave your present job. The other way out is staying onto the present job and simultaneously searching for options. Maybe you can do your homework post your working hours. Once you feel you have found something you like and you are confident about it, you can leave your present employment.

Remember, never make a hasty decision of leaving a job until you have a good backup option. However, if you feel that your present job is taking a toll on your mental health, it is advisable to take a short break.

Count your blessings

Count your blessings that you have a job; there are millions that don’t. So, Monday morning blues are a small price to pay for that.