Case of the Mondays

Do you ever get a case of the Monday blues? I sure do! After a lazy Sunday, all I want to do is extend that freedom to be lazy into Monday and stay snuggled in bed with my husband just a little while longer, have a long breakfast, lounge, and do what I want. But alas I must resist the urge to hit the snooze button again, wake up, give myself a reality check, and realize I must go to work.

The blog Growing Happiness, posted about ways to beat the Monday Blues. Among the tips included are the following:

Early start - bad things happen when you are late, the tension level is high, you are in a rush, you don’t have time for breakfast, when you arrive at your office, people are shoving work into your face. It may seem like a punishment to wake up earlier on Monday but trust me, when you have enough time to organize yourself, you’ll feel like you can conquer the day easier.

Treat yourself in the morning - Sit down and eat. Enjoy your food. Monday is Pancake Breakfast day for me, so I actually look forward to Monday mornings. But eat well - although it’s ok to treat yourself, make sure you eat well. I have a good serving of fruits along with my pancakes. Have enough to drink too - your malaise could be a sign of dehydration.

Have a list of why you’re having the blues - you might be surprised that there will be things on the list that you can easily work on to make your Mondays better. My problem used to be a completing work from last week (very difficult to gain momentum after a weekend break) which brings us to the next point:

Complete as much work possible on Friday - you’ll have less work to worry about on Monday, which lead to the next point:

Have everything laid out the day before -your clothes, files, etc. Saves you a couple of minutes in the morning so that you can concentrate on other, more important things.

Talk to a friend - it’s most likely he/she is having the blues too. Keep your conversation short. Remember this is about taking comfort in the fact that you aren’t alone in this, not an hour-long bitchfest about XXX from marketing.

Listen to happy songs - a tune can affect your mood. Let cheery, happy songs be the soundtrack to your Monday.

Laugh and smile. Recall happy memories or a good joke. If you can’t think of any, do it anyway (fake it till you make it) Some research is saying that even the thought of laughing raises your endorphin (feel-good hormones) levels and a fake laughter provides similar benefits to a real one.

Start working. The thing about work is, it’s usually not the work that makes us tired, it’s the thought of starting work that makes us procrastinate and go into a cycle of unproductivity. Quit thinking about starting work and just work instead!

Take short breaks - too much work can be overwhelming and when this happens, it is easy for you to give up. Remember to take short breaks to recharge. If your schedule allows it, you can also take a 10 minute nap after lunch.

Plan something special for Monday night - meet a friend for dinner, rent a DVD. The day will be easier when you have something to look forward to.

Do not get distracted. Youtube, Facebook, personal emails. Once you allow yourself to get distracted you will be sucked into hours of time-wasting activities. If you don’t have the discipline to limit your distraction to 10 minutes, don’t attempt to do it at all. Reading blogs like this is another time-sucker so now that you’ve reached the bottom of the list, why don’t you get working! :)

I think I'll follow the suggestions today and get myself going. (Although I probably won't be able to resist reading a few blogs later in the day!) Go here to read the entire list of tips. Happy Monday!