5 ways to avoid "Monday Blues"

American culture has ingrained in us that the entire goal of the week is to make it to the weekend, thereby making Monday morning something to dread because the weekend has come to an end. Whether you work a traditional 9am-5pm, Monday-Friday work schedule, or if you have a work routine that gives you off midweek or working a swing or overnight shift, you've probably experienced the feeling of not wanting to get 'up an at it' on the first day of your work week and you're not alone.

1. Change your perspective

If you end your week by posting "TGIF" memes and end you're weekend by posting "Here comes another Monday, get ready" quotes, then you're already setting your brain up to believe Monday is going to be bad. Instead, focus on the fact that it's a fresh start to a project, get excited that you're going to be able to come back into things recharged and with new energy. Start looking for those "#MotivationMonday" posts on Instagram and Twitter to help swing your perspective towards the positive.

2. Change your environment

When you arrive at the office, is it dreary without anything personalizing your space? If so, then there is a quick win for making going to work a little better on Monday morning. As long as your company allows it, personalize your space some. Add pictures of loved ones and even pictures of 'dream items' like a vacation spot you want to visit or a car you hope to buy someday. Seeing things we're connected with all weekend and the visions of the dreams we're trying to make come true help remind us why working isn't just something you have to do, but something you want to do to take care of those you love.

3. Change your routine

Part of the reason we dread Monday is because we need to get back into a routine. If you're the kind of person that finds this difficult, then consider changing your weekend routine. Go to bed at a reasonable time and wake up around the same time as you do during the week. Even if no one else is awake in the house, it's a perfect time to focus on you. You can use the time to read a book, listen to a podcast, or get some work done (either for work or a project for the house.) Additionally, you could use your time to make plans for the coming week making Monday seem a bit less daunting by coming into it with a mission.

4. Change who you're talking to/what you talk about

It's normal and healthy for co-workers to bond over conversations about what they did over the weekend. In fact, if we didn't do it, we would look forward to Monday mornings even less. It is not healthy to be around the person who just continually wants to complain and be cynical about everything that happens at work. I've found that often times this type of person only does it because it gets them a reaction and makes them feel important in some way. If you remove their audience by not being part of it, then you remove the negativity from the workplace and improve your Monday, and everyone else's!

5. Change what you do

While this one is easier said than done, consider if what you're doing is really what makes you happy. If you keep to a routine, always are positive, and continuously are improving yourself and others, then maybe it truly is the job. Feeling fulfilled and valued in what we do is extremely important in looking forward to doing it. If we think our work doesn't matter, then we'll stop caring about doing the work. When we find a job that we look forward to going to, the day we're going there stops mattering.

6 (Bonus) - Treat yourself

Just in case you need one more thing, or if you don't feel you can do one of the 5 things above, I'll give you an extra bonus one. 

Set yourself up to feel like Monday's are a treat. If you're the kind of person that usually brings lunch to work every day and then treats yourself to an office lunch delivery on Friday, move your treat to Monday (you already like Friday, don't you?). If you have the option of scheduling a lunch date with a friend or family member, consider doing that to break up the day. If you were planning on going shopping for something new after work later in the week, move those plans to Monday. Anything you can do to trick your brain into thinking Monday isn't as bad as you currently think it is, is helpful.

You may have noticed, the common thread in how to avoid the "Monday Blues" is change, because "If we always do what we've always done, we'll always get what we've always got." Once we decide to change how we look at Monday, we must also choose how we're going to accomplish that, which will require something else to change. 

Happy Mondays, and have a great week!