People have been complaining about Mondays since, well, forever, really. It’s safe to say Monday is pretty much everyone’s least favorite day of the week. And now, it seems Sunday is being hated on with equal fervor.
One writer for The AWL even went so far as to say, “Sundays are Killing Us and They Must be Stopped.” Although more a dig at the media’s insidious hijacking of a day that was once earmarked for R&R, he makes a good point.
The resulting slew of how-to articles online —from how to “Beat the Monday Blues” and tips to “Make Monday Your Favorite Day of the Week” to habits that “Make Sunday Less Stressful and “Ways to Make Monday Suck Less“— has left us no better off.
We’re all still dreading Sunday and Monday, despite the vast array of helpful missives at our disposal. Why is that?
I think it’s because we’re approaching it from the wrong direction. We need to focus on the cause, rather than look to bandaid solutions for a problem that’s clearly not going away anytime soon.
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Why do we dislike Mondays (and Sundays) so much?
Instead of trying to figure out ways to improve the start to our work week, we should be asking ourselves why we have such a strong dislike for these two days in the first place. It’s clearly got nothing to do with the days themselves, they’re just days, after all.
The short answer is that they remind us of our current status quo. Whether that’s an underwhelming job, a difficult boss, unpleasant colleagues or a general feeling of dissatisfaction.
You know there’s more to life than working for the man, but you also can’t see a way out. You’ve got rent to pay, a car that requires gas and a cat that enjoys eating kibbles, all of which are funded by your salary.
Albert Einstein famously said the definition of insanity is doing something over and over again and expecting a different result. (According to this article he may not have coined the phrase, but the sentiment remains.)
We can’t reasonably expect to ever feel differently about Sunday and Monday unless we proactively do something to facilitate the change.
I used to look forward to Fridays, feel like a kid out of school on Saturdays and get that sinking feeling like clockwork every Sunday afternoon. As for Monday mornings, let’s just say they required an adult dose of caffeine to make it through them in one piece.
How to Look Forward to Mondays
So what changed? I finally accepted that working in marketing would never make me happy. When your heart isn’t in something, you can’t force it. Now that I’m doing something I’m invested in, I look forward to Mondays just as much as Fridays.
If you don’t love your job and it’s a possibility for you, look into new companies or changing roles. Perhaps there’s another department you could transfer to? Or, maybe you need to find a different industry altogether, one that’s more in line with your personal ethos.
Spend some time thinking about where you’d really like to be, and then start figuring out a plan to get there. While you’re doing that, try changing your mindset about your current gig.
What we resist persists. Focusing on how much you hate your job is only going to make it worse. Instead, find a way to do more, go the extra mile, and be the best employee and colleague you can possibly be.
When you act as if, magic happens.
But while it’s all very well to get your law of attraction mojo on, it’s also not enough. You need to ground your beliefs in reality and take practical steps towards improving your week. That’s where all those how-to articles can actually come in handy. They have a lot of useful advice that, when put into practice, will make your Monday awesome.
Sunday night tasks like doing meal prep for the week ahead, choosing your work outfits and getting your housework done will make a huge difference to how your week pans out. And maybe you won’t be dreading next Sunday quite so much.
As for improving Monday mornings, you could follow Gretchen Rubin’s advice and make sure you have something to look forward to. It could be a lunchtime cappuccino, drinks with friends after work or pizza for dinner, whatever works for you.
When you plan your day the night before and your week the Friday before, you’re bound to feel better about Sundays and Mondays. Couple that with a solid intention to find a new job (or career) that excites you, and you’re winning at life.
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