What are the chances that someone might wake up on Monday morning, thrilled that it’s Monday? Based on the number of Monday morning Facebook posts I see proclaiming a sudden lust for morning cocktails, I’m going to say slim to none. It’s pretty rare to find a person who appreciates Monday for everything that it has the potential to be.
Forbes Magazine wrote an article about the “Monday blues” in which the author suggested that the emotional crippling we are challenged by on Monday mornings is due to a lack of interest in our work or career. So it’s job related? That makes sense. Most of the time I hear someone complain about Monday, it’s because they don’t want to go to work, the weekend wasn’t long enough, or they just don’t want to wake up early.
If that’s the case, why don’t we feel as horrible on a Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday as we do on a Monday morning? The only thing these three days have in common that they don’t share with Monday is the memory of Monday’s departure. Could it be that the weekend shifts our perception into a different reality? How many times have you gone to bed on a Friday night, ready to let the early birds rise and shine without you, only to wake up at the exact same time that you would on any given Monday and not be able to go back to sleep?
By Friday, we are already dreading Monday. On Saturday, we generally ignore the idea, but then Sunday happens. Instantly, we become an animated walking mass of sulking dejection.
So, how can that perception be changed? Perception changes with a change of attitude and thought. If you wake up growling at the alarm clock, chances are you’ll be growling most of the day. There are several things that you can do to help shift your focus and attention. Here are some of them:
—If your job sucks, get a new one. Or at the very least, start looking for a new one. Be optimistic. You don’t have to be stuck in one spot. “If you don’t like how things are, change it. You are not a tree.” —Jim Rohn
—Your first thoughts after waking up are a big deal! Be grateful. Anything you can muster up to be grateful for, do it. Every morning that you shift your focus toward gratitude is another step toward living in gratitude. Eventually, you’ll wake up with this mindset instead of having to remind yourself to move toward it.
—Make plans for Monday. Don’t suffocate yourself with work and ignore fun. Other things happen on Monday … fun things. It’s true.
—Instead of giving yourself a reward on Friday for making it through the work week, give yourself a reward on Monday for starting a new work week.
—Help someone. (See what I just did above?)
—Find humor in life! Anywhere you can find humor is going to help. Laughter dissolves stress; it helps heal broken hearts; it stops arguments and offers a sense of hope. Laughter is truly powerful.
—Don’t make every day the safest day of your life. Have an adventure. Take a risk. Speak up. Come alive. You have only one shot at this life, so don’t ever stop living.
—Find a cause. Give yourself something to be insanely passionate about and go do it. Be of service to others.
—Throw comparison out the window. You are you. You will never be anyone else. You will never know who you are if you are always looking at other people as a template for your own person. Your template is already made.
—Put down your phone! Seriously. Life goes by quickly enough as it is. Moments are precious and sweet. You never know how long you have to be present.
Life is miraculous and filled with amazing moments every day, and they are worth the energy it takes to remember that Monday morning is just another moment. Monday is not the epitome of stress and depression that it has become. Our perception of Monday is what has made it what it is. Mondays are awesome. Go buy yourself some flowers and enjoy it.
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“”And the Silicon chip inside her head was switched to overload, and I don’t want to go to school today…”””. Circa 1979 the Boomtown Rats from the UK wrote a hit song called ” I Don’t Like Mondays”. This song was based on an incident that occurred in the same year where a 16 year old girl in San Diego Ca. went to school and shot two people because she was depressed about Mondays. Bob Geldof the lead singer of the band, who also set up the first Live Aid concert to help poor people starving in Africa, as well as played the lead character in Pink Floyd’s movie “The Wall”, I believe penned the lyrics . At the time, everybody was shocked by the incident including myself. Way before Columbine, this was the first time I remember high school shootings entering the US cultural landscape. On that strange note, for those who are no longer a part of the labor force, the construct of Mondays is not neccessarily negative. In fact for some, Mondays are exhilarating, especially if you participate in the stock market, as quite a few retirees do. In St George, this is further amplified by the fact that on Sundays, many places are closed and due to religious obligations for the vast majority of locals, there aren’t a whole lot of social activities going on around town. In conclusion, for some of us, Sunday becomes our Monday. You’ll see one day. 🙂