We have all heard about the Monday blues, but did you know that you could feel just as uneasy about your weekend?
This is because people have a tendency of worrying about the upcoming week all throughout the weekend. So much so, that they stop enjoying the weekend at all.
But having a bad weekend will only worsen your Monday blues, which in turn, will have a spillover effect on the rest of your week.
How can you stop worrying about Monday and going back to work, so you can actually make the most of your weekend? Here are some tips.
Finish Your Work on Friday
The one major thing that can bring down your weekend mood is knowing that you’ve left work for Monday. You want to start the next week off on a clean slate, not worrying about calculating earned media value.
If you have tasks to be completed on Friday, finish them on Friday. Don’t waste the day looking at the clock, wishing for the end of the day to start your weekend.
Instead, treat Friday like the working day it is. Stick to your usual work routine, focus on your meetings, send those client emails, figure out if the website SEO plan is working, and when it’s 5pm, you can clock out in peace.
By finishing your week’s work by end of day Friday, you can go into the weekend with nothing hanging over your head so you aren’t tempted to check your mails or answer texts.
Have a Different Routine
You have to wake up early every day of the week, why can’t you have a lie-in on the weekend?
Because that is going to disrupt your sleeping schedule for the rest of the coming week.
Instead of sleeping in till 11am—when you usually wake up at 7am—wake up at 8am, at the latest. But don’t make up for waking up on time by staying up late trying to figure out Instagram story dimensions to show off your latest exploits on social media.
Sleep according to your needs—whether that’s eight hours or shorter, according to latest studies on sleeping habits and productivity—without changing your sleeping habits.
Your routine doesn’t have to be as stringent as on weekends—you don’t have to worry about a digital marketing meeting at 10am, after all.
You can take things slower but don’t completely revamp your daily routine to such a point that you can’t get your rhythm back on Monday.
Make a Plan
Planning is for vacations, isn’t it? Not exactly. Making a plan for your weekend will give you purpose and motivation.
Look at it this way—if you don’t have a plan, what are you going to do on the weekend? Probably nothing. Or worse, you’ll waste endless time looking for something to do.
This will make you feel unfulfilled at the end of the weekend, and lead to a bad start on Monday.
Instead, create a mental mind map of your weekend plans. Nothing too strenuous or complicated, but enough to get you excited for the weekend and make you feel fulfilled.
Don’t Stay Locked Indoors
You’ve spent all week going out to work and meetings, isn’t the weekend the best time to stay home and not move?
Not going out isn’t best for your weekend, or for your mind. While you may be tempted to spend time working on your resume and reading a rent report like this—which you don’t have time to do on weekdays—it is better to activate your mind by going out and getting some fresh air.
Your work week is largely spent indoors; why spend the weekend the same way?
Arrange activities that take you outside of the house—like visiting friends, going to festivals, or just a walk or bike ride.
Being outdoors will energise your body and mind and will help you feel rejuvenated come Monday morning.
But Don’t Over-Exert Yourself
You may be tempted to pack in everything you want to do in one weekend, but that will only exhaust you.
While you may want to utilise all the top event planning tips in your arsenal to host a bash in your back garden, the planning, execution, and worse, the cleanup, will take up so much of your time that you won’t be able to enjoy the weekend.
Instead, if you want to have a get-together, keep it small and manageable. Don’t plan too many activities that require you to travel far. Give yourself time at home and outside, so you can feel like you have accomplished something while also feeling rested.
Balance Chores and Fun
Adult life is about finishing chores. And usually, those chores have to be done on the weekend—laundry, cooking for the next week, cleaning, dusting, and finding new ways to make money.
While you have no option but to complete these chores, don’t make them the focus of your weekend. Put on a TV show or research how to get featured on podcasts while the laundry is on.
Bring the kitchen timer to your room so you can monitor your baked goods while you read The Visible Expert.
Not all chores require your attention 100% of the time, so use those empty periods to relax.
Alternately, keep a set amount of time aside to finish all the chores at once—get the dishwasher and laundry on, while you cook—so that you have the rest of the weekend to relax.
It is also best to finish these chores off in the morning, so you can look forward to the rest of the day.
Don’t Leave Chores for Sunday
As we have established, chores need to be done on the weekend. But while you may be tempted to put them off till Sunday—so you can enjoy Saturday—this will only exacerbate your Monday blues.
Finish off your chores, and the tasks you don’t want to do, on Saturday, as early as you can. Leave the rest of Saturday and Sunday for entertaining and going out.
This will revitalise you on Sunday so that you can begin Monday on a spritely note.
Enjoy Time to Yourself
The weekend is meant to be enjoyable and relaxing, but most importantly it is for you to get time to yourself.
Clock off on Friday evening and don’t look at your emails or work messages on the weekend. Plan out a few activities—but not too many—so your mind is engaged but not overextended.
This will help you start Monday off on a positive note and set you up for a good week.