How to Avoid Feeling Anxious About Work When Sunday Comes

The case of Monday Blues is just as widespread as the common flu. Everybody has experienced it at some point in their life and dreaded the arrival of a new week. After all, once your weekend turns back into a weekday, just like Cinderella’s magic wearing off at midnight—it’s no longer fun, and work awaits.

 

 

However, venturing into a brand new work week doesn’t have to be upsetting. Coming from someone who used to receive weekly visits from Mr. Monday Blues, here are some tricks that you can apply on how to avoid feeling anxious about work when Sunday comes. Ease yourself into a new week of hustling (with the partial help of Cinderella).

 

1. Leave Last Week Behind

The key is to enjoy your weekend to the fullest. That, then, requires you to complete all your work tasks prior to the start of Saturday to the best of your abilities. Cinderella made sure to cross off every to-do on her list before she made way for the ball, and there’s no reason you shouldn’t do the same.

 

 

Putting one week’s chores behind you before you step into the weekend means you won’t have to worry about work on Saturdays and Sundays. Instead, those two days can be taken leisurely as you spend time doing the things you derive happiness from.

 

If you have a report due on Saturday night, try turning it in by Friday instead. That way, when the time comes and the pumpkin transfigures into a carriage, you can take your leave and evict work from your mind, however temporarily.

 

2. Rest Up Over the Weekend to Recalibrate

Now that the weekend has ceremoniously announced its arrival at your doorstep, have fun! After a long, hard week of working and doing your best, you deserve a break as much as the next hustler. Since you have got all your work done, pay them no mind; instead, focus on the next 48 hours and decide how you can spend them to the fullest extent. Come Monday, you will register that you’ve enjoyed the weekend and are more energized to get back to work.

 

 

A common reason for us feeling anxious about a new work week is working through the weekend non-stop.  This creates the psychological illusion that we’re just working through one week to work another. Break this illusion by awarding yourself ample time to kick back and relax. As a result, you won’t mull over lost leisurely time during working days.

 

This also entails not worrying about the workload of the week ahead; Cinderella’s mind was most definitely unoccupied by the chores waiting for her the next morning—the belle of the ball was focused on living in the moment and having the time of her life.

 

3. Plan and Visualize Your Week Ahead

Monday through Friday take the form of a daunting monster because of the uncertainty; we see a huge mass of work that looks intimidating. However, if we are willing to give it an extra minute and break it down, it will seem more conquerable.

 

Most of us can gauge what awaits us beyond the weekend, so take an hour to sit down on Sunday night, grab a pen and paper, and plan your coming work week. Designate a day for each task and allocate errands accordingly, simplify big projects into bite-sized tasks.

 

 

Once it’s all laid out, you’ll come to realize that there’s nothing much to fear about yet another five days. Before you know it, you’ll be coursing through every task in your planner as swiftly as the Disney princess dances.

 

If you’re new to planning and hope to hop on the train, consider joining Crunchin’ Mondays, a quintessential community event for the goal-getter in you. With other people present in this planning session, you’ll be more inclined to hold yourself accountable for your tasks and be more motivated as well. It always helps to know that there are others in the same boat as you!

 

4. Treat Yourself and Enjoy!

One of the basic psychological practices of reinforcement is reward systems. Commonly applied to instill and remove habits in children, it’s an effective system that incentivizes us. Putting it in context, we’d be more driven to get through the workweek to come if we promise ourselves a treat by the end of it all. Like if we mirrored how Cinderella was propelled to get her chores done to attend the royal ball. 

 

 

This links back to the second point: set a reward that you can cash in during the weekend. Whether that be treating yourself to a fancy meal or binge-watching your favorite TV show. Having something to look forward to gives us the extra boost we need to hold out a little longer. 

 

 

While these tips appear obvious, you’d be surprised how many of us get caught up between the throes of workaholic culture that we forget to allow ourselves space and time to breathe. I do hope these tips will help you in the foreseeable future as they definitely helped me personally in answering the question of how to avoid feeling anxious about work when Sunday comes. You’re not going to be able to perform your very best unless you feel your very best. Which is why you always have to remember to take some time to recalibrate and reset and kick Monday Blues in the face.

 

If you are interested to know more in-depth about how to prepare for a new week ahead, check out this article that will help you get ready and take on your future productive days.