Remember the classic scene in “Office Space,” when Peter wants to go for coffee upon arriving at the office on Monday? He says he has to get out of there because he’s about to lose it.
A coworker overhears him and remarks, “Uh oh, sounds like someone’s got a case of the Mondays!”
This iconic scene captures how many people feel at the start of every work week. They’ve had a great weekend, but are now back to the grind, and they can barely stand it.
The thought of slogging through the day drives them to their cubicle, where they spend the first two hours scrolling through Instagram.
Here are five simple, yet powerful, methods to crush the Monday blues in their tracks.
1. Get up early.
One way to set yourself up for success for the entire week is to rise early on Monday. Rising early allows you to get a jump on the week, to prepare for all that’s coming and to get yourself in the right frame of mind.
Sleeping in, on the other hand, leaves you feeling rushed, chaotic and completely out of sorts.
Of the high achievers that I’ve interviewed, almost all inevitably rise early as a way of dramatically increasing their productivity. Increased productivity on a Monday will give you a surge of energy and excitement about all that you will accomplish during the week.
Rising early, however, means you absolutely must get enough sleep the night before. Failing to get enough sleep will leave you exhausted, dragging and relying on Red Bull, all of which will deepen your profound sense of the Monday blues. Going to sleep early also cuts down on your Sunday scaries.
2. Begin the morning with exercise.
Few things will energize and fire you up you like exercise. By beginning your Monday morning with exercise, you’re quickly priming yourself for a hugely powerful and productive day.
Exercise raises energy levels, increases blood flow, alleviates depression, increases dopamine and clarifies thinking. It’s the not-so-secret tool in every high-achiever’s arsenal.
Rise early enough so that you can include at least 30 minutes of exercise in your Monday morning routine. You don’t need to run 10 miles — just get your heart rate elevated for at least 30 minutes.
When you arrive at the office, you’ll be shocked by your energy levels and ability to dive in immediately. Rather than spending the first hour sucking down coffee and idly staring at your email, you’ll hit the ground running.
3. Visualize what you’ll accomplish.
When you arrive at your office on Monday morning, take at least five minutes to visualize all the things that you will accomplish in the following week. Picture your wins and your successes. Imagine in vivid detail what it will feel like to get those things done.
Too often, Mondays begin with a bleak awareness of all that must be done. You encounter an inbox overflowing with urgent emails, dozens of Twitter direct messages to reply to and a big deadline to hit by Friday.
If you don’t take time to visualize your success, you may begin to feel immediately overwhelmed and anxious. This can be hugely detrimental to your productivity and sink you deep into a case of the Monday blues.
Is today the day you finally build a website for your side hustle? Or do you plan on making videos for the 500 million users on LinkedIn?
When you arrive at work on Monday, pull out a sheet of paper or open up a blank document. Write out in precise detail exactly what you plan to achieve that week and how you will accomplish those things. Check in with it often, in an attempt to keep yourself on track.
4. Identify your three most important tasks.
If you don’t set your own agenda on Monday, someone else will set it for you. Everyone comes into the office on Monday with a list of things that must get done.
If you don’t choose what you’ll work on, others will begin dumping tasks on you. Don’t let this happen.
A simple way to avoid this is to identify your three most important tasks that you’ll accomplish on Monday. Do this either on Sunday night or first thing in the morning, before others begin inundating you with requests.
Identifying your most important tasks allows you to have laser focus on what you must accomplish without being easily distracted. Once you’ve accomplished the things that are most important, you’ll feel a deep sense of accomplishment, which will establish a momentum for the rest of the week.
You’ll also be able to give time and attention to the requests of others without resenting being pulled away from your own tasks.
5. Recognize the source of the blues.
Finally, it’s essential to identify the source of your Monday blues. Are you unhappy with your job? Do you feel stressed and overworked? Is a strained relationship with a co-worker making it difficult to come in each morning?
If you don’t identify the source of your blues, you’ll never be able to effectively solve the problem.
Identifying the root of the problem allows you to make significant changes that can significantly improve your overall job satisfaction.
Maybe you need to ask your boss for some additional help with the company’s new blog. Maybe you need to have a heart-to-heart discussion with a co-worker. Maybe you need to consider making your money elsewhere.
You’ll never discover these solutions if you don’t spend time identifying the problem.
The Monday blues shouldn’t be a way of life. You should be able to go to work at the beginning of the week excited for all that you’re going to do. You should look forward to hitting the ground running on Monday morning.
By implementing these five ways to crush the Monday blues, you will truly set yourself up to dominate your week.
Want more? More of Jasin’s writing can be found at Metapress and X3 Digital. Connect with Alex Jasin directly on Twitter, Medium and LinkedIn. You can also read more from Alex Jasin on Business Insider, Entrepreneur, The Huffington Post, Content Marketing Institute, The Next Web and other major publications.