Monday mornings, you can't help but to procrastinate. You're not alone: according to a massive Gallup poll, 70 percent of people hate or, at best, are “completely disengaged” from their job. “Monday Blues” is a real feeling that starts on Sunday night, leading to an unproductive Monday
Tips for kicking the Monday blues
Even if you love your job, Monday may still be a tough day to grapple with, simply because it means you have to shift from relaxation mode to work mode. Career coach Jeff Garton offers three tips for changing the way you feel about Monday.
Tip 1: Pay attention to thoughts and feelings. It’s impossible to catch all the thousands of thoughts that pass through your mind each day, so focus on the first ones that pop into your head. They usually predict the worst and incorporate a “can’t do” or “shouldn’t do” message. See them for what they are: unfounded and irrational. Typically, they’re the result of negative conditioning and have little or nothing to do with reality. Think carefully about these negative thoughts. Once you realize that they’re not based on anything real, they’ll disappear in time.
Tip 2: Obliterate negative feelings. If negative feelings surface, such as This won’t work; they won’t like me; this is a waste of time; this will make me look stupid; I hate doing this; or I’m going to screw this up - challenge the thought by coming up with an alternative positive feeling. For example, This is going to work; I can do this; it’s worked before, so it will work again; or This can’t stop me. Thus, you are controlling your thoughts instead of letting them control you.
Tip 3: Relish positive emotion. Take the new emotion you’ve created with the new thought (joy, excitement, enthusiasm, confidence, etc.) and savor the pleasant feeling.
If you actually believe everything you’ve just read, you’re well on your way to changing the way you think.
