“I love Mondays!” say very few people. I mean, you just have to look at the onslaught of #mondaymotivation tweets and social media posts around you on Mondays to realize it ain’t winning the Oscar for Favorite Day of the Week. Just sayin’…
After years of waging a very public vendetta against Mondays, I finally started to make peace with it when I started building my own business, side-hustling and freelancing. The simple reason for this sudden pro-Monday niceness on my part is that I realized that there are only so many hours in the day. When your time is literally your most precious commodity, and you have to distribute it between kids, hubby, family and laundry (did I say laundry), then you know you can’t afford to waste a Monday…
So after years of Monday-hate conditioning and celebrating the start of a new week with excessive caffeine, sugar and facial frowns, it was about time to find a way to beat the Monday blues at its own game. Although I’m an avid reader of motivational quotes and other inspiring Monday shenanginans, I had to come up with my own creative strategies to get my Mondays work for me:
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Trick Your Mind to Plan Ahead
You’ve heard it before. Plan, plan, plan, and plan some more…But really, who wants to add planning on top of everything else there is to do? Yes, we know we need to plan, but we’re still praying for some magical trick of the Universe for the house to be magically clean, the laundry washed, folded and put away, and that work report finally completed…
So instead of beating yourself up because you haven’t planned for the time to plan this week, you can trick your mind to get into a “planning” mind. Instead of writing unending to-do lists, think about what you want to accomplish in the course of the week. Now plan according to your goals. I find this a great way to align your goals with you plan for the week, while encouraging you to accomplish your objectives
Recommended Tools:
- Mindmeister: this tool is great to create mind maps to outline your ideas and objectives.
- Evernote: I like to call this app my “second brain”. You can store your ideas and to-dos in individual notes and notebooks that you can retrieve at any time
- Todoist: This app lets you set up simple checklists with due dates and task rankings. It also integrates with Google Calendar and Evernote.
- Moleskin 18-month Planner: This 18-month planner lets you put your brain on paper beautifully.
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Start with the fun stuff (and the stuff you’re good at).
Contrary to popular opinion, there’s something about enjoying what you do. As in, not forcing yourself to start with the very tasks that make you dread getting up on Monday mornings in the first place.
One of the simplest, and most overlooked secrets of productivity, is to have fun. What are the tasks that excite you the most? What are the goals that you’re most enthusiastic about? What are the tasks that utilize your strengths and shine the spotlight on your talents? These will give you the boost you need to tackle the less…fun stuff.
As a blogger, Monday is my content writing day, simply because it’s what I enjoy the most and where my strength is. Creating and writing content inspires and gives me a boost, so I can move on to the nitty-gritty of administrative and technical tasks with more motivation and even a pep in my keystroke. I literally save the best for, wel…first!
Recommended tools:
- Good&Co app: This app lets you determine through a series of quizzes what your strengths are, and what your fit is in terms of career and company
- Spotify: Add some fun to your workday with your own selection of music to help you enjoy your work by creating playsuits that suit your schedule and mood.
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Mind your health
One of the most unsuspected reasons why Mondays are such a drag is that we’re not as healthy as we could be. I mean, if you’ve spent the week-end enjoying your fave snacks and have officially broken up with the gym, chances are your Mondays will be quite rough.
Make your Mondays more productive by keeping up with your health. Whether it’s an earliy morning job, a mid-day walk, or a week-end fitness regimen, being healthier also means being more productive, especially on Mondays…
Recommended tools:
- Sworkit: This app is perfect if you want to get healthy on the go and find an exercise routine that fits your lifestyle. You can easily fit it in on a hurried Monday morning too.
- 5dollarmeal.com: Get healthier by strategizing when it comes to what you eat. This meal planning site helps you create healthy meal plans.
- The VitaminShoppe: Put your health first with the right vitamins to keep up your well-being and productivity
- Headspace: Take care of your mental health by using this app. It helps you learn to mediate and guides you through the entire process.
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Have something to look forward to
The best part of acing your Monday is rewarding yourself after it. You’ll be more motivated to win on Mondays if you know there’s something to look forward to. I usually set a reward for myself on a weekly basis, whether it’s mani/pedi, free time to read, or a new book…
Start your week with a reward in mind, and tackle your goals with gusto, on Monday!
Recommended Tools:
- Tip Yourself: Reward yourself by saving money. You tip everyone else, so why not tip yourself when you reach your goals?
- Ebates: Reward yourself with shopping that puts cash back in your pocket (you can try Ibotta too)
Now your turn: How do you turn your Monday into the most productive day of the week?
To Your Success,
The Corporate Sister.
