10 Easy But Efficient Approaches To Start Appreciating Mondays

The world is filled with reminders that life is meant to be enjoyed on weekends and that weekdays—particularly Mondays — are a means to an end. Then there's the group that believes that if you "do what you love," you'll never have to work another day in your life. That's also a dangerous myth because all work will feel like work at some point. And, no matter how much you enjoy your job, we live in a capitalist, work-driven world, which implies that Mondays will inevitably be unpleasant.

Even if you don't have your ideal job, it is possible to make Mondays more bearable. There are several simple routines that almost anyone can adapt to begin to like Mondays — as well as a slew of other options that may need a little more effort but are well worth the effort. Here are a few of my favorite methods for making Mondays a little more tolerable.

Simple methods to make Mondays more bearable:

1. Establish a Monday morning routine.

It might be as simple as getting an iced coffee from your favorite café, cleaning up your workstation, so it's spotless and ready for the week ahead or going for a walk around the block before starting your workday. Having just one "fun" routine makes your morning something you can look out for regularly (a theme that runs throughout this list).

2. Use Mondays to "set the tone" for the rest of the week.

I'm hardly a fitness evangelist, but there's nothing quite like leaving a Pilates session feeling energized and successful. The more I stand up for myself; the more self-assured I become in almost every facet of my life. For two reasons, I've started scheduling workout courses on Monday evenings.

1. It's much simpler to exercise the rest of the week if I've already started on Monday

2. Monday courses are never as crowded, making it a more enjoyable experience.

It doesn't have to be exercise-related, but Mondays are a great day to start a new healthy habit, such as cooking at home or reading over your lunch break!

3. On Sunday night, prepare your ride listening/reading items.

A disparately irritating situation: you hurry to the subway station to make your train on time, put on your headphones, and go to start listening to your favorite podcast — only to discover that the auto-download function has failed you yet again, and it hasn't been downloaded, and the train's Wi-Fi isn't cooperating. You either submit yourself to listening to your phone's only loaded Spotify playlist, which you've only listened to around 200 times, or you sit on the train in silence. It irritates me more than most people, but having the luxury of a community commute and then forgetting the tool supposed to help you make the most of it is a pain (leaving my Kindle at home also sucks).

I've begun to prevent this by ensuring that the following day's leisure is downloaded and good to go the night before. It means I rarely listen to podcast episodes on the day they're released-if that's important to you, create a note to ensure that your items are downloaded first thing in the morning.

4. Treat yourself to a special meal on Monday.

While planning and resisting impulsive purchasing during hectic workdays is one of the best strategies to avoid feeling deprived, fitting in "treats" is another. I enjoy ordering a falafel bowl, but I can't justify spending $12 on lunch every day, so I only do it once a week. I advocate making your weekly lunch treat on Mondays, since it gives you something to look forward to – Fridays are already enjoyable enough without adding a special meal to the mix. Also, planning lunch-out expenditures ahead of time relieves any remorse you might feel about spending money on something that isn't a "necessity" (lunch is, of course, a necessity—making lunch $12 isn't).

5. Take a break during the day to arrange something enjoyable.

Seating is the new smoking! It goes without saying that we should all take regular breaks to get up from our desks and get our circulation going. On Mondays, I also recommend adding something to your to-do list solely for your enjoyment (to do during your break time, of course). Part of the fun of taking a vacation, for example, is getting to plan it. Schedule a time during your Monday to go on TripAdvisor and Reddit and look for restaurant and lodging ideas for your next major trip.

6. Set aside Monday nights for your regular social activities.

There's no excuse not to live your life on weeknights as well as weekends. Mondays are one of my favorite nights of the week because my closest friend is around to prepare supper and watch television. You could choose to make a Monday night social event, such as meeting your book club or going for a long stroll with your partner, or be intentional when it comes to social planning in general. Your pals will most likely be more supportive of Monday events than you anticipate!

7. Put a little effort into your appearance.

It may sound superficial, but dressing up a little extra always helps me feel ready to take on whatever the day has in store. Of course, when I say "dressing up," I could mean putting on my "nice" jeans, wedge sandals, and a good blouse instead of my ordinary jeans and flats. Dressing up a little extra for you can mean putting on lipstick or tying your hair up in a lovely braid - anything you don't do every day, but still, it makes you feel like your finest, most confident self.

Tips to start liking Mondays on a higher level:

1. Maintain a consistent sleep routine over the weekend.

It hardly qualifies as "effortless," as I am well aware of how tough it is to go to bed and wake up at a reasonable hour on weekends. Sleeping in on Saturdays may feel like your only chance to get "genuine" sleep if you're a very busy person. However, "social jet lag," or reversing your typical sleeping schedule for the weekend, has been linked to increased weariness, depression, and even the risk of heart disease. It may not be simple, but changing your routine so that you sleep and wake up at the same time on weekends as you do on weekdays will help you feel more "normal" and prepared for the day on Monday mornings.

2. Don't arrange meetings that require a lot of preparation first thing Monday morning.

Many of us have little control over when our most important meetings will occur during the week. However, if possible, avoid arranging large, prep-intensive meetings on Monday mornings. A weekly progress check-in is one thing, but a strategy-focused meeting with a lot of preparation ahead of time? Save it for later in the day, if not the following week. You won't be racing about on Sunday night to make sure you've got everything ready by 8 a.m. this way.

3. On Sunday, do a thorough cleaning of your home.

Coming home from a long day (which Mondays may sometimes seem like) and being welcomed by every single duty you neglected over the weekend is the worst. You'll always return home to a calm, relaxed setting (or as relaxed as feasible, depending on your family/pets situation) if you complete your weekly deep-cleaning on Sunday.

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Do you have any additional suggestions to help us enjoy our Monday? I'd love to hear your ideas in the comments section! Share this with somebody that needs to upgrade their Monday routine!