Monday is not the problem.
When Sunday evening feels heavy, it is rarely because of Monday. It is about what you do on Monday, and whether you chose it yourself.
Do you know that feeling on a Sunday evening? Your head is already at the office, your stomach a little tighter, and somewhere between the Sunday crime drama and brushing your teeth the question comes up: is this simply how it is going to continue?
Many people blame Monday for it. I did too, for a long time. For nine years I drove to a large corporation every Monday, with a good job, a secure income and a team I liked. And still there was this pull.
Monday is only the messenger.
Monday brings nothing new. It only shows you what your everyday life looks like once the weekend is over. If that everyday life doesn’t suit you, you feel it on Monday first. Today I see that less as a problem and more as information.
There is nothing wrong with you if Monday is hard. Perhaps you are simply living by a programme you never consciously chose.
A secure job, no risks, meeting expectations: many of us adopted this programme early, from parents who meant well, from a school that rewarded fitting in, and from people around us who say: be happy with what you have.
Why this column is called “Thank God it’s Monday”.
I don’t think you have to love Monday. But I do think everyone deserves a Monday on which they know why they get up. For me that changed when I started building something of my own alongside my job. Suddenly Monday was more than the start of someone else’s week; it was also a day on which I worked on my own path.
From now on a short, honest thought without motivational clichés will appear here every Monday: on leading yourself, on the programmes that steer us, on decisions we put off, and on what it really takes to build something of your own.
Three questions for your next Monday.
- What exactly makes Monday hard for you: the work itself, the people, or the feeling of being controlled by others?
- What would you do differently on Monday if nobody had any expectations of you?
- What small step can you take for yourself this week, regardless of how Monday feels?
You don’t have to change everything tomorrow. But you can take an honest look today, and often that leads to a decision you have been putting off for a while.
If you could do only one thing this Monday that brings you closer to your own path, what would it be?