Back in college (and, if I’m being totally honest, for most of my early 20s), Sundays were defined by the infamous Sunday Funday. It was unheard of to spend a Sunday being anywhere other than brunch and doing anything other than drinking one-too-many mimosas. However, the older I got, the more I started to re-think my approach to Sundays. If Sunday sets the tone for how the rest of your week is going to go, did I really want to spend it getting buzzed and inevitably end up spending my Monday morning with a splitting headache?
More and more, I’ve realized that Sundays are the perfect opportunity to start the week on a fresh slate. Even when you love your job, Mondays are rough, and they’re only that much rougher if you fail to prepare on your last day of weekend freedom. I’ve started to adapt Sunday habits that set me up for a happier, more productive and efficient workweek. Here’s a few examples:
- Get it out of the way. At work, I always make sure to tackle my most difficult assignments first thing in the morning, when I’m most alert and when there’s less of a chance to get sidetracked. You should approach Sundays with the same mentality. Realistically, it shouldn’t take you more than two hours to get all of your chores out of the way and get organized for the workweek. If you’re up at 9 a.m., that means before noon you can get all of your not-so-fun responsibilities out of the way, leaving you with the rest of your afternoon to enjoy some downtime.
- Eat Healthy. We all know that a big greasy meal seems great in theory, but in reality after chowing down you feel weighed down and lazy. Use Friday and Saturday to indulge, and on Sunday get back on track and give your body the fuel it needs to head into the week refreshed.
- Do something you love. During a busy workweek, it can be hard to take time to do things that you genuinely enjoy. For me, that’s reading, so every Sunday I make sure to carve out a few hours to dive into a new book and have essential “me time.”
- We all spend way too much time staring at screens. Technology is amazing, but it also has made it that much more difficult for us to truly leave work at work. Use Sunday to completely disconnect, don’t check your email, put your phone away for a few hours, and take a nice walk outside. You’ll be amazed at the positive impact doing so will have on your mental health.
- The easiest way to avoid the “Sunday Scaries” is to plan for your week. You’ll be able to hit the ground running on Monday morning, and knock out priorities first thing.
