It’s debatable which day of the week is considered the best. I vote for Saturday. I get the privilege to wake up as late as I am permitted to and stay up as late as my eyes permit me to, not focusing on the terror of waking up early in the morning the next day.

As for Sunday, the entire day comprises of loads of activities. It can be a day out in the city with the family, it can be a picnic or visiting friend/ relative’s place, or it can mean hours at the mall, shopping. The moment day proceeds, the concern arises for the following day. Get the lunches ready, eat dinner, arrange everything for the next day, feed the kids, put them to sleep and so on and on. Another 5 days of constant chasing time. Wait, it’s the other way round. We don’t chase time anymore; time chases us.

Good morning, Monday!

This is the start of the week when you wake up before the sun does. This is hard, man! Especially if you party the night before. So waking up is the biggest mission in your bag. Getting ready, dragging yourself out of the house and travelling all the way add more depression than watching The Last Air Bender.

At the office, the moment you open your computer, you are welcomed by 50 emails, if not hundreds. On top of that, you have pending works to complete. The Lord laughs down at you and says, “Good morning! This is Monday!”

A little rewind to the past

• Allow Friday to rescue you

Let’s make things easy. A little pre-planning can make the following week better for you. You can be overloaded with work on Friday and have zero time for extra work. But try to keep at least an hour to focus on all the tasks you’ll need to complete. Divide the works and write down in your notebook. Set time limits for your divided works. For instance, if you are a writer like myself, set 1.5 hours to finish 600 words limit work. This includes the researches as well. Plan all these on Friday so that when you sit at your desk on Monday, you know what to wrap up.

• Sunday night

From my personal experience, I have noticed of I complete all the morning tasks at Sunday night, I get to sleep for an extra 30 minutes. Therefore, Sunday night means preparing all the lunches, boxed them up, settle them inside the fridge, iron all the clothes, bags packed and shoes ready.

• The alarm rings to start early Monday morning

With the extra sleep, you are extra fresh. Listen to your favourite music to uplift your mood, do some stretches, yoga or meditation, eat a healthy brekkie and if time permits, take a quick shower. Once your “me-time” is over, wake the kids up, feed them, dress them up and in 1 hour, you are ready to start the day!

• Official hurdles

No one seems to be exceptionally happy on Monday. Constant phone rings, flood of emails, keyboard typing away nonstop and grumpy looking colleagues make the day gloomy. Add perks to the monotonously uneventful day. A little joke here and there doesn’t harm. Neither does walking up to your colleagues on casual breaks to ask them how their weekend was. Ask your colleagues if they are interested in the coffee breaks. And finally, utilise your lunch hour. Eat, sit back and relax. If possible, take a power nap. Or best, take a stroll out. The fresh air works wonder!

Fast-forward to the present

• Home time!

Coming home doesn’t mean it’s the end of your chaotic errands. But at least, you have the freedom to change into your comfiest attire, walk barefoot and work according to your schedule. To squeeze in some relaxation time with your family, why not watch a movie while eating dinner? It may not be a conventional/ ideal family time, but nowadays, there’s no better way to unwind than to watch a movie and have dinner with the fam!

• Goodnight, sleep tight!

By the time the owls hoot, you are dead tired. When you are tired, you would just want to sleep. That’s your ultimate goal. And that is exactly what you would do. Sleep. Cuddle up with your favourite person(s) and close your eyes. Getting 6 to 8 hours of deep sleep should be your target.

I’ll conclude with an Irish proverb that says, “A good laugh and a long sleep are the two best cures for anything.”

HAPPY MONDAY!