How to make Sunday night blues a thing of the past

A Sunday night not filled with dread? A Monday to look forward to? Is it possible? Let’s discuss the issue and how best to tackle the end of the week blues

This is an edited version of an article that originally appeared on Management Today

We’ve all been there. 5pm on a Sunday and you start to think about the morning and week ahead. As a child, Sunday afternoon meant time for homework and preparing for school the next day; as an adult, this lurking feeling still remains for many of us – but does it have to?

It’s a big issue. One study found that 81% of employees dread work. Despite many of us having interesting, meaningful jobs, which we enjoy, a sense of anxiety still surfaces. So why is that, and how or can we banish it? 

First is loss of momentum. We’ll all agree that weekends are necessary but any break can leave us finding it difficult to ‘get back into it’. It’s difficult to go from one role to another, and this feeling worsens the longer we’ve been off. This is normal for a lot of us but, once we’re back at the laptop, we’re soon back into the groove.

Sometimes the dread is down to something specific we’re putting off. It’s worth it in the long-run to tackle the hardest thing first on Monday morning. Don’t ease into the day by replying to unimportant emails first – before you know it, it will be lunchtime. A great idea is to write your most pressing – and perhaps most horrid – chores on a Post-It on the previous Friday and stick it on your screen. Then, once it’s done, you’ll feel a great sense of satisfaction (and relief) when you crumple it up and chuck it in to the bin!

Is the problem down to awkward interactions? Conflict is stressful but, much of the time, the anticipation of a possible dispute is actually worse. The key here is preparation. On Sunday, take a moment to think about what you’re going to do the next day and, rather than letting things lurk, it’s best to  have a plan in mind.

Toxic colleagues are another source of dread. One piece of research found that 3.9% of the corporate population display psychopathic tendencies, compared with less than 1% in the general population! If at all possible, minimise your interactions with these members of your team, using this time to build more positive interactions elsewhere. 

Monday to Friday can feel like a war, a battle on multiple fronts. Business leaders can get stuck between the expectations of their staff and demands from those above. While pleasing everyone is impossible, staying logical, and keeping your overall objective in mind, limits the stress.

Burn out

Is it burn out? Burnout is a real and serious issue. It’s not just about workload, but also the balance (or lack of) between your values and those demanded by your job. Constant sleeplessness, restlessness or physical symptoms may be signs that something needs to change.

It’s possible that dreading work is part of our human nature. Spending time with family and friends is grea, and, after all, for many of us Sunday night represents the end of this. So this anxiety could be less about what is to come and more what has and is passing us by.