We all know the feeling.
We are trying our best to be in the moment on a Sunday, enjoying time with friends and family, or just some quality time alone, but there it is, tapping you on the shoulder like a goblin.
It’s the Sunday Scaries, and they are uninvited as usual.
10 Tips to stop the Sunday Scaries
Below we’ll give our 10 best tips to stop the Sunday Scaries, so that we can all try and be in the moment and enjoy our Sunday evenings without those grey clouds.
#1 – Do your best to find the cause of your Sunday scaries
The Sunday frights can seem insurmountable in the absence of a clear core reason. When you’re having a good time on the weekend, all of a sudden, you’re overcome by a sense of impending dread or unease that you just can’t get rid of. Focus on what might be driving the feeling rather than dismissing this feeling of dread as a normal reaction to the weekend coming to an end. Are there any situations at work for which you feel unprepared? Are you content with your job or do you feel uninspired? What kind of work-life balance do you have?
The first step to conquering your Sunday night dread is to identify what are the Sunday Scaries? – and your own individual cause of it. Once you have a better understanding of what may be the root of your feelings, you may come up with solutions to address the issue, such as setting priorities for your most crucial tasks to boost productivity and prevent missed deadlines.
#2 – Try practicing techniques to cope with anxiety
The Sunday frights present both a professional and a personal difficulty. Using anxiety-management and relaxation techniques will help you control your levels of Sunday-related stress because the Sunday blues cause feelings that are similar to anxiety-related feelings.
- Make use of coping techniques like:
- Mindfulness and meditation exercises
- Practicing deep breathing
- Meditation or going for a long walk
- Using visualization techniques or saying encouraging phrases
- Keeping a work journal will help you understand and be aware of complex work situations
Of course, these are only temporary solutions that will help you temporarily manage your Sunday night anxiousness. You should concentrate on practical adjustments you may make to your daily schedule at work in order to permanently reduce these feelings.
#3 – Make your Sunday as relaxing as possible
One of the greatest methods to deal with the Sunday scaries is to prioritize a normally stress-free Sunday night because they cause more stress than usual. Try to resist the urge to postpone all of your weekend obligations, such as housekeeping tasks or food shopping, until Sunday. Instead, finish your weekend must-dos on Friday night or early Saturday to give yourself time to unwind and breathe on Sunday.
One of the greatest methods to deal with the Sunday scaries is to prioritize a normally stress-free Sunday night because they cause more stress than usual. Try to resist the urge to postpone all of your weekend obligations, such as housekeeping tasks or food shopping, until Sunday. Instead, finish your weekend must-dos on Friday night or early Saturday to give yourself time to unwind and breathe on Sunday.
#4 – Plan a fun activity to do on Monday
Planning something enjoyable for Monday can help the beginning of the week feel a bit less daunting, similar to giving oneself something to look forward to on Sunday night with a Sunday night routine. It could be as simple as getting a cup of coffee before heading to work. You can also set aside time for activities you enjoy, such as watching your favorite TV show or preparing your preferred food. Bonus points if it also happens to be something calming, like walking or practicing yoga. Alternately, arrange a celebration that will make Monday your preferred day of the week, such as a weekly dinner with friends or a standing happy hour. Developing a fruitful morning routine is another way to start your week off strong.
#5 – Make your work-life balance a priority
Prioritizing your work-life balance is essential for reducing the Sunday frights, as you could have inferred from our opening few suggestions. Additionally, it will take more than a few bubble baths to achieve a successful work-life balance, even though taking care of oneself is crucial.
If you want to truly prioritize your work-life balance, you must change the way you view your job and the skills necessary for success. According to the Anatomy of Work Index, 40% of all employees believe that success inevitably comes with burnout.
Although these emotions are reasonable, failing to establish and uphold limits at work negatively affects your wellbeing and that of your organization. The first step to taking control of your work-life balance is communicating your demands to your management. Let them know how you’re feeling. After that, employ techniques to attain a better work/life balance.
These might consist of:
- Establishing boundaries for your online time
- Developing the ability to say no when you’re overloaded
- Cutting back on your outside-of-work work activities
#6 – Take a sabbatical or day of mental day
For those who are experiencing burnout and the Sunday scaries, taking a mental health day or sabbatical leave may be helpful if your employer supports them. A day off to unwind and refresh is exactly what it sounds like: a mental health day. When you’ve been experiencing job anxiety, mental health days can make you feel better, give you more energy, and refresh you. However, they are not a permanent solution to burnout or overwork.
A sabbatical is a longer leave of absence that is often taken for personal or professional growth. Your organization determines if you qualify for sabbatical leave and how long it will last. A sabbatical can be rejuvenating and enhance work-life balance when it is feasible.
#7 – Block notifications when you’re off the clock
We are more connected thanks to technology, but we are also more distracted. Over a third of employees, according to the Anatomy of Work, feel overwhelmed by constant pings. Additionally, employees are dealing with digital overload: 42% of employees spend more time on email than they did a year ago, and 56% believe they must reply to notifications right away.
#8 – Plan your work week in advance
Feeling overburdened or unprepared for the upcoming week is one of the main causes of the Sunday frights. Maybe you have impending deadlines that you’re not sure you can meet or an approaching presentation that you don’t feel prepared to give. A weekly work schedule can be helpful.
Your weekly tasks are organized and broken down into a reasonable overview by a weekly work plan, allowing you to know what has to be done and by when. Weekly work plans give you insight into the coming week by allowing you to prioritize chores and specify due dates. Weekly work plans are ideal for balancing your workload since they enable you to divide huge chores into smaller to-dos and provide you with a quick overview of your week. Additionally, a balanced workload results in less anxiety on Sunday and less stress during the workweek.
#9 – Remove and delegate any tasks that are not top priorities
When you effectively assign work to other team members, you’ll free up your time to focus on high-priority initiatives and provide your colleagues the option to work on tasks that are more in line with their expertise or present them with fresh chances. Additionally, assigning duties helps lessen burnout and overwork, which are two major contributors to the Sunday scares.
#10 – Know when it’s time to ask for professional help
It’s critical to detect the warning signals of more severe conditions like depression or anxiety disorders as they develop from the Sunday frights. It could be necessary to take further action if the aforementioned tactics don’t assist lessen your Sunday night dread or if your job anxiety is seriously interfering with your career or personal life. Inquire about potential assistance from your boss, mentor, or HR division on workplace benefits. Keeping your mind healthy is important. It should be given priority both at work and elsewhere.
