#MondayMotivation – Focus on the Positives

October 15, 2018

A lot of us joke that nobody likes Mondays, but that isn’t true. We don’t like waking too early, we don’t like the excess traffic, we don’t like stress; all those things can be draining. However, those aren’t the only things that come with Mondays, or at least, they shouldn’t be; there are positives. There should be a curiosity about the week’s coming tasks, and the techniques you’ll use to maneuver them. There should be an excitement, at the prospect of trying out the solution you came up with for last week’s problem. There should be inspiration at the thought of becoming a master in your field. And lastly, there should be gratitude, because though it’s slow, you’re moving towards your dreams.

Most of us experience all of the negatives, and very few of the positives, if any. If you’re on this table, then you should do these three things:

Create a journal:

Journals, if done right, can be one of the purest forms of self-expression. The idea is to pick 10 minutes at the end of each day, to write out your thoughts and feelings about how the day progressed, with no filters, because no one is going to read it. Doing this, allows you dump all the superfluous mental clutter, and helps you connect with your inner voice, the part of you that is really you, and gives you clarity. This clarity will help you decide what it is about your job that prevents you from enjoying it to the fullest, and thus help you come up with solutions.

Be a Learner:

We all like to think of ourselves as experts, that don’t need guidance. Newsflash: you’re wrong. Jobs and industries evolve; if you aren’t keeping up, you’ll be left in the past like a blast. Thanks to the internet, you aren’t short of resources; YouTube, Coursera, Udemy, Skillshare, and so on, are perfect places to learn industry-related skills or any others that may catch your fancy. Seriously, learning keeps your wits sharp, expands your knowledge base, and gives you more intelligent sounding stuff to say at parties, don’t sleep on it.

Adopt Self Honesty:

Journaling will help with this. Basically, the point is to be as humanly aware as possible, of the reasons you do the things you do, which include your reasons for being at your current job. It also involves being a hundred percent honest with yourself about the things you want, and the reasons you want them. Being clear about these things will give you direction, keep you focused, and most importantly, help you understand how to push and restrain yourself.