“The ‘Monday Blues’ describe a set of negative emotions that many people get at the beginning of the workweek if they’re not happy at work,” states Alexander Kjerulf, who is an international author and speaker on happiness at work and in life. “It contains elements of depression, tiredness, hopelessness and a sense that work is unpleasant but unavoidable.”

If you are someone who experiences the Monday blues, you are definitely not alone. Many people, especially those with high-stress jobs (like business owners), consider themselves to have a case of the “Monday Blues.” Unfortunately, this can cause people to be a less productive because of their negative feelings. How can you beat the Monday blues so they don’t affect your work and life, in general? Try these tricks:

Prepare on Friday

When Friday rolls around, people start to get pretty excited for the weekend and often lose focus at work. Instead of letting this happen to you, focus on working on your Monday-load early, and crossing some things off your upcoming to-do list on Friday. If you prepare for Monday early, your Monday won’t be so bad because your workload will be much less heavy. If you find that you don’t have time to complete extra tasks on Friday, at least make a to-do list that you’ll have ready for when you get to the office Monday morning. It’s true that being organized helps people feel more positive and productive. The first step to getting organized, is knowing what you have to do.

Relax on the Weekend

The weekend is the perfect time for people to relax and unplug. If you’re not getting that well-deserved break each week, of course you’ll be extra burnt out on Monday. Instead of working through your weekend and not allowing yourself a break, try to unplug and relax. Spend your weekend with family, resting, focusing on hobbies and other things that are fun for you. If you allow yourself a break and some time to recover from your busy week, you’ll be much more prepared to tackle another hectic week starting on Monday!

Get Enough Sleep

Adults typically need about 7-9 hours of sleep each night, however most people don’t get that. When you’re not sleeping enough, you are much more likely to have feelings of irritability, negativity and stress. Focus on going to bed earlier and getting up earlier so you have some time on Monday morning to exercise, read an inspirational book, or just prepare for the week ahead. This makes for a much more positive day, which leads to a positive week. Getting enough sleep is beneficial to people in every aspect of their lives, including beating the Monday blues.

Make a List of Goals & Things You’re Excited About

Having a list of goals that you want to tackle during the upcoming week, month and year helps with your focus and keeps you feeling driven. When you write down your goals, you are much more likely to achieve them and focus on working toward completing them. Writing down things you are excited about will make you feel more positive and in a much better mood. These can be things that are work-related and non-work-related. You may be looking forward to an upcoming goal that you’re about to reach at work, or increased sales, and those are both perfect things to write down on your “positivity-list.” You can also include things like a lunch you have planned with a friend or favorite co-worker, or leaving for lunch to watch your child’s soccer game. Whatever the case, focusing on the positive is always a good idea.

Following these tips will help you to increase your productivity during the week, by beating those pesky Monday blues! Focus on goals and positive things that make you feel stress-free, and you’ll be sure to have a Happy Monday!

For more insights on marketing strategy that actually works for small business, subscribe to the FreshLime Newsletter here. Connect with Jay Bean, Founder of FreshLime and Small Business Marketing Expert on LinkedIn and Twitter. And last of all, if any of these tips have helped you or if you have anything to add please comment below. We’d love to hear from you!