Do you ever get to Sunday night and wonder where the weekend went? You spend all week working hard and want to enjoy those two days of leisure; it comes, you blink, it’s over. The weekend, we all look forward to it, but it often seems to flash by.
With the endless whirlwind of cleaning, hangovers (you can’t fool us!), grocery shopping, gym classes and more family commitments, it can feel like the weekend was never really yours to begin with.
Then you have the realisation that Monday is tomorrow, and your great ambitions for that perfect weekend have slipped through your fingers… again.
You spend your week at work planning ahead, maximising your time and making sure you achieve all of your goals, so why don’t we do this for our weekend? There are many easy changes you can make to your weekly and weekend routines to ensure that you get the most of your free time.
Here’s how to claim your weekend back:
Don’t save your chores for the weekend
After a busy day at work, we know you don’t want to deal with the laundry or any other domestic task. Most of us like to put our feet up in front of the TV in recovery, favouring the weekends to get all of those annoying chores out of the way. But, think about it for a second: the weekend is only two days long, and the working week is five days long. So, why cram all of your chores into the time when you’re supposed to be doing what you want?
These humdrum tasks aren’t so daunting when you stagger them, so try this; clean the bathroom on Monday, load the washing machine on Wednesday, hoover the house on Thursday, and order your groceries online. With your chores out of the way, come Saturday and Sunday you’ll have more time for you.
Make plans
Now, don’t think for one second that we don’t appreciate the all-healing powers of the occasional epic lie-in, or that we’re trying to rain on your ‘duvet day’ parade. Yes, every now and then we all certainly deserve a lazy day, but try to leave finding your inner peace until Sunday night so you can be prepared for a positive week ahead.
Don’t laze every weekend away, otherwise ‘wasted weekend regret’ will be commonplace on Sunday evening. Make plans that will get you up and out, and stick to them. Do something active, meet up with family or friends, cook up a storm in the kitchen – find something fun that stops you assuming the role of couch potato for the day.
Keeping busy doing things you enjoy will also boost your mood and make you feel like you didn’t waste your weekend, meaning you will approach Monday morning feeling fulfilled and raring to go.
Do something different
Having the same old weekend routine can leave you feeling glum when you look back on what you achieved. (Especially if your usual Friday pub crawl leaves you hiding under your duvet whilst your hangover steals another precious Saturday.)
Shake things up: go somewhere new, meet new people, try new things. It needn’t cost the world, or take up too much time. It could be something as simple as trying a new restaurant, going for a walk in the countryside or spending the day somewhere you’ve never visited before.
If the opportunity arises, go away for the weekend. Whether that’s for a weekend of mountaineering, a stay in a boutique B&B or simply visiting an old friend, the change of scenery will be refreshing and break up the monotony.
Discovering a new love will make you feel like you accomplished something with your weekend, and who would blame you for feeling a little smug about it once you’re back in the office?
Take the stress out of Monday
“I’ll do it on Monday.” – The Friday afternoon mantra.
Watching the clock count down those last couple of hours is not a productive use of your Friday. It’s been a long week and you can’t wait for the weekend to start, which is totally understandable. However, think about using this time more wisely.
Monday will feel daunting if you’ve left yourself things to deal with after the weekend. Therefore, on Friday afternoon, try to get as much done as you possibly can – trust us, ‘Monday You’ will thank you for it!
Use your Sunday night to get prepared for a motivated Monday: get your clothes, lunch, gym kit and anything else you might need ready in advance. That way, you’ll know you’re in for a smooth ride on Monday morning (and you’ll feel much less guilty about pressing the snooze button).
Keep yourself going
With a busy working week ahead you may not have time to think about your weekend to come. So whilst settling down on Sunday night start thinking about what you want out of your next two-day break.
Give yourself something to keep you motivated and focused throughout your week. You won’t mourn the loss of another weekend if you have plans to break up the week and to keep you motivated.
Put it in your phone/calendar/diary so you can look forward to your plans – not long now!
As you can see, there are so many simple ways to look forward and make the most of your weekend.
If you start the working week feeling refreshed and happy from a brilliant weekend, you might find achieving your goals at work that little bit easier.
Enjoy!
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