Are You Practicing 'Bare Minimum Mondays'?
‘Mondays’ are historically the start of the traditional work week and a signal for big things to come in the week ahead. Historically the start of ‘Mondays’ normally meant you as a worker were going to sit through meeting after meeting, discuss new projects and ideas with your co-workers, touch base with your manager, work on tedium tasks, and set a side time to figure out the shape of how the rest of the week that would unfold.
Generally, ‘Mondays’ bring up a lot of emotions for people. Some people absolutely love ‘Mondays’. These are the people who approach each Monday with vigor and a fresh face, ready to tackle all the opportunities ahead. These are work optimists, and these people tend to actually like their jobs or enjoy their job enough enough to keep plugging away. Then there is the average person. The average person does not favor ‘Mondays’. They look at the day as nothing special or regard it with dread. They view ‘Mondays’ as an interruption to a great weekend. They approach ‘Mondays’ with annoyance. They hate that they have to go into the work week where they have to revert back to their professional selves and put on their performance for work, their boss, clients, and co-workers.
And then, of course, there are the people who could avoid ‘Mondays’ at all costs and who go into ‘Mondays’ kicking and screaming. They are the people who hate ‘Mondays’ with a passion, and would rather it be any day of the week but Monday. Approach these individuals with coffee and cookies. With the rise of remote work, ‘Mondays’ have been getting a slightly better rep. For some, remote work makes ‘Mondays’ easier because you don’t have to go to the office and have chitchat and deal with others face-to-face. It has led to more people easing into the workweek instead of stretching themselves to be as productive as possible from the second they start the workweek.
So what are Bare Minimum Mondays to begin with?
The trend of ‘Bare Minimum Mondays’ is not new even though the terminology may be. ‘Bare Minimum Mondays’ are supposed to be the antidote to ‘Sunday Scaries.’ This refers to the malaise of having a weekend that is too short and having to rush back into the workweek. The ‘Sunday Scaries’ can also be paralyzing for some people. The thought of having to go into an office, do tedious work, go to long meetings, and talk with so-so co-workers can be enough to make people want to skip the whole workweek together. With the increasing amount of burnout, Sunday is the ‘go-to-day’ to chill and just veg out. However, for many others, Sunday has turned into a ‘pseudo-workday’ as many individuals have to balance answering work emails, and admin tasks while also completing household and personal chores. Without any room for rest, it can all turn into so much.
People, especially young workers, are looking for alternatives and having a way to ease into the workweek can be a game-changer. Ergo, ‘Bare Minimum Mondays.’ Essentially, this trend calls for you to do the ‘Bare Minimum’, or ease your way into the work week. It is supposed to prevent burnout because you don’t hit the ground running on ‘Mondays,’ but instead have a gentle ramp up as you recover from a busy weekend or just get more time to yourself to rest, relax, and recharge. And this is super important, especially for young professionals who are having to balance work, life, school, side hustles, and more as they navigate a turbulent economy while also caring for themselves and those around them. Rest and recharge seem to be at an all-time low where people are trying to meet economic demands of fighting inflation, putting food on the table, and paying their rent on time each and every month. So any trend that helps get a little bit more done in the day is a trend that is welcomed by all.
So how do you participate in ‘Bare Minimum Mondays’? Well, there are a lot of different ways. First, you can say what you want your ‘Mondays’ to look like. You have to figure out what rest and relaxation look like to you and how you want to incorporate them into your day. This might mean using ‘Mondays’ as a day to do your light work and your admin tasks. It could be a day for emailing and scheduling catch-ups and check-ins. It could be a day where you spend time on low-effort activities like clearing out slack messages or sketching an outline for the start of a project. It can be a day where you spend time drafting articles, doing summaries, doing light research on deep topics, or generating ideas for the week ahead. Whatever it is that you decide to do, it is important to tackle it at your own pace and go at it slowly and deliberately.
Should you tell your boss you are practicing Bare Minimum Mondays?
This is something that has people divided. It depends. If you feel like your overall productivity won’t be impacted and you can trust your boss, I don’t see why not. But most people do not have that relationship with their boss, and it is easy to see why they wouldn’t divulge any further on how they are choosing to personally take care of themselves. Many bosses can be antagonistic if they feel like you are not ‘working hard enough’ or giving it all to your job. But it is all perception at the end of the day. Your boss and your co-workers do not inhabit your body or your mind, and they cannot unequivocally assess and say that you are not giving your all just by looking at a small data point or small measure of output.
For some, having the day ‘off’ for light work can actually increase productivity. Having a light work day can leave you with the space and time to gain clarity and just think. It can actually help you develop a road map for the week and fuel your productivity later in the week. For some, hitting the ground running is imperative. If you have an intensive, highly demanding physical or mental job, there might be no way around it. It is important to find out where you fall, even if it is in the middle of both viewpoints. Additionally, if you do not like the sound of ‘Bare Minimum’ because it gives you an ick or you are particularly attached to your identity as a productive workerbee—because many of us are—there is no shame in that. Then think of redefining the name and the name for you. You can call it ‘Low-Stress Mondays,’ ‘Ramp-Up Mondays," or ‘Ease-In Mondays.’
The Fight For Mondays
Most employers understand and know that their employees do not have the best relationship with ‘Mondays.’ In the age of remote work, many employers are giving their employees ‘Mondays’ as a rest day or work-from-home day. In fact, the busiest days in the office for hybrid workers are Tuesdays–Thursdays, which suggests that ‘Mondays’ and ‘Fridays’ are being used for ramping up and winding down time. However, not everyone likes that, and many CEOs and executives have issued a call for workers to return to the office on ‘Mondays’. John Neal, a top executive of an insurance company, has repeatedly stated, "We need to get Monday back." In the fight for remote work and a four-day work week, going to work in an office on a Monday has become a symbol of returning to how things used to be vs. what the future of work might end up looking like.
The question at the heart of everything is: ‘Should we really be aiming to be productive in every working minute of every working day?’
Who Gets To Participate In Bare Minimum Mondays?
Still, there is a debate on who can really practice ‘Slow Mondays’ in the first place. Most workers, especially if you are a service worker or work out in the field, cannot have any ‘Bare Minimum’ work days. Their presence, attention, and participation in their job are required in order for things to function. Some say that ‘Bare Minimum Mondays’ are a perk that is only reserved for white-collar tech workers or the like. If a blue-collar worker or service worker started the work week with minimal work effort or labor output then they would be at risk of losing their job or being fired on the spot. Additionally, service providers like therapists have to show up to their job each and every day because the idea of not showing up for your client can be detrimental to them and their business.
But the idea is not just about taking a day off; it really represents a shift in mind and a shift in how we view work. Even if you are not able to alter your actual work schedule or work duties, it may be a good practice to find a way to treat yourself on ‘Mondays,’ or find any way possible to make the start of the work week more bearable for you and your life. This could be waking up early, sitting at your table, drinking coffee, and catching up on news or family time before heading on to work. It can mean buying yourself a treat on the way to work or after work. Whatever it is, the goal is to make Mondays more bearable and to set yourself up for success for the rest of the work week.
Could Bare Minimum Mondays be a cry for help or a symptom of something more?
It might be a signal that something more is at play in the event that you feel the ‘Sunday Scaries’ is an every week occurrence, or if you are having a hard time getting through any Monday at your job. It is possible that it is a signal that a job change or significant change of routine is needed. If you feel chronically burned out each and every Monday, you have to ask yourself if it's time to start making an exit plan from your job and what that would look like if possible. It might be worth it to talk to a career coach or a neutral third party if needed. For some, it might just mean that it is time for a small work sabbatical or vacation to rest and recharge. ‘Mondays’ are historically hard, but they should not be so difficult that you cannot or won’t get out of bed each and every week. And yeah, if you are that checked out of work, you have to ask yourself why and what your next steps are.
Your personal productivity and health will stall if you do not take care of yourself. At the end of the day, work should not overtake your life so much that you can’t function. And it is important to know that you can and should reclaim your time as much as possible. Ultimately, ‘Bare Minimum Mondays’ are just the start of the conversation. We should aim to work to live, not live to work, and always remember that rest should be at the center of it.