Ever feel a bit anxious on Sundays?

The anticipation of the week ahead.

The stress of a heavy to-do list.

The worry that one of the many plates you’re spinning will fall.

All of it casting a shadow over what is supposed to be precious time away from work.

You want to be a person with a healthy work-life balance, a person with boundaries. But, sure enough, every Sunday those thoughts creep in, stealing your attention.

For years, I felt the weight of the Sunday Night Blues (also called the Sunday Scaries). My brain was restless.

In my experience, dodging these thoughts, running away from them, squishing them down as far as you can, actually gives them more power.

I certainly wish I had the meditative abilities of Yoda or Master Oogway or any number of other warrior monks who can simply let go. But, I’m not wired that way.

For me, those thoughts are present and noisy and need to be wrestled into submission or they just pile up and create a looming sense of dread.

Eventually, I learned to set all of that angst aside – not by ignoring it, but by embracing it (strategically).

Here are two rituals I’ve adopted to help me create mental freedom from work over the weekend:

#1. On Friday afternoons I create a plan for the next week.

I place five sticky notes in a horizontal row on my desk, labeling each for the day of the week ahead (Monday through Friday) and listing 1, 2, and 3 down the side of each sticky note.

These represent placeholders for my top 3 priorities each day – the goal is to name what has to get done in advance.

I take time to:

• Check my calendar for big moments, meetings, events throughout the week, I name them on the sticky note, writing them down.
• Size the available work time, trying to move what I can to maximize extended periods of work time.
• Examine my goals and projects and their timelines, so I can anchor to my agenda and not the latest request I’ve received.
• Review notes from meetings, email, or my whiteboard from the last week.

After all of that, I place each sticky note on the appropriate day of the next week in my planner.

This has two benefits: (a) it means I go into each day next week with a plan, and (b) I can get it out of my head before the weekend, freeing my brain to relax.

#2. On Sunday mornings, I reflect and revisit my plan.

I grab my planner and journal on a few questions about the past week and the week ahead - for example:

• What went well? What didn’t?
• What might I need to start, stop, or continue?
• How will I recharge this week?
• What do I actually want to accomplish this week?
• What family activities and plans do we have this week?
• Have I accounted for logistics and school pickups?

With these reflections in mind, I revisit my sticky notes and make adjustments based on two more questions:

• What will I realistically have time for in light of my constraints? How can I set myself up for success?

Completing the Sunday ritual has two benefits: (a) it helps me think about the flow of the week, and (b) it helps me see the work in perspective.

These two rituals have been in place for several years now and I’ve been much, much happier and more relaxed going into Mondays.

The stress you might feel is a clue to tune in, don’t let it linger, treat it as a solvable problem.

You might not be ready for my very specific (crazy? 🤪) process as detailed above, but try these as a first step:

Take a moment to pause & reflect. What activity or ritual could help you shift your stress into something productive? What have you really tried? ​

Actions, experiments, & things to try next. Block an hour at the end of your week to list your projects or responsibilities. What’s on your mind? What’s the next step for each? What do you need to name, so you can set it aside for now?

📫 If this sparked an idea, or if you’re feeling stuck, I’d love to hear from you. You can reply directly to this email to share what you’re working on, ask a question, or suggest topics you’d like me to cover in future newsletters. I read every response.

Until next time,

Michael

Michael Schefman | 321 Liftoff​

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