SUMMARY POINTS
By the time Friday night rolls around, you’re so fucking drained from the week that all you do is collapse, decompress and disconnect from work to leave all the bullshit behind.
On some rare occasions, you’ll muster up the energy to go out for the night, but most of the time, you’re too damn tired to do much of anything except order take out for dinner.
Then, it’s Saturday.
Your day is filled with the usual chores and tasks, including food shopping, kids events, random housework, etc. And when things are hectic, some of these tasks spill over into Sunday which chews up what little free time you had to begin with.
The weekends feel so damn short with almost little to no me-time for true relaxation.
It seems like the weekend just flies by and then, you’re sitting at home on a Sunday evening just dreading the fact that you’re gonna have to get up in several hours and start the bullshit all over again.
And it’s this Sunday night anxiety that always fucking ruins the end of your weekend.
Without fail, you can’t stop the worries from creeping into your mind. It’s everything from the stressful commute to having to deal with your asshole boss, overlapping project deadlines and whatever else that will probably get dropped in your lap.
The anxiety is enough that it actually screws up your sleep on Sunday night, which is the night that you really need to get a good solid sleep.
It’s time to stop the anxiety.
It’s time to reclaim your entire weekend, including all of Sunday.
On some rare occasions, you’ll muster up the energy to go out for the night, but most of the time, you’re too damn tired to do much of anything except order take out for dinner.
Then, it’s Saturday.
Your day is filled with the usual chores and tasks, including food shopping, kids events, random housework, etc. And when things are hectic, some of these tasks spill over into Sunday which chews up what little free time you had to begin with.
The weekends feel so damn short with almost little to no me-time for true relaxation.
It seems like the weekend just flies by and then, you’re sitting at home on a Sunday evening just dreading the fact that you’re gonna have to get up in several hours and start the bullshit all over again.
And it’s this Sunday night anxiety that always fucking ruins the end of your weekend.
Without fail, you can’t stop the worries from creeping into your mind. It’s everything from the stressful commute to having to deal with your asshole boss, overlapping project deadlines and whatever else that will probably get dropped in your lap.
The anxiety is enough that it actually screws up your sleep on Sunday night, which is the night that you really need to get a good solid sleep.
It’s time to stop the anxiety.
It’s time to reclaim your entire weekend, including all of Sunday.
Why You Get Sunday Night Anxiety
Throughout human evolution, the mind has fine-tuned its ability to not only spot danger, but also predict the possibility of it too. It’s a survival mechanism that has allowed the human race to avoid getting chomped by wild animals and to stay away from other life-threatening situations.
This survival mechanism served us well during evolution and expansion, but as humans got smarter and better about living life, this mental tool never really adapted beyond its ancestral roots.
In today’s modern world, humans don’t have to worry about getting eaten by saber-toothed tigers or trampled on by a herd of woolly mammoths. And yet, the original fundamental survival mechanism still continues to operate as if those threats still exist.
The difference is that now instead of tigers and mammoths, it’s your bitch boss or the multitude of fires at work that you’re gonna have to deal with. These are all very real potential threats that your mind sees as dangers to your life, even though we know they’ll never kill us.
So, your mind is gonna do what it does best and that’s to get you ready for these threats before they occur, even though they may not even materialize. It does this by amping up your fear and anxiety so that you’re ready to defend yourself.
And, it typically does this when the potential of the threat is looming closer and closer.
Guess when that happens?
Yup, Sunday night.
This is when your thoughts of job anxieties, toxic work environments, overflowing email inboxes, arguments with coworkers, overwhelming workloads, etc. all start popping up in your head.
Usually, it’s one big thing that triggers it all. Then, your mind starts pulling in all sorts of other bullshit. And before you know it, it’s snowballed into a gigantic chaotic mess in your mind.
It’s at this point you get overwhelmed AF and your Sunday evening is completely derailed.
This survival mechanism served us well during evolution and expansion, but as humans got smarter and better about living life, this mental tool never really adapted beyond its ancestral roots.
In today’s modern world, humans don’t have to worry about getting eaten by saber-toothed tigers or trampled on by a herd of woolly mammoths. And yet, the original fundamental survival mechanism still continues to operate as if those threats still exist.
The difference is that now instead of tigers and mammoths, it’s your bitch boss or the multitude of fires at work that you’re gonna have to deal with. These are all very real potential threats that your mind sees as dangers to your life, even though we know they’ll never kill us.
So, your mind is gonna do what it does best and that’s to get you ready for these threats before they occur, even though they may not even materialize. It does this by amping up your fear and anxiety so that you’re ready to defend yourself.
And, it typically does this when the potential of the threat is looming closer and closer.
Guess when that happens?
Yup, Sunday night.
This is when your thoughts of job anxieties, toxic work environments, overflowing email inboxes, arguments with coworkers, overwhelming workloads, etc. all start popping up in your head.
Usually, it’s one big thing that triggers it all. Then, your mind starts pulling in all sorts of other bullshit. And before you know it, it’s snowballed into a gigantic chaotic mess in your mind.
It’s at this point you get overwhelmed AF and your Sunday evening is completely derailed.
How To Stop Sunday Evening Scaries
There’s no way to permanently change your mind’s default programming logic from fear-based and negativity-biased settings. It's part of our mental source code.
And besides, there are legit times where we need those kinds of functions. It’s just that we don’t need them all the time. And more specifically, we don’t need them on Sunday nights when we’re just chillin’ at home.
So, what you can do is press the pause button on the program every now and then so that you can be in a more normal state of mind. This is part of the broader scope of managing work stress so that you don’t burn out.
With that said, here are a few tactics that you can use to banish those Sunday night scaries.
And besides, there are legit times where we need those kinds of functions. It’s just that we don’t need them all the time. And more specifically, we don’t need them on Sunday nights when we’re just chillin’ at home.
So, what you can do is press the pause button on the program every now and then so that you can be in a more normal state of mind. This is part of the broader scope of managing work stress so that you don’t burn out.
With that said, here are a few tactics that you can use to banish those Sunday night scaries.
1) Ask Your Mind, “Is This Useful?”
This is an awesome mind hack that’s powerful enough to banish even the most worrisome thoughts.
Your mind is like another person in your head. Sometimes, it can be a real fucking pain-in-the-ass. During these instances, you gotta quiet the asshole in your head so that you can relax.
Here’s the mental hack - when your mind is berating you about work, ask your mind, “Is this useful?”
Those three little words are so powerful and unavoidably direct that your mind can’t fight it. It also can’t dispute the fact that the answer can only be “no” because that’s the undeniable truth.
This short video clip really drives the point home.
VIDEO: Simple Trick To Stop Negative Thoughts
YOUTUBE: Scott Ste Marie
LENGTH: 4:55
Your mind is like another person in your head. Sometimes, it can be a real fucking pain-in-the-ass. During these instances, you gotta quiet the asshole in your head so that you can relax.
Here’s the mental hack - when your mind is berating you about work, ask your mind, “Is this useful?”
Those three little words are so powerful and unavoidably direct that your mind can’t fight it. It also can’t dispute the fact that the answer can only be “no” because that’s the undeniable truth.
This short video clip really drives the point home.
VIDEO: Simple Trick To Stop Negative Thoughts
YOUTUBE: Scott Ste Marie
LENGTH: 4:55
The reason why this mental hack works so well is that it makes your mind vulnerable to the truth of the matter. And that truth is thinking and/or worrying about work isn’t going to solve anything right now.
This is an argument that your mind can’t win, ever. You’ll always have the upper hand here.
This is an argument that your mind can’t win, ever. You’ll always have the upper hand here.
2) Write It Down Then Let That Shit Go
Sometimes your mind needs to know that you know about whatever it's thinking about. It’s a lot like a 5-year old that just won’t stop nagging you until you give in.
So, in order to shut up your mind, you need to acknowledge whatever it is that’s bugging it. This way, your mind will stop the endless stream of anxious thoughts.
One of the best ways to do this is to simply write down the stuff that’s worrying you.
Grab a sheet of paper and just start making a list of the things that are stressing you out. These could be priority tasks at work, planned reorgs or layoffs, upcoming projects, shitty boss behavior, feeling stuck in your job or any number of things.
Whatever it is, just write it down on the list and put that list in your work bag or by your desk, if you’re working pantless from home.
Doing this does one very important thing. It allows your mind to “let that shit go” for the night. And, it will because you’ve given it the assurance that it’ll be addressed tomorrow when you get to work.
Alternatively, you can make a digital list on your phone too. However, just know that it’s not as impactful as using pen and paper. There’s a stronger feeling of substance, importance and commitment when you use physical paper. So, if you can, stick with using paper.
So, in order to shut up your mind, you need to acknowledge whatever it is that’s bugging it. This way, your mind will stop the endless stream of anxious thoughts.
One of the best ways to do this is to simply write down the stuff that’s worrying you.
Grab a sheet of paper and just start making a list of the things that are stressing you out. These could be priority tasks at work, planned reorgs or layoffs, upcoming projects, shitty boss behavior, feeling stuck in your job or any number of things.
Whatever it is, just write it down on the list and put that list in your work bag or by your desk, if you’re working pantless from home.
Doing this does one very important thing. It allows your mind to “let that shit go” for the night. And, it will because you’ve given it the assurance that it’ll be addressed tomorrow when you get to work.
Alternatively, you can make a digital list on your phone too. However, just know that it’s not as impactful as using pen and paper. There’s a stronger feeling of substance, importance and commitment when you use physical paper. So, if you can, stick with using paper.
3) Meditate To Focus On The Here & Now
Another great way to stop your mind from projecting into future worries and anxieties is to “be present” in the here and now.
This is a helluva lot easier to say than to actually do. It’s definitely a challenge for sure. The reason again is because of our mind’s default programming of thinking about future threats.
One method that is often used by millions of people to calm a racing mind is to meditate. Yes, meditation is a fantastic way to settle your mind and stop stressing about shit that hasn’t happened yet.
However, it’s not easy to just empty your mind of all thoughts. In fact, it’s really fucking hard.
Ever try to not think about anything?
It’s impossible.
Buddhist monks can do this like turning on a light switch but none of us are practicing monks. We’re all just corporate slaves.
Our minds need something to latch onto. It can’t think about nothing. It needs something to think about. But that something can’t be anything negative or anything that might lead your mind back to work stressors.
The one thing that we can use as bait for our mind is our breathing. By using breathing as a focal point, we can give our minds something simple to latch onto.
And the great thing about using our breath as a mental target is that it keeps you in the present moment. You can’t breathe in the past or the future. You can only breathe in the present.
When your mind focuses on the sensations of inhaling and exhaling, it’s slowly ignoring all the other bullshit. When you’re starting out, your mind’s focus will go back and forth between paying attention to your breath and other distractions.
The best thing to do is to start out small, like really small, with one-minute meditations. You want to set yourself up for quick wins so that you can celebrate small victories and keep things going.
This is a helluva lot easier to say than to actually do. It’s definitely a challenge for sure. The reason again is because of our mind’s default programming of thinking about future threats.
One method that is often used by millions of people to calm a racing mind is to meditate. Yes, meditation is a fantastic way to settle your mind and stop stressing about shit that hasn’t happened yet.
However, it’s not easy to just empty your mind of all thoughts. In fact, it’s really fucking hard.
Ever try to not think about anything?
It’s impossible.
Buddhist monks can do this like turning on a light switch but none of us are practicing monks. We’re all just corporate slaves.
Our minds need something to latch onto. It can’t think about nothing. It needs something to think about. But that something can’t be anything negative or anything that might lead your mind back to work stressors.
The one thing that we can use as bait for our mind is our breathing. By using breathing as a focal point, we can give our minds something simple to latch onto.
And the great thing about using our breath as a mental target is that it keeps you in the present moment. You can’t breathe in the past or the future. You can only breathe in the present.
When your mind focuses on the sensations of inhaling and exhaling, it’s slowly ignoring all the other bullshit. When you’re starting out, your mind’s focus will go back and forth between paying attention to your breath and other distractions.
The best thing to do is to start out small, like really small, with one-minute meditations. You want to set yourself up for quick wins so that you can celebrate small victories and keep things going.
4) Get Nostalgic & Boost Happiness
If meditating isn’t up your alley, then there are other ways to redirect your mind’s attention to other better and happier things.
If you have an old photo album, and we’re talking about real photo albums with film photos, not the digital ones on your phone or online, then this is a great way to bring back some awesome feeling nostalgic memories.
The emotions and feelings of nostalgia are a very powerful mental force that can overcome almost any other negative state of mind and provide some great boosts of feel-good hormones.
According to this study, people who go through nostalgic experiences have an increase in positive emotions, self-esteem, well-being and happiness. It’s no surprise really.
At the most fundamental level of existence, we all need a sense of belonging and a place in life. Nostalgic experiences give us exactly that.
So, if you can flip through an old photo album and mentally re-live those great moments, you’ll easily redirect your mind’s focus to the real meaningful events in life, not the insignificant bullshit of office life.
If you can’t easily get to your old family albums, then jump into your digital photo archives and start scrolling through some of your favorite events from the past.
Maybe, even pair this up with a nice glass of wine, an ice-cold beer or more simply a cup of cofftea. By bundling the positive physical satisfaction of drinking your fav beverage with the mental aspect of flipping through happy events from the past, you’ll be doubling up on the goodness.
Sunday scaries don’t stand a chance here.
If you have an old photo album, and we’re talking about real photo albums with film photos, not the digital ones on your phone or online, then this is a great way to bring back some awesome feeling nostalgic memories.
The emotions and feelings of nostalgia are a very powerful mental force that can overcome almost any other negative state of mind and provide some great boosts of feel-good hormones.
According to this study, people who go through nostalgic experiences have an increase in positive emotions, self-esteem, well-being and happiness. It’s no surprise really.
At the most fundamental level of existence, we all need a sense of belonging and a place in life. Nostalgic experiences give us exactly that.
So, if you can flip through an old photo album and mentally re-live those great moments, you’ll easily redirect your mind’s focus to the real meaningful events in life, not the insignificant bullshit of office life.
If you can’t easily get to your old family albums, then jump into your digital photo archives and start scrolling through some of your favorite events from the past.
Maybe, even pair this up with a nice glass of wine, an ice-cold beer or more simply a cup of cofftea. By bundling the positive physical satisfaction of drinking your fav beverage with the mental aspect of flipping through happy events from the past, you’ll be doubling up on the goodness.
Sunday scaries don’t stand a chance here.
5) Do Your Most Fav Activity
Ever notice that when you’re doing your favorite activity that time just flies by?
You lose the sense of time and you’re just in the moment of doing that thing. You’re not thinking of anything else. You’re thoroughly enjoying yourself.
Your mind isn’t thinking about what you need to do later on that day and much less about what is going to happen next week.
This is because you’re in the zone with your favorite hobby or activity. Nothing else matters at this very moment and you’re loving every second of it.
Kids go through this all the time when they’re coloring. They’re in a totally different world all to themselves and completely oblivious to what’s actually happening around them.
We, as adults, can use this same tactic to kick out all of those pesky Sunday scaries from our minds.
When you know that your Sunday scaries always happen at a particular time or part of the day, create an over-ruling schedule conflict by doing your fav thing at that time.
The added bonus here is that you’ll be giving yourself that much needed me-time you deserve. And, if you plan it out so that you’re not rushed, you can make your weekends feel longer too.
So, line up your obsessive hobby or passion project and get into it.
You lose the sense of time and you’re just in the moment of doing that thing. You’re not thinking of anything else. You’re thoroughly enjoying yourself.
Your mind isn’t thinking about what you need to do later on that day and much less about what is going to happen next week.
This is because you’re in the zone with your favorite hobby or activity. Nothing else matters at this very moment and you’re loving every second of it.
Kids go through this all the time when they’re coloring. They’re in a totally different world all to themselves and completely oblivious to what’s actually happening around them.
We, as adults, can use this same tactic to kick out all of those pesky Sunday scaries from our minds.
When you know that your Sunday scaries always happen at a particular time or part of the day, create an over-ruling schedule conflict by doing your fav thing at that time.
The added bonus here is that you’ll be giving yourself that much needed me-time you deserve. And, if you plan it out so that you’re not rushed, you can make your weekends feel longer too.
So, line up your obsessive hobby or passion project and get into it.
Stop Sunday Night Anxieties For Good
Weekends will always feel short-lived. So, it’s important that you don’t short-change it even further by ruminating about work.
When you devote your entire Sunday to yourself and not think about work, you’re doing a huge favor to your mental health and well-being. You’ll be setting yourself up for a better start to the week. In essence, you’ll make Mondays suck way less.
There are only so many hours on Sunday for you to get all of your miscellaneous shit done and still have time left over for yourself to have fun and relax.
Why would you waste those precious last few hours getting stressed out about work?
This is your time to relax and recover.
It’s your time to recharge your batteries.
It’s YOUR time, not the company’s.
Make the most of your Sundays.
Feel Better,
[Cubicle|Therapy]
When you devote your entire Sunday to yourself and not think about work, you’re doing a huge favor to your mental health and well-being. You’ll be setting yourself up for a better start to the week. In essence, you’ll make Mondays suck way less.
There are only so many hours on Sunday for you to get all of your miscellaneous shit done and still have time left over for yourself to have fun and relax.
Why would you waste those precious last few hours getting stressed out about work?
This is your time to relax and recover.
It’s your time to recharge your batteries.
It’s YOUR time, not the company’s.
Make the most of your Sundays.
Feel Better,
[Cubicle|Therapy]