Monday, 2/28/22: Talking about managing micro stressors and ways to help out

Happy Monday!

It’s a new week, which means it’s time for your next Monday motivation newsletter.

Read on below for some steps to a happier Monday, a short story and a roundup of positive thoughts to get your week started.

Three Steps to a Happier Monday

Each newsletter starts with three prompts to inspire gratitude and simple intention setting. Take a moment and jot down answers to these three questions. To give an example, I share my answers below.  

Step 1: What are three things I appreciated from the weekend? 

Step 2: What is one thing I can be excited about today?

Step 3: What is my intention for this week? 

GRATITUDE: From my weekend, I’m thankful for seeing friends Friday, Saturday errands downtown and my long run on Sunday. 

TODAY: I have something relaxing planned for after work today, so I’m most excited for that. 

INTENTION: My intention this week is to spend time planning out March. Can’t believe it is the last day of February!    

Okay, your turn! And if you want to share your three steps, I am all ears. 🙂

Meaningful Musings: Broken Glasses and Pebbles in Our Shoes

Long ago, I heard an analogy that resonated with me:
 
Imagine it’s the end of your Monday and you walk into the kitchen to get some water. It’s been a good day. You slept well, the sun was out, and things went according to plan at work. You open a cabinet and the glass you were going to grab falls onto the floor and shatters. You shrug and go get the broom to clean it up. It was a cheap glass anyway and you have plenty of others, no big deal.
 
Now, imagine the same situation, but your Monday has been filled with stressors. Maybe you didn’t sleep well or got stuck in traffic or had a workday filled with fire drills or just had an aggravating encounter with someone. You go into the kitchen to get some water. When you open the cabinet and the glass falls and shatters, you burst into tears, upset about the cheap glass and confident this day could not get any worse.
 
Same situation, different reactions.
 
When I heard this analogy, I could instantly think of times when I’ve gotten upset over a cheap broken glass. Not in the literal sense of an actual broken glass, but in the sense of something small being the last straw. The impetus that pushes me over the edge.
 
This analogy helped me to see those situations in a new light. I wasn’t overreacting to something small, but rather reflecting the culmination of stressors built up inside me. If only I could back in time and apologize to the people who were unfortunately on the receiving end of my last-straw moment or help myself understand that instead of wasting energy upset about the broken cheap glass, I should instead take a step back to look at what other stressors contributed to this moment.
 
As Maya Angelou famously wrote, “Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.”
 
I can’t go back to past moments, but I can apply this knowledge moving forward. And recently, I’ve felt proud of myself because I feel like I have. 
 
I wanted to share this analogy this morning because I’ve been thinking about it often these past couple weeks. I’m in the midst of a stressful, time-intensive project at work. I’m learning a ton and getting to work with some incredible people, but the days are taxing. More than once, I’ve teetered close to upset-over-broken-glass territory. And more than once, I’ve crossed the threshold. But – in my opinion – considerably less than other stressful times in the past.
 
The difference? I think I’m being more mindful of the smaller stressors I encounter and finding ways to alleviate them.
 
I recently checked this book out of the library after hearing the author, Dr. Samantha Boardman, interviewed in this podcast episode.
 
In the first chapter she writes, “the hassles of day-to-day living – the annoying, anxiety-provoking and frustrating experiences that are embedded into everyday life – are a significant source of stress. Seemingly minor occurrences – an argument with a child or partner, an unexpected work deadline, arriving late for an appointment, missing a train, or dealing with a malfunctioning computer – all contribute.”
 
She goes on, “We know it’s absurd to allow something minor to ruin a minute, let alone a day. We try to dismiss these daily irritations as irrelevant or as the ‘first-world problems’ they are. We tell ourselves that they don’t matter I the long run. But they do.”  
 
As Muhammed Ali once said, “It isn’t the mountains ahead to climb that wear you out; it’s the pebble in your shoe.”
 
Especially at a time when there are really harrowing events happening in our world – like what’s happening in Ukraine – things like a cheap broken glass or pebbles feel small and minute. I mean, they are quite small in comparison to virulent life events. But I don’t think that means they are insignificant.
 
What the analogy helped me understand is that a day filled with pebbles and broken glasses can trigger a downward spiral, making us more irritable and argumentative and reactionary. And while there’s a lot out of our control, there are some pebbles and broken glasses we can control.
 
I think a great place to start is with today, your Monday. As you go throughout your day, try to make a list of things that frustrate you. Not everything will be an easy solve, but things like a messy workspace, a jammed drawer, an everyday object that’s out of reach feel like things that could be alleviated, potentially saving you from downward spiral and conserving your energy for the bigger things that need your attention and tenacity.

I think a lot of the times we put off making any kind of improvements because we think a grandiose, expensive or time-consuming endeavor is required. But maybe in this thought process we are overlooking the possibility of the improvements that could come from fewer pebbles and broken glasses.

The reality is that there’s always going to be pebbles and broken glass woven throughout our days, but here’s to hopefully finding ways to have fewer of them – and as a result fewer downward spirals – in our Mondays to come.
 
Hope you have a great week!

On My Monday Radar

Sometimes we just aren’t ready to jump into our Monday to-do list right away. In case you want some content to procrastinate with, here is a roundup of a few positive things on my radar:  

• Nine meaningful ways to help Ukraine. Noticeably absent (for the most part) from the above, but on my mind – these are heavy times. Appreciated the comprehensive list this article this offered if you are looking for a way to help this situation from afar. Heartbreaking. 
• Loved this podcast episode with author Ann Patchett. Tough transition, but if you are looking for a respite and loved the book The Dutch House as much as I did, listen to this podcast episode with Ann Patchett right now!! I loved it and loved hearing Ann talk about the book and its characters. Still cannot get over that she wrote an entirely different, finished draft of this book, and tossed the whole thing when she decided it was no good. What!!!
• Listening to that episode led me to reading this interview of Reese Witherspoon that Ann wrote for Vanity Fair. Ann mentioned an anecdote from the interview in the podcast episode, so after listening, I found myself tracking it down. A great read! Plus, they both offer a lot of books recs 😉
• I finished this book on Saturday and enjoyed it. I joked that after Verity, I needed a break from thrillers, but then I accidentally read another last week? The Golden Couple by author duo Greer Hendricks & Sarah Pekkanen was my Book of the Month pick for February – it actually doesn’t even come out until next week (a BOTM perk!), but I’d recommend if you are looking for something easy-to-read with a plot that gets more and more twisty as the story unfolds. I thought it was smart and clever. Definitely a great spring break/vacation read.
• Look at these cute summer sandals from Target! Last summer so many of my friends donned these beautiful Dolce Vita sandals and I recently saw that Target makes a version that looks very similar!! I have two upcoming weddings to attend, so I ordered a pair to try. Love a good dupe. 

That’s all for today! I hope you found something in today’s newsletter that sparked motivation, made you smile or inspired a positive Monday thought. Don’t underestimate the power of starting small… a fulfilling week starts with just one fulfilling day. You’ve got this! 

Let’s make it a great Monday!
Megan