During the weekdays, we engage in routine life and long for two blissful days during the weekends. Habitually, we tend to over-plan for the weekends and underachieve. By Sunday evenings, we tend to feel that our weekends just fizzle out.
We feel that our weekends are short-lived—that they are inadequate to accomplish everything that we want to. We wish we had relaxed more, completed more errands and spent more time with family and friends.
This article presents five habits that you could consider to make the most out of each weekend and feel more refreshed for a new week ahead.
Habit 1: Wake-up Early, Seize your Mornings
Try to avoid sleeping-in. When you wake-up late on Saturday and Sunday mornings, you tend to feel that almost half of these days are over. Moreover, sleeping-in during the weekends puts your sleep out of the weekday-rhythm and makes it difficult to wake-up promptly on Monday mornings.
Maintain your weekday wake-up times on Saturday and Sunday mornings as well. If you desire to “catch-up with sleep,” consider getting to bed earlier on Friday and Saturday nights or taking small naps on Saturday and Sunday mid-mornings. Try not to indulge yourself in a Sunday afternoon siesta—you will be able to go to bed early on Sunday night and prevent drowsiness on Monday afternoon.
Wake up early and seize the mornings. Spend some quiet time alone or with your family. Laze around, go for a brisk walk, visit the Farmers’ Market, sit in your porch with coffee and newspaper, and enjoy the serenity of the morning.
Habit 2: Shift Chores and Errands to Weekdays
Instead of spending your precious weekend on home projects—laundry, sorting, redecorating, cleaning—and errands, consider redistributing chores and errands among the weekdays. Say, for instance, you tend to spend two hours every weekend on chores, consider spending half an hour each weekday completing these tasks. Set your weekend aside for pleasure.
If you must work on particular home projects and run errands during the weekend, complete them on Saturday. This will enable you to unwind on Sunday. Instead, if you relax on Saturday, you will realize on Sunday morning that you will need to complete various household tasks by Sunday night—you will then hurry through Sunday and exhaust yourself by Sunday night.
Focus on a stress-free, relaxed, fun-filled Sunday with family and friends.
Habit 3: Plan and Prepare; Do Not Over-plan
Consult your family and friends and prepare an outline for your weekend in advance. Do not wait until the weekend to organize the weekend. On or before Thursday, go out shopping and collect all the resources necessary. By preparing in advance, you will be able to execute your plan as soon as your weekend starts instead of spending time wondering what to do.
Avoid any activity, e.g., catching up with work email, that is part of the weekday routine. Do consider, however, spending time working on important matters e.g., planning your investments, that you have been postponing. Vary your activities each week and avoid establishing a routine for your weekends—routines are for weekdays.
Habit 4: Improvise and Engage in Life’s Little Pleasures
“The happiness of too many days is often destroyed by trying to accomplish too much in one day. We would do well to follow a common rule for our daily lives – Do Less and Do It Better.”
— Dale E. Turner
As you plan your activities for the weekend, be realistic in what you can achieve. Do not over-plan. Try to prioritize your activities. Rushing around can easily exhaust you.
Allow for spontaneity and improvise your weekends. Engage in life’s little pleasures: spend time outdoors, go for a walk, hike, take a bicycle ride, or tend to your garden. Talk to friends and family you have not been in touch for a while, read magazines and books, or look at old pictures. Or, pursue a hobby, go to the beach, visit a museum, attend a concert, or do anything else that is fun for you and your loved ones.
Habit 5: Reflect and Appreciate
On Sunday evenings, reflect on everything you did during the weekend and appreciate having a good time with family and friends.
Do not fret if you did not complete everything you had planned. There is always another weekend coming-up.
Concluding Thoughts
The key to making your weekend feel longer and having a relaxing time is to reorganize your plans and freeing-up time for your favourite, pleasurable activities during the weekend. By prioritizing, improvising and staying on top of things you can arrive at the end of your weekend contented and full of energy for the fresh week ahead.