For those of us in the U.S. who have to work today -- a federal holiday commemorating the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr. -- getting out of bed was especially difficult. But don't despair! Rather than dwelling on the start of a new week as a bad thing, think of it as a fresh opportunity to do more of the things you want to do over the next couple of days. Maybe you're dead set on losing weight and welcome the chance to hit the gym early in the week, or look forward to squeezing in time to read your favorite book during your lunch breaks. Although everyone looks forward to the weekend, the bulk of the week is spread over the five days most of us have to go to work. That being said, we might as well do all we can to make Monday through Friday as enjoyable and productive as possible. That "I don't want to go back to work" feeling starts to set in as early as Sunday morning for many people. But rather than focusing on the most onerous aspects of the com...

Few things are as satisfying as waking up and realizing it's Friday. It means the long slog is finally coming to an end (for this week, at least). At last, we can see a light at the end of the tunnel. But for most of us, this feeling is long gone by late Saturday/early Sunday. That's when it hits us: we'll have to go back to work in only a matter of hours. However, I try to make the most of the Friday euphoria while I still can. As I've stressed in prior posts, sometimes we derive more enjoyment out of anticipating something than actually experiencing it. Fridays are no exception. I even begin to get giddy Thursday night. After working hard all week, it feels good to know that two days of rest, relaxation and leisure are upon us. I only wish weekends could be longer; three days would be ideal! What do you think?

Don't you just love Fridays? There's nothing like seeing the light at the end of the tunnel after a busy week. As I noted in a recent post, sometimes the "edge-of-your-seat" feeling that comes over us when the weekend draws near can be better than experiencing the weekend itself. I know for a fact that I feel a whole lot happier on Friday evenings than I do Sunday mornings. Just knowing that you'll be off the next two days is far more gratifying than waking up Sunday and realizing that, while you have the day to relax or do whatever else you need to take care of, you'll be off to work again in less than 24 hours. I'm not sure if you're the same way, but to me, Sunday doesn't start at 12 a.m. It starts whenever it is that I wake up, whether that be 10 a.m., noon, or 3 p.m. In other words, it could be 4 a.m. Sunday morning and I'll still think it's Saturday night. This always creates the illusion that the weekend is longer, even thoug...

Ever longed for a material good – be it a shiny sports car, luxurious watch, or posh pair of jeans – only to lose virtually all interest in it once the product is in your possession?  Have you rejected the advances of a potential suitor – one who literally worships the floor you walk on – in hopes of attracting someone who has no romantic feelings toward you? Even after landing a seemingly perfect job, have you  found yourself looking for “the next best opportunity” just a year or two later?  There’s no question we’ve all been there. But what many people fail to realize is that the journey tends to bring us greater satisfaction than the actual destination. The struggle to obtain our object of desire – that sense of being on the edge of our seat – seems to provide a higher level of excitement than the recognition that we have that object in our grasp. For example, most people (myself included) spend the work week yearning for the weekend to get here. Over the cour...

Do you prefer taking a weeklong vacation (5+ consecutive days), or would you rather take your days sporadically -- say, five back-to-back Mondays? If I'm going out of town, I suppose the first option is best. However, I strongly prefer the second alternative, and here's why. Everyone knows that five straight days of vacation go by in a flash. As if that weren't enough, the sting that comes from having to go back to work seems more potent when you've been off five or more successive days. On the other hand, the pangs that accompany having to return to the office don't seem nearly as strong when you take days off here and there. After all, you've only had one day off (or as many as three if the day precedes or follows the weekend). Thus, you don't feel like you've been away from the work grind for too long. With the second option, you're basically enjoying your days over a wider stretch of time. It's almost like eating a meal more slowly so...