Woman who left corporate for self-employment swears by 'bare minimum Mondays' to avoid burnout

Whether people admit it or not, most working professionals in the world have one thing in common: their distaste for Mondays. Dragging oneself through the first day of the week is challenging as no one wants the weekend to end. But as adults, we have to show up at work and fulfill our work obligations anyway. Many even experience burnout and hold that one notorious day of the week responsible. However, TikTok has given birth to yet another popular trend for 9 to 5 workers that might help them avoid feeling down and depressed on the first day of the week.

Marisa Jo Mayes–who goes by @itsmarisajo on TikTok–has been credited with coining the term and hashtag #bareminimummonday, under which she encourages people to share their Monday work routines by doing the bare minimum things at work. She advises people not to overwork or push themselves hard on Mondays and to take things slowly. She has made 16 videos on her experiences with work and life since adopting a "bare minimum Monday" routine and unsurprisingly, many people are all for it.

In one of her popular videos, where she highlights what a bare minimum Monday in her life looks like in her late 20s, Mayes starts her day by taking off the curlers from her hair. "You think about how bad your Sunday Scaries used to be when you had your corporate job. You remember the cognitive dissonance of having the job but being more miserable than ever before," she says in the video while using a face roller and stirring her morning drink. Mayes goes on to reflect on the day she quit her job and how she thought that self-employment might be her answer. However, due to having a "hustle culture" problem, Mayes could not find a balance between her life and work. 

Mayes then dismantled her beliefs in productivity and removed herself from the hustle culture, eventually creating "bare minimum Mondays." Now, she claims that her life looks different. The internet crowd loved her thoughts and ideas on how to go through Mondays with ease. @datebrazen wrote, "I love this so much. Thank you for sharing this evolution. So so true that hustle culture and perfectionism is the problem." @emramgel revealed, "Started my law firm nine months ago and still get Sunday Scaries. I did a bare minimum Monday and felt great." @dylan1232109 added, "What about we do a bare minimum Friday instead?"

Mayes also had a chat with the New York Post, where she revealed that she had left the corporate rat race and chosen to be self-employed to avoid feeling burnout. But she didn't see much change in her routine because she was a self-proclaimed "perfectionist, overcommitted and often stretched a particular task till it reached its perfect conclusion." Then, she eventually came up with the "bare minimum Monday" strategy, which advocates getting through the most dreaded day of the week by doing only what is extremely necessary at work. It has helped her gain autonomy over her life, which is apparently helping others as well.

As for those who wonder why Monday is the most hated day of the week, neuropsychologist Jasdeep Mago has an answer. "We are raised with the thought that Monday is fundamentally bad. You will have classes, you need to wake up early and get on the school bus. We've all felt it. All of this just gets heightened in an adult job, particularly a job you don't like. It could be too much work or you might love your boss and colleagues, but the work itself might be stressful," Mago told VICE. She added that Mondays give people the same "sinking feeling that one gets at the thought of returning back to work after a much-deserved vacation."

You can follow Marisa Jo Mayes (@itsmarisajo) on TikTok for more videos on work and productivity.