It’s Friday at 2pm and you cannot imagine how you will make it through 3 more hours. It’s Tuesday at 11am and your head is pounding from a stressful call earlier that morning. It’s Monday at 9am and you have the post-weekend blues. 

It happens to all of us—those moments at work when you feel like, “how is it possible that I need to be productive when all I want to do is get a massage, take a nap or go back in time to my weekend at the beach”.

In these moments, here’s what helps me:

1. Tend to whatever immediate need you have quickly. Go get a coffee and breathe fresh air for a few minutes. Take a tylenol so your head stops pounding. Drink a cup of water—no one wants a dehydrated coworker.
    
2. Do the thing on your to do list that you like the most. These moments are not the time to start that big intimidating project that you’ve been procrastinating, nor is it the time to do your annual evaluation of yourself, or write up a disciplinary plan for your underperforming employee. Instead, spend this time writing about your best employee for her evaluation, organize the “My Documents” folder on your computer that has become a messy dumping ground, or work on whatever assignments bring you joy.

These moments require you to give yourself some self care and love. If you have the flexibility, try to ease your burden during these moments and trust that either later on or tomorrow, you’ll find the energy and motivation to pick up the harder stuff and plug away at it. For now, your body and mind need a break. It doesn't mean you have to give up and go home—just take some space and re-prioritize your tasks, starting with the most tolerable.