HOW I SUNDAY: ISSUE 17
4 min read

HOW I SUNDAY: ISSUE 17

By Kate Foster Lengyel

Could Monday be the new Sunday?

On Sundays, it’s all about me. It’s my moment to rest and rejuvenate and indulge in self-care. Because self-care means you care about yourself, you know? I usually wake up around 6 am, go downstairs for a cup of warm lemon water and a meditation. Around 6:30 am, my yoga teacher comes for a private hour of practice that nourishes the body and soul, while my husband prepares breakfast for the children—their favorite organic buckwheat pancakes with goji berries. After my session, the children write and draw in their gratitude journals while I soak in the tub and mask...

Image: @katelengyel via Instagram 

Oh wait, sorry, that’s not my life. That’s not even close to How I Sunday, and I’m not sure how I feel about that. As an entrepreneur and mom of two littles, I have a complicated relationship with Sunday. First, it’s the classification. Is Sunday the end of the week or the start of a new one? Even calendars don’t know, and I’m confused. Is Sunday your chance to start anew with a refreshed sense of spirit and self, or is it the opportunity to white-knuckle-grip on to the lasting remnants of the weekend by pretending Monday will never come? I’ve always sat solidly in the latter camp, where Sunday is a hybrid land of procrastinators’ paradise and purgatory.  

Sunday is usually the day I vow to do or be better — ‘my diet begins tomorrow,’ I say between swigs of margarita and choosing the cheesiest nacho in the pile. Yes, Sunday is the day I make checklists, get groceries, do laundry, but it’s also the day that I fail at any attempts to get work done that should have been completed on Friday. And Sunday late afternoon is when it completely devolves…it’s the time that I goof off and watch movies with my kids or have an impromptu BBQ with friends with one more drink than is sensible for a weeknight. In short, Sunday is Saturday redux. So that must mean that Monday is the new Sunday. 

“In short, Sunday is Saturday redux. So that must mean that Monday is the new Sunday.”

Because of the aforementioned goofing off on Sunday night, I usually wake up at 5AM on Monday morning to focus on the things I never did. On Monday, I will have a hot water with lemon. I will go to the gym. I will plan the week for my family and my business, and I will make it happen. The world on Monday at 5AM is full of opportunity and optimism, clear-headed thinking and clicked checkboxes. (Now, Wednesday at 5PM is another story…) 

I always thought that, when I left the corporate world and started my own business, my hardcore case of the ‘Sunday Scaries’ would vanish. But much to my horror, it actually got much much worse. In Entrepreneurland, your boss is always looking over your shoulder. You can’t shake her and she’s always disappointed with your lack of drive or intelligence. She’s a drag. But I started to notice that I didn’t really care what she thinks on Saturday redux, and she’s not around on Monday at 5AM. When I started reframing the dreaded day as a second Saturday, I felt I got permission to lean into the pure joy of procrastination and hone my talents in the fine art of fucking off. Now, who wants margaritas? 

Kate Foster Lengyel is the Founder + CEO of SwearBy, a new word-of-mouth marketplace for the awesome products that discerning women truly swear by. She previously ran marketing and e-commerce for fashion and beauty brands, leaving the corporate world for a start-up vision that connects women with must-have products in authentic, fun, and easy ways. Kate lives in Brooklyn, NY with her husband and two kids. Follow her journey @swearby | SwearBy.com |