{"id":52674,"title":"Groundhog Monday","description":"It\u2019s Monday again. Somehow. Didn\u2019t we just do this? The weekend has disappeared faster than my enthusiasm for corporate life, and once again I\u2019m staring at a screen, pretending to care about things that make my soul itch","content":"

It\u2019s Monday again. Somehow. Didn\u2019t we <\/span>just<\/span><\/em> do this? The weekend has disappeared faster than my enthusiasm for corporate life, and once again I\u2019m staring at a screen, pretending to care about things that make my soul itch.<\/span><\/p>

There was supposed to be a plan. Some kind of grand escape strategy. But of course there wasn\u2019t, because the weekend was spent in recovery \u2014 not reflection. I was far too busy piecing myself back together after last week\u2019s onslaught of emails, meetings that should have been emails, and the quiet, constant dread of existence under strip lighting.<\/span><\/p>

And now here we are. Again. Same desk, same coffee, same existential hum. Monday is less a fresh start and more a psychological test \u2014 how much can one person endure before snapping and replying-all with the words \u201cI literally don\u2019t care\u201d?<\/span><\/p>

I tell myself to be grateful \u2014 because yes, I have a roof over my head, food in the fridge, and coffee within reach. But let\u2019s not pretend gratitude cancels out the creeping horror of realising this is just... it. This is the loop. Wake up. Work. Moan. Repeat.<\/span><\/p>

So maybe I\u2019ll start small. One email response that doesn\u2019t include \u201cas per my previous email.\u201d One deep breath that doesn\u2019t turn into a sigh. One coffee that actually makes it to room temperature before I forget it exists. That\u2019ll do. That\u2019s progress.<\/span><\/p>

Because escaping the system feels impossible today. But surviving it? That\u2019s still within reach. And honestly, survival is the real success story here.<\/span><\/p>

Now, if you\u2019ll excuse me, I have a meeting about a meeting to attend.<\/span><\/p>","urlTitle":"groundhog-monday","url":"\/blog\/groundhog-monday\/","editListUrl":"\/my-blogs","editUrl":"\/my-blogs\/edit\/groundhog-monday\/","fullUrl":"https:\/\/thestroppycolleague.com\/blog\/groundhog-monday\/","featured":false,"published":true,"showOnSitemap":true,"hidden":false,"visibility":null,"createdAt":1760341220,"updatedAt":1760341584,"publishedAt":1760341584,"lastReadAt":null,"division":{"id":292132,"name":"The Stroppy Colleague"},"tags":[],"metaImage":{"original":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/0tzkaun0nndt2i65f6sxin1kix9hdqcprmsxhvjdi9gne5uy.jpeg","thumbnail":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/0tzkaun0nndt2i65f6sxin1kix9hdqcprmsxhvjdi9gne5uy.jpeg.jpg?w=1140&h=855","banner":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/0tzkaun0nndt2i65f6sxin1kix9hdqcprmsxhvjdi9gne5uy.jpeg.jpg?w=1920&h=1440"},"metaTitle":"","metaDescription":"","keyPhraseCampaignId":null,"series":[],"similarReads":[{"id":56549,"title":"Life Outside: The Clarity That Finds You When You Finally Step Away","url":"\/blog\/life-outside-the-clarity-that-finds-you-when-you-finally-step-away\/","urlTitle":"life-outside-the-clarity-that-finds-you-when-you-finally-step-away","division":292132,"description":"Expanding Your World Beyond Your Front Door. There\u2019s something about stepping outside your usual four walls that shakes your thoughts loose in the best possible way. A change really is as good as a rest \u2014 sometimes better. I\u2019ve taken a few days away myself, wandering around London, letting my brain breathe, letting new ideas drift in without forcing them","published":true,"metaImage":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/vuicqkuktohrzlval3pd5pltkadcmwes3imypqkpruyezecd.png.jpg?w=1140&h=855","banner":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/vuicqkuktohrzlval3pd5pltkadcmwes3imypqkpruyezecd.png.jpg?w=1920&h=1440"},"hidden":0},{"id":55515,"title":"Some Books That Made Work Take Up Less Space in My Head","url":"\/blog\/some-books-that-made-work-take-up-less-space-in-my-head\/","urlTitle":"some-books-that-made-work-take-up-less-space-in-my-head","division":292132,"description":"Work has a habit of taking up more space than it should.\nIn your head.\nIn your time.\nIn the background of everything else.\nYou clock off, but your brain doesn\u2019t.\nIt\u2019s replaying conversations.\nRewriting emails.\nRehearsing what you should have said in that meeting three days ago.","published":true,"metaImage":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/7hwkoj67wqu168nxeiwmvrndg6vlluhiwwvhvpqedbbfhc7j.jpeg.jpg?w=1140&h=855","banner":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/7hwkoj67wqu168nxeiwmvrndg6vlluhiwwvhvpqedbbfhc7j.jpeg.jpg?w=1920&h=1440"},"hidden":0},{"id":45746,"title":"Blue Monday\u2026 and Its Sneaky September Cousin","url":"\/blog\/blue-monday\/","urlTitle":"blue-monday","division":292132,"description":"Blue Monday was born in 2005 from a travel company\u2019s marketing stunt. They claimed they\u2019d found the \u201cmost depressing day of the year\u201d using a formula: bad weather, Christmas debt, failed resolutions, and low motivation = book a holiday. Total pseudoscience, but it stuck because, well, January is a mood-killer","published":true,"metaImage":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/3codjrftwloxz1uvmifsejs0tg917tyu08u6iv311vtujbrd.jpeg.jpg?w=1140&h=855","banner":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/3codjrftwloxz1uvmifsejs0tg917tyu08u6iv311vtujbrd.jpeg.jpg?w=1920&h=1440"},"hidden":0}],"labels":[]}