It's Monday again! You probably read that line with excitement or weariness. Either way, our Monday quotes, composed of motivational and humorous messages, could help you start your week with the right mindset.
Indulging or relaxing over the weekend recharges us for another week. Still, for a handful of people, it intensifies their aversion to Monday. And so the term, Monday blues, has already infiltrated our pop culture, from comedy shows to catchy songs.
But in the end, it is all about perspective. Based on a study of 139 employees, the group with the "Monday blues" perspective has a low mood at the start of the week and picks up as the weekend approaches1. Henceforth, researchers suggested companies should design programs to fit their employees' perspectives accordingly.
If you're a working adult or a studying student, look through our Monday quotes to get off to a good start.
Related: You might also like our new day quotes and 150-morning affirmations for a little bit more inspiration to start out just right.
Quick links to our selection of Monday quotes:
Starting with the Mesopotamians and finally adopted by the Romans, the seven-day week we know today has Monday as the official first day of the week based on ISO 8601. However, in Northern America, Sunday is the first day for religious reasons. During the Industrialization Age, people, mostly Europeans, measured their days based on the five working days and marked Sunday as the end of the week.
Whether it's your first or second day, Monday represents another week of work worldwide. And our best Monday inspiration quotes below capture the day's essence.
"Hey, I know it's Monday. But it's also a new day and a new week. And in that lies a new opportunity for something special to happen."
"Monday Morning Blues? Why not change the color of your Monday to yellow and brighten up the coming week?"
"This should be the spirit every Monday. Know that something good will always happen"
"This is your Monday morning reminder that you can handle whatever this week throws at you."
The future depends on what you do today.
~ Mahatma Gandhi
To have the blues is a known expression for feeling sad; we can't blame society for pairing it with Monday. And so Monday blues is already part of our culture, and we accepted it the way it is. But as mentioned earlier, it is all about our perspective - we can beat it!
We can do the following: identify the problem, prepare as early as Friday, get enough sleep, dress up, and many more. You can start exploring ways to beat the blues, starting with this well-written article from Forbes summarizing the insights of founders, speakers, and coaches.
And While after a relaxing weekend getting back in gear for the week ahead might feel intimidating, check out that article, after you read the Monday motivation, quotes below.
"Your Monday morning thoughts set the tone for your whole week. See yourself getting stronger, and living a fulfilling, happier, and healthier life."
"I must break the routines and become a person who becomes productive every Monday. I must break the mindset of unhappiness and turn myself into a happy magnet for Mondays."
"Mondays are the start of the work week which offer new beginnings 52 times a year!"
"Monday, Monday, so good to me; Monday morning, it was all I hoped it would be."
"So. Monday. We meet again. We will never be friends—but maybe we can move past our mutual enmity toward a more-positive partnership."
"Waking up to a new day is a gift, appreciate it and do remember that you are loved… Good morning and Happy Monday"
"I should think you could be gladder on Monday mornin’ than any other day in the week, because ‘twould be a whole week before you’d have another one!"
"Live today. Not yesterday. Not tomorrow. Just today. Inhabit your moments. Don't rent them out to tomorrow."
Life is a fairytale starring you. You have the power to write your own story and be the hero of it, too.
~ Joelle Speranza
You can waste your lives drawing lines. Or you can live your life crossing them.
~ Shonda Rhimes
I find that when you have a real interest in life and a curious life, that sleep is not the most important thing.
~ Martha Stewart
You do not find the happy life. You make it.
~ Camilla Eyring Kimball
So often people are working hard at the wrong thing. Working on the right thing is probably more important than working hard.
~ Caterina Fake
It's a Monday morning; a new week, a new day and a new morning to start fresh and achieve your goals.
~Invajy
How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.
~ Anne Frank
We only have one life, and it is very precious, and there's a lot we can do, and there's a lot we should do.
~ Selena Gomez
Famous psychologist Abraham Maslow said, "If the only tool you have is a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail." Do you need to encourage others on a Monday morning? In that case, you should have a distinct approach appropriate to the situation.
Based on a study, motivation has three factors. First, the expectancy of achieving a result should be high. Next, there should be a great value or reward for finishing the task. And finally, the cost or pain of doing it should be low2. Customizing your message around these three variables will increase your chance of motivating others as Monday rolls around again.
And so we prepared these encouraging Monday quotes to kick start the fresh week with a little more motivation. Perhaps there is no reason to hate Monday after all?
"Just one small positive thought in the morning can change your whole day."
"Happy Monday! Start every week with a positive affirmation, and nothing will stop you from being the happiest man alive. We create our own happiness, we build our lives, so let’s begin with making Monday a perfect start."
"When you start to do the things that you truly love, it wouldn’t matter whether it is Monday or Friday.; you would be so excited to wake up each morning to work on your passions."
"Monday is a fresh start it’s never too late to dig in and begin a new journey of success."
"Things may come to those who wait, but only the things left by those who hustle."
"Success is to wake up each morning and consciously decide that today will be the best day of your life."
Monday is such a wonderful day. You can start new leaving behind the past week disappointments.
~ Invajy
The sun himself is weak when he first rises, and gathers strength and courage as the day gets on.
~ Charles Dickens
The scientific community has repeatedly proven that laughter improves our mental health and immune system. So we better be grateful for anybody who makes us laugh on a Monday!
Laughing is the easiest way to manage stress as it naturally decreases cortisol, the stress hormone. It can also alter the effects of depression through the increase of neurotransmitters endorphins, dopamine, and serotonin, which are the happy hormones.
Read our funny Monday quotes below if you want to turn your frown upside down instantly and leave behind the Sunday scaries.
Related: You might also like our compilation of mental health quotes and our guide to the benefits of a positive attitude.
"I don’t know about you, but I like to fall in love on Mondays. This way if things go south right away you still have the weekend."
"What do sharks do on Monday mornings? They get up and start biting. That's me."
"Monday is great if I can spend it in bed. I'm a man of simple pleasures, really."
"I can confirm, although I am not certain, that we have very good reason to believe that tomorrow is Monday."
"What about Monday? That could be our one day we look at things the same way, and wear funny shoes."
"There are two tests in life, more important than any other test. On Monday morning, when you wake up, do you feel in the pit of your stomach you can't wait to go to work? And when you're ready to go home Friday afternoon, do you say, 'I can't wait to go home?'"
"Mondays are mundane, like Tuesdays minus 24 hours."
Monday is for people with a mission. Those who favor vacations, not weekends.
~ Cristina Imre
#MondayMotivation is the top hashtag aside from #Monday based on a simple search on Instagram. That shows that our posts on social media every Monday motivate others and perhaps ourselves.
To maintain our Monday motivation throughout the week, James Clear, author of Atomic Habits, shared about the Goldilocks Rule in his blog. Based on years of research and a well-known children's story, the concept states that we can sustain motivation when working on tasks with manageable difficulty.
After posting our Monday quotes below, apply this concept to your work and personal goals in the week ahead.
"When life gives you Monday, dip it in glitter and sparkle all day."
"Even the best weeks start with Monday."
"Build your own dreams, or someone else will hire you to build theirs."
"It's just another manic Monday. I wish it was Sunday. 'Cause that's my fun day. My I don't have to run day."
"Don't count the days. Make the days count."
"Don't try to lessen yourself for the world; let the world catch up to you."
"New moon on Monday And a fire dance through the night I stayed the cold day with a lonely satellite."
"What you do today can improve all your tomorrows."
It's Monday. Get a new perspective. Whatever obstacle you're facing—it's not permanent.
~ Unknown
The best way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing.
~ Walt Disney
Don't let a day of the week have so much power over your happiness. Happy Monday!
~ Andrea L'Artiste
The worst Monday is the one that gets wasted for nothing.
~ Unknown
There are various holidays fixed on a Monday. Through the Uniform Monday Holiday Act, the USA has three federal holidays permanently moved to Monday - Labor Day, Memorial Day, and Columbus Day. There are also birthdays of important figures like Martin Luther King Jr and George Washington. For a less formal event, we have Cyber Mondays, when online stores are full of discounts, and Meatless Monday, a movement to reduce meat consumption.
Explore more about these occasions as you read the following Monday quotes below.
"Because I'm so known as a meat-chef, when I talk about Meatless Monday some people look at me like I've lost my mind. I'm like, look, I'm not saying beef and pork is bad, I love it and I eat it six days a week."
"I hope your Black Friday injuries aren't so severe you can't use your mouse on Cyber Monday."
"From 1971 onwards, the Memorial Day holiday was officially observed on the last Monday in May and became the unofficial start of the summer, with barbecues, blockbuster movie openings and mattress sales."
For more from the days of the week, check out compilations of the best:
1 | Pindek, S., Zhou, Z. E., Kessler, S. R., Krajcevska, A., & Spector, P. E. (2021). Workdays are not created equal: Job satisfaction and job stressors across the workweek. Human Relations, 74(9), 1447–1472. https://doi.org/10.1177/0018726720924444 |
2 | Kenneth E. Barron, Chris S. Hulleman, Expectancy-Value-Cost Model of Motivation, Editor(s): James D. Wright, International Encyclopedia of the Social & Behavioral Sciences (Second Edition), Elsevier, |