Why January 15 is the worst day of the year
If you are feeling a bit down in the dumps this morning, it turns out you are not alone. First conceptualised in Britain and dubbed “Blue Monday”, January 15 is supposedly the most depressing day of the year.
A combination of factors has led people to make this assumption about the third Monday of the year, which includes many people going back to work after the Christmas period and people’s reckless holiday spending finally catching up to them.
Dr Cliff Arnall, a lecturer and “freelance happiness guru” even drew up a calculation to prove why many might not be feeling the best today.
The calculation is: [W + (D-d)] x Tq ÷ [M x Na].
The ‘W’ stands for weather, ‘D’ for debt and ‘d’ stands for monthly salary. ‘T’ is the time since Christmas, ‘q’ the period since we’ve broken our New Year’s resolutions and ‘M’ refers to motivational level. ‘Na’ is the feeling of a need to take action.
The general idea of Blue Monday is that everyone is waning from the inspiration of the New Year.
But before you let this concept slow you down today, Blue Monday was actually coined as a marketing ruse. The original research was paid for by a travel agent in the hopes of encouraging people to beat Blue Monday by booking a holiday, preferably though them.
University of East London academic Jolenta Burke has discredited the concept and insisted that people only feel blue on Blue Monday due to a self-fulfilling prophecy.
“When we hold some expectations about an event, people, or ourselves, we start behaving in a way that matches our expectations.
“For example, thinking it is the most depressing day of the year, we might start paying more attention to the negative events around us — the boss who doesn’t listen to our good advice, or the partner who isn’t doing enough around the house,” Ms Burke wrote in The Conversation.
“While there is no scientific evidence of Blue Monday on the third Monday of January — or any other Monday in a year — research shows us that, unsurprisingly, our mood is significantly better on Fridays and over the weekend in general,” she said.
Ms Burke said we need to choose to see the positive things around us and not let the post-Christmas period impact our mood.
“Since Blue Monday is a hoax that may affect our thinking and emotions so much, let’s turn it into Happy Monday and reap the benefits.”
“Instead of searching for all that is going badly on the day, be mindful of all the good things that happen around you — that woman who held the bus door to prevent it from closing, the old lady who smiled at you for no reason or the little boy who gave you a big hug.”
What do you do to stay positive throughout the day? Share your tips in the comments below.