Marisa Jo Mayes, a millennial startup founder, is the brains behind the popular TikTok trend, "Bare Minimum Monday." This trend promotes self-care and aims to challenge the hustle culture. It involves taking it easy on Mondays with activities such as curling your hair, making elaborately iced coffees, and playing mini Boggle. Despite this seeming too precious to some, being able to take a day off from work each week is an attractive concept. A 40-something working mom of two school-age kids, however, values her downtime but is also conditioned to squeeze out productivity whenever she can.
When the editor suggested she give Bare Minimum Monday a try and write about it, the writer accepted the challenge. However, it was a lot more difficult than it seemed. To prepare for this day of laborless lassitude, the writer, a working parent, planned ahead and made Monday night's dinner on Sunday, while also making that night's dinner. This eliminated the "Sunday scaries," and allowed the writer to enjoy her wine and use the coveted immersion blender.
Bare Minimum Monday is a mindset that aims to reduce unnecessary stress and manage expectations realistically. As Insider's Amanda Mayes explains, this includes taking a break from technology, meetings, and any tasks that are not urgent.
For someone wanting to try it, journalist Vanessa McGrady attempted to put her own spin on Bare Minimum Monday by attending meetings she couldn't miss and starting the day by completing two to three important tasks. But then, the afternoon proved to be more difficult for her, as she was brought up by Baby Boomers to be dedicated to her job.
McGrady found herself still wanting to work more, even though it was Bare Minimum Monday and she was supposed to be taking it easy. Then, when her teenage daughter pointed out her work-like behavior, McGrady remembered Mayes' advice and reminded herself to be kinder to herself. Ultimately, she chose to enjoy the soup she had made and leave the email for the following day.