Novus Blog
Blue Monday 2023: 5 Ways to Beat the January Blues

Blue Monday falls on the third Monday of every new year, and is considered to be the most depressing day in the calendar. So with this in mind we asked a Novus Mental Health First Aider, what advice they would give to help beat those mid-January blues.
Christmas seems a long time ago already…
How can it only be 3 weeks ago?
Anyway, it’s safe to say we are well into the new year and many of us are getting stuck back into work and setting objectives for 2023 whether this be professional or personal. (How many of you are still sticking to your new year’s resolution?)
January is infamous for being one of the most depressing times of the year for many reasons – dark nights, the few extra pounds put on from Christmas and dwindling bank balance.
Beating Blue Monday
Blue Monday falls on the third Monday of every new year, and is considered to be the most depressing day in the calendar.
Some of the feelings associated with feeling blue could be; depression, sleep problems, lethargy, overeating, irritability, and feeling down and unsociable.
So with this in mind, we asked one of our Mental Health First Aiders, Kevin Rhone what advice he would give to beat Blue Monday this year.
“I think most people feel life is a little bit extra challenging in the winter, cold weather, dark nights etc, and I think most people will have experience some form of feeling a little bit blue.”
So here are my 5 tips to beat Blue Monday:
1. See your family and friends
It can be all too easy to hibernate during the winter, and our social connections form part of what makes us healthy. Chances are that if you are feeling a little down or depressed in January, your friends may be in the same predicament too and may also welcome the company.
So, be sure to make time to see/speak to your friends and family, whether this be through phone calls, facetime or going for a walk with someone.
I believe this has a massively positive impact on your wellbeing.
2. Set some personal goals
Big or small, give yourself something to work towards.
Ideas might include exercising once a week, playing with the kids each day, starting an online training course, or simply just setting a to-do list each day with mini-goals.
The days and weeks can run away from you so by setting goals you can look back and feel happy and have a sense of achievement.
3.Look after yourself
Eating well, drinking lots of water, getting enough sleep, and keeping active are key to looking after yourself.
Although it can be very hard to get motivated to go for a walk, run or do a workout in your front room, if you do fight the urge to sit on the sofa, it is amazing how much better you feel afterwards.
Often you’ll find you weren’t tired at all, you were just feeling sluggish and feel a lot more awake and energised after the exercise.
Give it a try!
4. Do something for you
Between juggling work, family, and other commitments, it can sometimes be a challenge to do find the time to do something you enjoy.
So if you have a hobby or an interest, be sure to make time for it.
Whether it is cooking, reading a book, exercising or watching a movie, make some ‘me’ time part of your weekly routine.
5. Plan Something to look forward to
Whether it is looking forward to something at the end of the week, or looking forward to something a bit further away (or a combination of both), knowing you have things to look forward helps create positive feelings.
It could be something as simple as cooking your favourite meal on a Friday evening, movie night with family or something a bit more extravagant such as booking a holiday for later in the year.
Having something to look forward to will keep you motivated and feeling positive.
Thank you for reading and I hope the above helps. If you have any other tips or advice for beating the blues, we would love to hear, so please use the comment section on our social media post.

Celebrating our colleagues at the Novus Awards
We had a fantastic year in 2024, from a series of exciting contract wins and project completions to social value initiatives and working with our charity partners. None of this would have been possible without our fantastic colleagues, clients and supply chain partners, which is why we recently celebrated them all at the annual Novus Awards.