11 Painless Ways To Make Your Workweek Anything But Mundane

If your workweek is looking a little one-note, sprinkle in a few of these activities to add some variety. Take a refreshing break for yourself with Diet Coke to make your day a little brighter.

1. Take 10 minutes Monday morning to catch up on current events.

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Subscribe to a few newsletters that sum up the week's news, load them on your phone, and skim over them on your commute to work. That way you won't look like a deer in headlights if someone asks your opinion on a current event.

2. Trade lunches like you did in grade school.

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You don't have to eat the same sandwich with the crust cut off every day of the week. Get a few co-workers together, and start a lunch-swap club. Once a week, bring a bagged lunch and trade with someone else for a surprise twist to your lunch break.

3. Rave at your desk with a silent disco.

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Start a group playlist with the people sitting next to you. Have everyone drop a song they love into the playlist every week, and set a scheduled time every day for everyone to listen together.

4. Go for business walks instead of business meetings.

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Take the office outdoors. Your desk may not be portable, but your meeting is! Have weekly check-ins scheduled with a co-worker? A change of scenery will help break up your day, and a little fresh air never hurt anyone.

5. Take a photo every day.

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Put a reminder on your calendar everyday to take a picture. You can do it right from your computer. In a couple of months you'll have a visual record of how far you (and your selfie game) have come!

6. Trade your most tedious task for someone else's.

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Break the routine of your workday by trading one of your most repetitive tasks with someone else's. Besides adding variety to your workload, you might also learn some new skills.

7. Actually call your mom back.

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Trust us. It'll make you feel good. You might say you don't want to spend your break on the phone with your mom, but she'll appreciate it, and you can stop worrying about when you'll do it. You love her! Remember?

8. Turn every errand into "me" time.

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If your boss sends you on errands, don't just look at it as a checklist... multitask! Take the opportunity to listen to that band your friend told you you'd like, or finish that book that you said you'd read before it was turned into a movie. Any time spent away from your desk can feel like a break if you let it.

9. Ask someone out to lunch, not drinks.

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After working a full day, it's hard to find the motivation to catch up with friends over drinks. The next time someone asks you to meet up after work, suggest getting together for lunch, and add variety to the people you interact with from 9 to 5.

10. Send future you some motivation.

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Skip ahead in your notebook, and leave yourself some future love. Not into giving yourself compliments? Print out a picture of a dog, and put it in your blazer pocket — you'll be happy you did the next time you wear that blazer.

11. And write a to-done list instead of a to-do list.

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Take some time at the end of the day to write everything you've accomplished that day. Seeing what you've "to-done" today will help you face what you have "to-do" tomorrow.

Give yourself a refreshing moment when your day's feeling bland with a Diet Coke break!