The Importance of Learning to Be Alone

There are so many people today who struggle with being alone. There is something to be said about learning to be alone. Whether it means being single, eating alone, traveling alone, or anything in between. And there is good reason too. It is hard to be alone. In our society so many things are socially driven and there is so much pressure to fit in with others. And it can make it hard to be OK with being alone. 

But this tendency to surround ourselves with others, often makes us lose sense of our selves. There is no more important relationship than the one that you have with yourself and if you don’t ever spend one-on-one time alone with yourself you can start to lose your sense of self and forget who you really are.

If you aren’t already someone who is OK with being alone, then I have a few reasons why you should start making time for yourself and time to be alone. It may just change your life for the better.

It Gives You Time to Recharge 

Even big extroverts need time alone as a way to recharge and reset. There is a certain amount of peace that comes with being quiet and alone and it can help you mentally and emotionally regain your strength. Our daily lives are stressful, and if you never spend time completely alone with your own thoughts to decompress, it will catch up with you.

The great thing about spending time alone to recharge is that you don’t have to do anything. You just need to be able to turn your brain off and stop focusing on other people.

It Gives You A Chance to Be Selfish

Think about how many things you do on a regular basis—for your spouse, boss or your kids, that you do for someone else. Think about things you do because someone else needs you to. When you spend time with other people, even people you love, you are always compromising in some way. When you spend time alone, you can be selfish, you can have time to do exactly what you want on your terms.

It Can Help You Plan for The Future 

Many times, we get so caught up in pleasing other and our day-to-day responsibilities that entail making other people happy, that we forget to look at the big picture of our lives. Many times, when we are completely alone and only with our own thoughts, we have time to focus on what is most important, we have time to plan for our own futures.

You Will Have a Better Understanding Of Yourself 

There is an old adage that we are a blend of the people that we spend the most time around. And while this is true, it can mean that we fail to think for ourselves and develop our own ideas and convictions. When you spend time alone, thinking about certain elements of your life, your own ideals will become more clear. And it will lead to a better understanding of yourself. 

It Can Help You Become More Emotionally Intelligent 

Emotional intelligence is all about recognizing and understanding emotions in yourself and others. Research shows that those who spend time alone, are more emotionally intelligent than those who don’t. This will help you better manage your own behavior and have stronger and more meaningful relationships with others as well.

It Can Help You Appreciate Others

The truth of the matter is, absence does really make the heart grow fonder. This is true with our relationships with our partners, our friends and our families. Spending time alone and giving ourselves a break from those we spend the most time with can help us appreciate the people in our lives even more.

It Can Help Make You More Confident 

Spending time with yourself will give you a better sense of who you are. It will show you that spending time alone with just you isn’t necessarily boring or dull, but has a lot of benefits. Being able to really love spending time alone will boost your self esteem and give you a confidence in yourself that you may have never thought you could have.

I know that learning to be alone can be a challenging journey and it can be one that many people struggle with. However, if you start taking baby steps and start setting aside time for you, then you can slowly start reprioritizing your relationship with yourself. And I promise, it will change your life for the better.