Social butterflies listen up. As much as it is super fun to be around people all the time it is actually very important and quite beneficial to spend a little time alone, with just you. That's all. You. Some of us are actually afraid to be alone. We don't like it one bit. Others prefer to be alone, hello introverts, and get slightly annoyed by people and having to spend time with people. Spending time alone, however, is very good for you.
Human interaction is very healthy for us all. We connect, we learn, we grow and we form healthy bonds and relationships. But too much of a good thing can be bad. Here are a few reasons why you should be spending more time alone.
Get to know you.
Do you know who you are, I mean who you really are? when we take time to be alone with our own thoughts, we are often surprised by the things we think, the things we realize we love and the things we don't want in our lives. Spend some time with you and fall in love with you. For the first time, or again.
Confidence boost.
When you can spend time alone and enjoy it, you have reached a nice confidence level. You don't need to be around people to feel special, wanted or validated. You can do all that yourself. Kudos to you. Many people feel very uncomfortable being alone. Almost lost. Start slow and get used to it. Soon you will love it and crave it.
Hello productivity.
Look at all the stuff you got done. Way to go. You know you wouldn't have done one quarter of that if you were still sipping wine with your best friends. Have a to do list or a bucket list? You'll start knocking it off faster if you spend more time alone. Being alone can be very inspiring and somewhat motivating when it comes to doing things for you. Things you've been putting off.
Learn something new.
Feel like taking an online course or going to a free class at the library? Ok so maybe the library thing isn't alone time but you will be with new people, not your usual crew and you are there to learn something new. If you start hanging out with yourself more and sign up to classes and courses that you've always wanted to take you may soon discover a hidden passion or talent. Try it.
Good bye stress.
Do you ever find that sometimes when you hang out with all your friends you come home feeling slightly frazzled? Maybe someone said something that was a trigger. Maybe there was too much negative energy in the room that night. Whatever the case may be, you come home and your nerves are shot. You feel a little stressed out. You are also seeing that this happens more often than not. Time to start taking time for yourself. give your mind, and your nerves, a break.
Meditation time.
Make room in your schedule for this. Seriously. This practice demands you to be alone and be quiet. Just you, your thoughts and some nice Zen music. When you start doing this more soon you will notice the difference in your day and mood if you skip a day of meditation. It puts you in a beautiful state of aloneness, oneness, be in the present. In time, a very short time for some, you will see how much more relaxed you are throughout your daily life. Not too much gets on your nerves anymore.
Independence is where it's at.
Do you have a habit of needing to be around people to feel like part of a tribe, a group or one of the gang? That's ok, many of us do. Start hanging out alone and be part of your own tribe. Feel independent and learn to love your group. Once you start getting accustomed to it, it won't be long before you head out for dinner alone, movies or even a road trip.
Clear the cobwebs.
Our brains get cluttered, sort of like our houses, and every now and then, need to be cleansed. The only way to do this is to shut it off. Well not completely of course but it is possible to shut it down from the dirty noise of others voices and outside activities. Take some time alone and be with your own thoughts, your own mind, some nice music and Zen out. Make room for new thoughts, clean out the old ones that serve no purpose anymore.