Why you should spend time alone
Solitude: Alone time to be the best version of yourself
So what?
Are you getting enough time alone to be the best for you and your loved ones? If you are, lucky you! Please email us and let us know what’s working for you and how you are getting enough time. We would love to hear from you and pick your brain. If you’re not, you should read on.
Spending time alone and having solitude are the key to:
- Strengthening your understanding of yourself;
- Increasing your ability to empathise with others;
- Improving your productivity;
- Being more creative; and
- Finding and embracing your passion.
Prerequisites to solitude
Solitude itself is not enough to reap the benefits of the above. Below are the prerequisites to solitude that we suggest you partake:
- It has to be by your choice;
- You have the ability to return to your family and friends;
- Have positive relationships with your loved ones and those around you; and
- Good attitude towards spending alone time.
Things you can do by yourself
Below are things which we enjoy that you should try once you have the above down pat:
- Enjoy a nice dinner at your favourite food joint;
- Volunteer at a not-for-profit organisation that support a cause you are passionate about;
- Take courses to acquire new skillset or learn something new (have a look at our post on investing in yourself for more ideas); and
- Travel.
How to practice solitude
You need to take the 3 steps as below for you to set yourself up to have solitude:
- Develop a plan.
- Disconnect from social media and eliminate distractions.
- Learn to value alone time.
You will have difficulties in reaping its benefits without completing these 3 steps first as we believe they are fundamental in having alone time.
My experience
Until after the first lockdown, I never took time to have solitude. It was not until afterwards that I realised the importance of having time alone which was after being forced into spending all day everyday with both kids in a two bedroom apartment. After the lockdown eased, I made a conscious effort to spend time alone on a regular basis. I developed a plan to disconnect myself from social media, eliminate distractions and find things that I enjoyed doing. During my time alone, I’m able to clear my head and loosen up which enable me to tackle my daily demands with a better mindset and physical energy.
What now?
- Determine whether you are getting enough solitude.
- If you think you are getting sufficient amount, consider whether you can spice things up by doing different things.
- If you are not getting enough, develop a plan to make yourself available to have solitude.