How to Spend time Alone
Photo credit @Erin Deborah Waks
By Erin Deborah Waks
I love few things more than spending time on my own. Quite surprising from an extrovert such as myself, but nonetheless paramount to my life. Time with myself is time spent thinking, feeling, understanding my soul. I’ll always relish the moments spent in my own company.
I once told a friend who expressed genuine terror at the concept something I wish more people knew. That time alone does not mean time doing nothing. You don’t always have to sit and think (or overthink!), but you can actually do the things you might believe can’t be done alone. Trust me when I say I love doing things like eating in restaurants, going to the cinema and visiting galleries without a soul in sight. Far from boring, these moments are precious and inordinately important. I’ll get you started with a list of some of my favourite things to do on my own. Pick one - just see what happens.
Take a book, notepad and pen to a local coffee shop. No phone. Grab a table and a drink and see what happens.
Put on your comfiest trackies and take yourself to the cinema to watch a movie.
Go to the library, pick up a book with a pretty cover and start reading.
Take your camera, or phone, to a beautiful place and take the photos capturing the magic.
Start writing the sentence: ‘Things that make me happy are…’ and let the pen do the rest.
Find a new recipe and cook yourself a meal from scratch - preferably with a glass of wine in hand, jazz music in the background.
Buy a cheap face mask, run a bath, make a herbal tea and put on some Lana Del Rey.
Go for a walk with one of the following options: a) Find a ‘catwalk’ playlist and imagine you’re Bella Hadid, b) Listen to a podcast on something new (I recommend Shagged, Married, Annoyed for something entertaining and lighthearted), or c) Just walk, listening to the sounds around you.
Go for a swim and just splash around until you’re bored - no lengths allowed.
Buy a couple of magazines and cut out any images you like, then make a mood board.
