The Hidden Joys of Doing Things Alone

There’s something quietly radical about doing things alone.

We have to understand that experiences are not only meaningful when shared. We plan group vacations, dinner dates, and outings because we’ve been told that solitude equates to loneliness. But that’s not always true. In fact, I’ve come to believe that some of the richest, most transformative experiences happen when we choose to do things on our own.

I wasn’t always like this. I used to be the type who needed company to even go to the movies. The idea of eating alone at a restaurant made me feel exposed, as if the world would stop and point at me. Maybe it was burnout, or maybe I just grew tired of waiting for others to be available. I began doing small things alone. First , a visit to the beach, then a solo movie night. The world didn’t end. In fact, something beautiful happened: I began to feel at ease with myself.

There’s a certain magic in being alone on purpose. You get to choose your pace. You can linger in the art gallery corner that moves you without feeling rushed. You can walk down a street simply because it looks pretty in the light. You can change your mind last minute and no one complains. There’s a kind of gentle freedom in solitude that group dynamics often steal without meaning to.

One of the most memorable adventures I’ve had was taking a solo trip to an entirely different city. I put my phone on airplane mode, checked into a hotel, and since it was a weekend trip, I made sure to explore as much as possible,visiting bookstores, water parks, and art studios. At first, it felt awkward being in these places alone, especially when I noticed that most people were with company. But after a while, I stopped noticing others and started noticing myself. For the first time in a long while, I was having an intimate conversation with me.

Doing things alone builds resilience. It teaches you to rely on your instincts. You learn how to navigate maps, make decisions, and sit with discomfort. These aren’t just practical skills, they’re emotional muscles that make you stronger in other areas of life too. You learn how to be your own friend, your own advocate, your own company. And that’s powerful.

Of course, this isn’t to say that shared experiences aren’t beautiful, they absolutely are. But when we limit ourselves to only doing things with others, we place a cap on our growth. We start to believe we need permission or partnership to explore, to enjoy, to live fully. That’s simply not true.

Solo adventures can be as small as taking yourself to lunch or as big as backpacking across a country. What matters is the mindset, the willingness to step into your own company without fear.

So, if you’ve been waiting for someone to join you at that new bookstore, or for a friend to finally be free for a weekend getaway consider going anyway. You might be surprised by what you discover: not just about the world, but about yourself.

Because in those quiet moments of aloneness, you don’t just find peace, you find you.