Single is a hard thing to be in today’s day and age. Either your friends want to set you up with someone they know, or they constantly ask if you’re talking to anyone. Relatives always ask, “So are you dating anyone new?” and then pretend to be surprised when you tell them no for the hundredth time. People you went to high school or college with are getting engaged or having babies, and you’re just trying to figure out what to cook yourself for dinner. Despite what most people think, being single when you are young is actually a great thing. It gives you time to find yourself and figure out that you can make it on your own without anyone else. Take it from someone who knows what it’s like to be single for a while - there are definitely some things your single friends want you to know…
1. I am happy
Despite what you may think, I am happy being single. I don’t have to worry about someone hurting my feelings or causing me heartache. All I have to worry about is what I am going to do to better myself.
2. I do not want to be set up with your friend or coworker
I think it is great that you want to set me up with another one of your single friends, and I am sure whoever you have in mind for me is wonderful. But let’s get real for a second: that person is probably not as wonderful as you are describing them to be, and the only reason you are setting us up is because you feel bad that we are single.
3. I am working on myself right and becoming my number one priority
I have selflessly put others before myself, and time and time again it has come back to bite me in the butt. So yes - I’m okay that I’m being selfish now and I’m making myself the number one priority in my life. I am working on myself daily and trying to be a better me.
4. No, I don’t want to get on dating apps to try and find love
Yes, thank you for the suggestion. It really is a great one. However, I do not plan on finding love on a dating app. Tinder is fun for the first five minutes but after that, the people on there get weird - and come on, we *all* know why people use dating apps.
5. I believe that when it’s meant to happen, it will
Call me old-fashioned, but I believe that when I am meant to be dating someone and meant to be in a relationship, I will be. Until then, I’ll be single and loving every minute of it.
6. Exes are exes for a reason, and no I do not want to talk to my ex again
Asking about my ex, that’s fine. Suggesting I talk to him again because you think I’m lonely or won’t find anyone better? Not fine. We are not together anymore for a reason, which is clearly going to be the reason we do not get back together. Of course, it is easy to backslide into an ex. But in all honesty, if it didn’t work the first time, is it really going to work the second time around?
7. Being single means I can focus on my career and focus on traveling
One of the greatest joys to being single is that I have no ties anywhere. I can apply for jobs across the country or even across the world, and not have to worry about how someone else would feel about it. The only thing I have to worry about is what city I want to move to next.
8. I don’t need a relationship to define me
Believe it or not, I have grown accustomed to the single life. I am figuring out who I am and where I want my life to go, and I don’t need a relationship to define me. There have been many times where I have put all my happiness into one person. As soon as that person was gone, so was my happiness for a while. After a couple of failed relationship attempts, it was clear to see that I needed to not let a relationship define who I was going to be or how happy I would be at the end of everything.
9. I may have been hurt before, and I don’t want to be hurt again
Yeah, you guessed it… I’ve been hurt before, which has left me a little jaded and cynical at times. It has taken me a little longer to get back into the dating game than it would take most, but it has also shown me that when the right person comes around I won’t feel the way I’ve felt with all the other heartbreaks. I am slightly guarded and that is perfectly okay with me because the right person will tear down those walls.
10. I shouldn’t settle because I am lonely or bored
I have to admit that there are times that I am lonely and I want the companionship of someone else, but it does not mean I have to settle. Sure it would be great to have someone to come home to every day, but if it’s not the right person, then why waste my time?
