Just because you love to be around other people doesn’t mean you aren’t able to be alone.

As an extrovert, you are outgoing, sociable, and enjoy the company of others. These are all great qualities, but sometimes these qualities might make you feel incapable of being alone.

I am here to tell you that this is not true. I am telling you this as someone who has been in your place. I thought that being around other people was how I thrived, so I came up with the conclusion that I was unable to survive without others. This made it impossible for me to be independent for a while and hurt my chances of being myself.

Being alone wasn’t just something I didn’t like but it was also something that scared me. I thought being alone in public made me look sad. I thought others would judge me for being that loner in the corner who didn’t have any friends. This turned out to not be the case for me, and I know it’s not the case for you either.

This problem does not resolve itself on its own. It takes time to get over fears, and this one is no exception. In order to get over the stigma of being alone, one must take small steps. It starts off by sitting by yourself in a park with a book or headphones.

Then going on a walk alone around your city. Then, building yourself up to eating alone in public. Lastly, you might even be brave enough to go travel by yourself. I have been able to check off all of these steps, but it did not happen overnight.

In order to get to this point, you have to get over yourself. By this I mean, you have to realize that being alone is not the end of the world. There are worse things that can happen to you. Being by yourself doesn’t make you worse than anyone else. Being alone is not permanent. Just because you aren’t around other people doesn’t mean you can’t survive and manage on your own. You can be just as successful without others as you are with them.

There are many positive aspects of being alone. Things happen more efficiently when you work by yourself. There are fewer distractions. Your own thoughts can be heard when no one else is around. This is an opportunity for you to grow and be independent. You will become less reliant on others, but most importantly, you will truly learn to love yourself!

No company does not equal bad company, extroverts! You are capable of being yourself and being successful when there is no one else around. Fear should not hold you back from what you really want to do. Therefore, the next time your friends can’t do something with you try and step out of comfort zone by doing it solo.

You will feel better knowing that you did it by yourself rather than letting a great opportunity pass you by. Also, who knows, you might make a friend, or discover something completely new. Being alone does not last forever, but it’s something that everyone is able to do - not just introverts!