Social pressure, fear of loneliness, boredom, material interests, willingness to succeed in life… these are just a few of the wrong reasons for which both men and women enter a relationship. Although modern society has much evolved during the last century, singles are still rather often regarded as social pariahs. Nevertheless, this status comes with a series of advantages, and those who choose to remain single for the right reasons fully benefit from them.
1. Freedom:
This is the first word that comes into somebody’s mind when thinking about the advantages of being single. Men think about their poker nights or football games. Women dream of the long gossip talks they used to have on the phone or over a cup of coffee. In reality, the freedom single-hood brings along refers to much more than this. It touches all aspects of life.
Being single means there is no one you have to update on your whereabouts or whose feelings you have to spare. The guys at work or your high school friends have just invited you out, but your wife planned a family dinner. Or, you want to stay home, and watch the football match on TV, but your girlfriend made you promise her that you would take her out this Friday. You will never have to deal with this kind of situation while being single.
You have just had your best friend on the phone. She is depressed about a work issue and her last date was a total disaster. All you have to do is put on your shoes, jump in a cab, and you are at her place to provide some comfort or a shoulder to cry on. You don’t have to worry about your partner’s jealousy, or about the explanations you will have to give him when you come home late.
Anyway, once you got back home, you can put on your old and torn (but so comfy) pajamas, and spend the rest of the evening in front of the TV, watching your favorite show until you fall asleep, in a bed that belongs only to you.
2. More time for hobbies, your career, and yourself:
Although both men and women agree (theoretically) that it isn’t healthy, it is a common scenario, that people change their lifestyle when they enter a relationship. Having to integrate somebody else into your daily routine is not always easy, and it comes at certain costs. Namely, less time for your hobbies, less focus on your own career, and less availability for self improvement.
If embraced willingly, single-hood allows you to spend your spare time the way you and only you see fit. There are no family obligations, no social events you have to attend for the benefit of your partner’s career, and no time that you have to spend together if you want your relationship to work. You can focus on your own job, and put in the extra-hours, if necessary, to help you get the promotion you deserve. You can go to the gym or to play darts with the guys as often as you want, without worrying that it might look suspicious. Moreover, there will be no complaints from a partner who feels neglected.
3. Less stress:
Relationships are supposed to bring joy into our lives, and to make us feel fulfilled. While finding the right partner and building a healthy romantic liaison is often the greatest gift somebody can hope for, really finding this person is rare. We often hear people around us complaining about the amount of stress they have to deal with while trying to establish a balance of their marital life. They pay large sums of money to shrinks, hoping to improve the quality of their relationships. They neglect their own wishes and dreams, all to often focusing most of their efforts and energy on their partner’s happiness.
Not only will you eliminate these stress sources from your life by being single, but you will also have the time and freedom to engage in much more stress-relieving activities (such as playing sports, attending parties, going out with your friends, practicing spiritual activities like yoga, indulging in your hobbies, etc.).
4. No constraints:
You have certainly (at least once in your lifetime) been the witness of a conversation during which the woman criticizes her partner for his lack of taste in matching colors or styles. You may have also heard a man loudly expressing his dissatisfaction with a partner’s outfit because the cleavage was too low, the skirt too short, and so on. This is just an example of constraints partner’s sometimes place on one another, that you can avoid by choosing single-hood.
5. Ditch the hypocrisy:
Nobody says that all relationships are filled with hypocrisy, but there are times when you are forced to adopt it as a diplomatic strategy. For instance, how many women would rather spend their day off going shopping or having lunch with their partner’s mother or sister instead of chit-chatting with their own girlfriends? Imagine men being dragged by their wives or fiancées to their parents’ house for a holiday meal. Think about having to make conversation and pretend to agree with the father’s political views or remember to compliment the mother’s steak recipe, when what you really wanted to do was to lie in bed with a good book.
In a nutshell, the ever dreaded single-hood actually comes with a series of benefits worth considering. Many people feel scared when faced with the perspective of remaining single. However, this way of living can be much healthier than a stressful and energy consuming relationship. The only condition? Make this decision with full awareness, and fully embrace single-hood, instead of viewing it as a perpetual, desperate, and exhausting quest to find the right partner.
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