Growing up in a house where dinner dawats and guests were abundant my skills at socializing are pretty fine tuned. In school I had multiple friends circles and that goes on to university as well. I love being around people and ‘hanging out’ but recently I have started to adore the time I spend with myself.

This is not to say that I suddenly hate all my friends and am totally comfortable with living a life in isolation.

They are still an integral part of my life but ever now and then I need to get away and do something just for myself.

It really is the tiniest of things that counts as ‘me time’. Two of my favorite things to do is either to dive head first into a great novel or listen to some good old Noor Jehan (she gets me). Oh and once a month I take myself out to go shopping (to no avail) and this usually includes a long coffee shop pit stop.

A lot of people find this incredibly odd and I’m often asked if I have friends.

Spending time with yourself is not about being lonely or about being depressed. Its actually quite funny when people question you about why you’re spending time on your own. They become so convinced that you are a sad little person that needs their help.

For me and I’m sure a lot of other people, having time for myself is a great way to be comfortable with your own company. Its an amazing way to get to love yourself and connect to what makes you truly happy. With friends anyone can forgo what makes them happy for the greater good of the group. Having small pockets of time during the day for doing things YOU truly want to do is in my opinion the best way to uplift your mood.

Now that you know how awesome spending time with yourself is, there are things should add to your ‘Me Time Bucket List’:

Go Watch A Movie On Your Own

I was really scared the first time I did this but no one was willing to go with me and I really wanted to watch this movie. So I thought, what the heck and got myself to the cinema. There’s something magical about watching without someone nagging you for details or passing on jokes.

Take yourself out on breakfast

If you’re an early riser and love breakfast as much as I do then treating yourself to good pancakes and waffles is not a sin! Life should not be about waiting for others to wake and then eating- am I right or am I right?

Do something you’re passionate about

Take time out to pursue what you really want to do. If you’re into photography, ditch everyone else, explore the city and grab some incredible shots. Or if you’re into art then take up classes.

Just lay in bed for those extra 30 minutes (or more)

If that’s what makes you happy then go for it. There’s nothing more fun then just mindlessly lazing around!

Talk a nice long walk

When the weather is more forgiving going on walks by yourself is the best time to reflect and cleanse away the worries of the day.

Walk down memory lane

This is my favorite thing to do! Open your box of all those keepsakes and reminisce about the good old days. If you can’t do that then just look at really old photos on Facebook, same effect.

I am the best person I know (narcissism kuch zyada hogaya) so spending time with myself is always awesome, so all the haters can go ahead and hate.

Cover image via: Dharma Productions