Solo Date Ideas for the Holiday Season
“I like to do things alone.”
Unless you’re announcing you’re anti-chocolate or, even rarer, anti-dog, there’s few statements which provoke a response like this one.
The immediate reaction is typically pity abstracted by curiosity.
Why? Because our constructed society has superficially equated solitude with loneliness or, even worse, failure.
For what’s worse than a woman who hasn’t locked down a man to accompany her? Or a woman who doesn’t have bountiful friends to take on every single adventure? And, similar myths surround masculinity, too.
With this lens, being alone signals something much deeper.
But, here’s some tough love. The world is going to keep spinning and magic is going to be circulating with or without you.
Why would you miss the opportunity to experience it for such an arbitrary reason like solitude?
News flash! Being alone and having fun while doing it is for hot girls and guys.
Whether by choice or circumstance, you can have a jolly ole time this holiday season (and all year round!) doing things by yourself and for yourself.
Give it a try and I promise you’ll see a stronger, sexier you.
Being Alone 101
Before I list some specific examples of solitary activities to try, let’s first set some ground rules.
First, you deserve to take up space. Your value is just as great alone as it is in a group. Need I say more?
Next, here’s some more tough love—being nervous isn’t enough of a reason not to do something. The first time you walk into anywhere new is nerve-wracking, but your body is built to do scary things. In the battle of flight versus fight, don’t let flight win.
Finally, using your phone as a crutch is okay, but only for a little while. Look at the world around you, people watch, or spend time sitting alone with your own thoughts. Our brains need as many moments of stillness absent of distraction as we can get. Science says so.
Need ideas? Let’s start small and work our way up.
Newbie to spending time alone? Try these things!
Take a walk around your neighborhood.
Try going inside instead of ordering through the drive-thru.
Avoid the self-checkout aisle and talk to the real human at the cash register.
Holiday bonus: Grab some of those easy to make cookies that you slap on a cookie sheet, walk away while they bake, and then enjoy them yourself!
Okay, you’re ready to step it up? Check this out!
Spend 30 minutes reading at your local library.
Go to the movie theater by yourself and order that damn popcorn.
Take a short drive somewhere new—we’re talking two or three hours on a road you’ve never been on.
Holiday bonus: Decorate your home. Just because you don’t have kids, a partner, or family living with you, doesn’t mean you don’t deserve cozy Christmas vibes.
You’re starting to rock and roll? Level up!
Eat at a restaurant alone—and not at the bar.
Attend a town event. An art show, a lecture at the library, the Christmas parade, or a city council meeting.
Spend an afternoon window shopping down your town’s Main Street. Say “hi” to the workers and don’t feel pressured to buy anything.
Holiday bonus: Pick out a Christmas tree at your local shop. The Boy Scouts here in Cody, WY have taken over a parking lot; check out your local troops. Or, cut one down yourself, baddie!
Welcome to grad school. The world is your oyster!
Go to a concert by yourself. I promise it’s not as weird as it sounds.
Join a local book club (your library probably has one).
Take a solo roadtrip. You can read about what I learned when I drove across the country by myself.
Holiday bonus: Go see a performance of the nutcracker, check out Erie’s new holiday themed bar, or see the newest Phipps collection in Pittsburgh.
Ladies and gents, this month and beyond, we’re embracing our built-in best friends—ourselves! If there’s anyone worth getting to know in this silly little life, it’s you. Let’s have fun.
