By Nadia Koligman

Productivity and being busy are thought of as virtues, especially by those of us living in the West. Our society pushes us to live in continuous, frenetic activity. We frantically juggle our commitments and let the chaos of modern living invade and control our lives. We convince ourselves that inner peace is beyond our grasp and succumb to society’s drumbeat: more, better, faster. Unfortunately ever-shrinking leisure time, mental burnout, and physical exhaustion, are the perverse legacy of our accelerated way of life.

We know that if we neglect our cars, they will not perform properly and will begin to break down. Yet most of us take better care of our cars than we do of ourselves. We too need preventative maintenance in order for us to function properly. We forget that if we neglect our inner needs, our lives will become unbalanced and dysfunctional.

Oddly enough, when our lives get crazy and the activities of daily life overwhelm our attention and deplete our energy, the very first thing we eliminate is that which we need most: quiet time to reflect, replenish ourselves and recharge our batteries.

Solitude provides immeasurable benefits. It restores our energy and recalibrates our “internal guidance system”. It gives us an opportunity for introspection and a chance to reconnect with ourselves. Solitude puts us in touch with what’s going on in our inner world and gives us the ability to discover and satisfy our own needs. It nurtures our yearning to explore, our curiosity about the unknown, and our will to be an individual. It is the doorway to our spirituality. It opens us up to that part of ourselves that is timeless and helps us to live each moment as a new and precious treasure.

It’s important that we learn to view solitude as a vital part of our daily living. We should set aside at least 10 minutes each day to spend time alone with our thoughts. We may feel awkward at first, but this is because we haven’t spent enough quiet time alone. We’re simply out of practice.

Once we get a feeling for our own personal rhythm, it will become a natural and effortless process. The form that our time alone takes—whether it’s meditation, contemplation, journaling, prayer, reverie, Tai Chi, yoga, taking a walk, or soaking in a bubble bath—is entirely a matter of choice.

However, solitude is greatly enhanced by experiences that bring us in contact with nature. Thoreau called it the “tonic of the wilderness”. There is something sacred in open spaces. Trees, wind, sunlight, the ocean, a stream, an open field, the mountains—they evoke contentment and bring us a deep sense of peace. It is to our advantage to strengthen ourselves with their healing as often as possible.

We may avoid taking time for solitude because we convince ourselves that we are simply too busy to do so. With our hectic schedules and perpetual lack of time we may think of it as self-indulgent and wasteful. Yet, it is truly one of the most responsible and constructive things we can do for ourselves.

The chaos of modern living often leaves us feeling overwhelmed, helpless and frustrated. When we feel this way we inevitably project our own internal conflicts and frustrations on the world around us. Frazzled people are often less productive, difficult to work with, and not much fun to be around.

Solitude gives us a chance to shut out the noise, chaos, and clutter of our daily lives. It provides an opportunity for us to take ourselves off-line to decompress and sort things out. This actually makes us more productive, especially when we are stuck on a problem.

Attacking a problem head-on often does not work to resolve it. We need quiet time to sift through things and figure things out, to unearth answers and to emerge with new discoveries. Solitude gives our unconscious a chance to process and unravel problems. It releases our creativity and allows our insights to blossom. This leads to more creative solutions to life’s problems and gives us the ability to navigate through life more effectively and gracefully.

In today’s fast paced, stress-filled world it’s vitally important for us to make time to just hang out with ourselves. As busy as we are, we seem to make time for everyone and everything else. Why not treat ourselves with the same consideration? When we give ourselves the gift of our time and solitude, we will not only engage more fully with our own lives, but we’ll also become more effective citizens of our world. It is a worthwhile gift indeed!

© 2008 by Nadia Koligman. All rights reserved.

About the Author
Nadia Koligman is an author, Life Design Strategist, and founder of Dreamnautics Media, a company which produces personal development learning tools. She developed the Dreamnautics® Life Design technology and is living her dream of helping others launch their lives and live their dreams. For additional articles, tools and resources to help you design and build a life you love, visit Nadia’s web site at www.dreamnautics.com.

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