Benefit from Loneliness : 3 Powerful Steps to Embrace Solitude
I came across this insightful video by Karan Bajaj the other day on the benefits of loneliness. Karan is an Indian author, entrepreneur, and founder of the coding education platform WhiteHat Jr. Though mostly known for his Novels, and the significant acquisition of his startup WhiteHat JR, ( around $300+ million) the videos on his YouTube steer away from the norm and talk about deeper topics like meditation, spirituality, creativity and life transformation.
One video that immediately grabbed my attention was titled ‘What I learnt from loneliness ‘. Despite our increasingly connected world, loneliness has become a pervasive modern-day problem, affecting people of all ages. But loneliness can also be used in transformative ways to change your life. In the video, There were some profound insights on the benefits of loneliness and How to use loneliness for personal growth, which I thought was worth putting out in a blog as it could help others in some way or the other or in many ways.
Embrace Loneliness as a Learning Opportunity
After Karan graduated from IIT, he chose to live in various cities, including moving from India to the US. At that time, he was deliberately choosing loneliness. In retrospect, he realized that loneliness taught him a lot about himself, which became a very important aspect in his life later on. He says in his video – “Loneliness = Self-discovery”.
When you live alone you’ll start uncovering many things about yourself through which you can create a lot of authenticity in the things that you create. These experiences taught him invaluable lessons about himself that shaped his life.
Lessons from Ancient Yogis
Karan dives deeper into the concept of embracing loneliness through the analogy of ancient yogis – In ancient times, the yogis followed the principle of not staying in any city for more than 4 days, not in any town for more than 2 days, and not in any village for more than a day. They knew that if they stayed longer, they would form friendships, families, and relationships, and they wanted their lives to be free and special.
Similarly, Karan wasn’t searching for enlightenment but wanted to be a little free from his attachments. The reason was that When he was in India with his friends, and family, or at his job in Mumbai, his thoughts became very common with those around him.
When he was with family, they would talk about how he was 28 or 29 years old back then, and why wasn’t he settled yet. With friends, they would discuss the old days of Delhi. When he was with colleagues, they would talk about politics and promotions, even though he wasn’t much interested in those topics.
Finding Your Own Path
So, when he got the opportunity to live separately, he started doing things that were important to him. When he was in the Philippines, he started learning to hike for the first time, then he started writing and later learned and practiced yoga. These things, which have become very important to him, came from that period of loneliness. He has written some amazing books from these periods,
one of the story of which still stays with me is Johnny Gone Down. He mentions that even the idea of his highly successful startup White Hat Jr came from his period of loneliness.
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Don’t avoid loneliness; it can be a very powerful thing. Just like the ancient yogis who avoided forming attachments by constantly moving, he found freedom in solitude. Away from the familiar influences of friends, family, and work, he discovered his own path.
If you are feeling lonely and it makes you sad or depressed, this is quite common, but you can use this period effectively. Here are three things, rather actions which you can implement that can be very useful and powerful during.
1. Create Something Meaningful
Loneliness offers deep, uninterrupted time to reflect. Use this time to create—pick what you like whether it’s writing a book, starting a YouTube channel, or exploring a new hobby. This creative expression will give meaning to your solitude and lead to personal growth.
2. Meditate to Calm and Focus Your Mind
While loneliness can make your mind restless, meditation is one powerful medium and tool that can help bring clarity, balance, and calm. Meditation can play a crucial role in lonely periods to help one stay grounded, and focused and shed light and clarity on their unique life paths.
3. Recognize the Uniqueness of This Period
Remember, loneliness is temporary. Periods of solitude are short-lived important chapters of your life. Embrace this time as a special moment that can lead to significant personal development and long-lasting impact.
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Conclusion
Don’t shy away from loneliness—it’s a powerful tool for self-discovery and success. By creating, meditating, and embracing this unique time, you can transform solitude into something beautiful and extraordinary. Don’t struggle with loneliness, for it has mystical forces of renewal. Embrace it and grow through its transformative powers.