A man can be himself only so long as he is alone, and if he does not love solitude, he will not love freedom, for it is only when he is alone that he is really free.

In company you are always adjusting, taking the shape the room expects, usually without noticing. Time alone is where you find out what you think and want when there is nobody to agree or disagree. That is why it can feel like freedom rather than emptiness. Someone who cannot bear their own company stays a little governed by whoever is nearby.

Try an hour this week with no company and nothing to fill it. Notice what you want when nobody is watching you want it. Solitude is not the opposite of connection; it is what gives you something of your own to bring back.