Be able to be alone. Lose not the advantage of solitude, and the society of thyself.

Sitting with yourself, without reaching for company or a screen, is a capacity, and like any capacity it weakens when it goes unused. Solitude is where you find out what you think when nobody is waiting for a reaction. Lose the habit and other people’s opinions fill that space until you mistake them for your own. None of this asks you to withdraw from anyone, only to keep your own company available.

Try an hour this week with nothing to respond to. A walk, a chair, the phone left behind. Notice what surfaces once the noise is gone.