Starting a New Life Alone? 10 Things to Make it Easier For You
So here you are, newly divorced/separated/widowed/single, and trying to navigate this thing called life by yourself. This post is for you if you are starting a new life alone and are absolutely clueless and terrified.
I’ve recently discovered that so many women are starting over at 50 and really want and need a fresh start in life. Starting a new chapter in life can include any or all of the following things:
- new home
- new country
- new job
- new friends
- new people
- new adventure
You see where I’m going with this. Let’s be honest here. The best way to start is to keep an open mind, have a positive mindset, and say yes to everything. Now while the latter sounds bold, you have to remember something. You’ve probably been saying “NO” to all kinds of new things your entire life.
It’s time to say ‘YES’ to all new beginnings, no matter how big or small, and embrace life!!
Starting Over With Nothing
Many of us have had to start over with nothing. This is no easy feat, but it’s also not impossible.
It can be very overwhelming and lonely. You always feel lonely until you don’t. But the most significant emotion that seems to take over is fear, coupled with anxiety, well, it’s a mess.
Whenever we are going through one of life’s storms, or we are in the middle of a traumatic experience or a hard time, we really don’t see a way out or how we’re going to make it through.
But we do. We do every single time! And you will this time too.
10 Things You Need to Do When Starting Over Alone At 50
1 Believe in yourself
This one might be hard for some of us to do because all our lives we’ve been told we are stupid or worthless, but YOU’RE NOT!!! Though it may seem impossible, you CAN do the hard things.
You must start believing in yourself, your personal power, and all the unique gifts, talents, and skills you have that make you awesome!
2 Make a list of happy things
Besides a grocery list, when was the last time you made a list of things you need and want? A list of fun things.
Make a list of all the things you love to do and haven’t done for a very long time, write out things you want to do, places you want to go, and a list of dreams and goals, if you will.
We have put our lives on the back burner to make everyone else happy for so long, well, now it’s your turn to be happy!! Woot!!
3 Enjoy your company
Seriously. Find out who you are. Spend time alone doing random things or absolutely nothing. Read, relax, grow, expand, evolve, whatever you gotta do, do it and find the joy and beauty in all of it.
We think we know who we are, but really we don’t, and not only that, we’re evolving into newer and improved human beings. You need to discover lots about yourself: the good, the bad, and the ugly.
Maybe you need to face some inner demons and do some deep and hard internal work to be free from all the trauma and limiting beliefs from the past.
4 Get out of your comfort zone
Go and do EPIC stuff. For real. Start saying YES more to new adventures and things you’ve never done before. Flick fear away and strap on some zip-lining cables or a parachute!
Stop saying NO when people invite you to places. Start saying YES and go and enjoy life! Starting a new life alone means doing things you’ve never done but have always wanted to!!
A new social life, new people, new friends…remember all that fun new stuff?? You can have it all!
5 Make a list of things to get rid of
Toxic people, places, things, whatever. Make a list of the things in your life you hate right now. It could be family (that’s ok too!) or your job or anything. It’s time to take inventory of what’s working and what’s not.
You don’t want the next 50 years to be a repeat of the last 50. Some crap has gotta go!
Write it out, and you may even be surprised at how many things you still have in your life are causing you grief.
This list is an eye-opener.
And now that you see what’s gotta go, make a plan to get rid of it/them!!!
I’m serious. I don’t care if one of the icky things on your list is your sister, father, or mother. You are an adult. You can say, “You know I don’t really want to come here anymore or be around you anymore or whatever…”
Yup. You can do that.
6 Find and use your voice more
Find and use your voice. Say NO, a lot more. Start saying, ‘you don’t have the right to talk to me like that’ a lot more. I said, ‘Please don’t disrespect me like that’ a lot more.
Do not put up with anyone’s bull anymore. Ever. At all. It doesn’t matter if they like it or not. You are living life for you, babe.
You must learn how to use your voice and set firm and solid boundary lines, so people won’t walk over you as they have been for the last 10 or 20+ years.
7 Volunteer
If you don’t already, please do this. I can’t talk enough about volunteering and how it completely changed my entire life. It’s also really good for your mental health too!
The new people you meet, the new opportunities it holds, the miracles that show up. You’ll be amazed. We heal and grow when we serve others.
Find an organization or something that calls to your heart (get on social media and ask around) and dedicate at least one hour a week to doing it. Now, if you don’t have one free hour a week to volunteer, your life is a mess. Seriously.
8 Start a Mind Map
So, here’s the deal. You are now starting a new life alone. You can do whatever the heck you want, no questions asked, no one to answer to. This is where mind mapping comes in.
I wrote this awesome blog on mind mapping a while ago that I think you might like.
How to Mind Map and Why Everyone Should Do It
Mind mapping is similar to the vision board but different in many ways. Please read the blog above on mind mapping to know how and why you need to do this.
You got goals, and you got dreams. You need a plan!!
9 Stay off dating sites
Look, I totally get how we can become lonely after a while, but you need to spend time with yourself and be alone before you start looking for love again.
I mean, if you’re looking for sex, then have at it, but otherwise, don’t put yourself out there to find love because you are only going to attract what you just got rid of. Make sure your self-love, self-respect, self-worth, self-confidence, and self-esteem are rock solid before you date again.
Just looking out for you, babe xo
10 Learn something new
A language, knitting, swimming, playing piano, or whatever tickles your fancy. Learn something new. There are many free courses to be found online. Trust me, there are. Go see.
As we get older, our brains age too. They’ve been doing the same thing for the last 50 or so years. Feed it something different. Wake it up and make it get excited about life. Just like you!
Starting a new life alone will be overwhelming.
So when is the perfect time to start this new life and leave the old life behind? How about now?
How about I tell you that all good things will come when you’ve made the decision to let go of old things? A great way to do that is just to decide right now, “I am starting this new chapter today!!”
The good news is we all get a second chance in life. If something didn’t work before, it’s up to you to change it so you can have a better and happy life.
The bad news is it will slightly frustrating and scary.
You will have many sad moments. You will have many “I can’t do this” moments. You will also have many lonely moments. Starting a new life alone is beautiful and exhilarating, but it doesn’t come without struggles, sad moments, anxiety, and frustrations.
It won’t be pretty all the time, but it will be worth it.
