What Is An Old Soul? What It Means & Struggles We Face

The world keeps changing, and it’s partially due to the influence of millennials. The generation born after 1980 is one of the most talked about of all time because we’ve changed the way just about everything is done. However, some of us don’t agree with all of the changes because we have an old soul, and we face a unique set of challenges living in a modern world as a result.

What is an old soul?

Dictionary.com defines an old soul as “a person, especially a child or young person, who demonstrates a maturity, understanding, or seriousness that is typical of someone much older.” That’s a pretty great way to explain the term, though there’s more to it than that.

Those of us who consider ourselves old souls often feel like we don’t fit in with our peers. We have different hobbies, interests, and priorities than those our age. Many describe us as too traditional or even square. However, we feel pretty certain that we know the secrets of a good life.

Qualities of an old soul

  1. We’re always looking for deeper meaning in life. We feel certain that we’re on this planet for a greater purpose and we never stop trying to find out what that is. We want to make a difference and to take advantage of the limited time we have here. Tomorrow is never promised.
  2. We’re spiritual beings. That doesn’t mean we’re religious, however. An old soul is usually deeply connected to spirituality in some way. We find solace in connecting to higher powers, even the power that exists within ourselves.
  3. We feel like we’ve lived many lifetimes. Many of us even believe that we actually have. Who knows? Maybe we’re right.
  4. We gravitate towards older people. From friends to romantic partners, most of the people in our lives were born many years before us. It’s just more comfortable that way.
  5. We’re very introspective and self-aware. Old souls are often seen as being “deep.” That’s because we’re philosophical and very thoughtful about ourselves and the world around us. This can become annoying to other people, but it’s simply what comes naturally to us.

Struggles of having an old soul

  1. We think sex should mean something. We don’t understand how people just hook up without having any feelings for each other. We like the emotional connection that comes from having sex with someone we really like; without that, it’s just meaningless thrusting that leaves us feeling empty and sad inside (even if it was fun for 10 minutes).
  2. We don’t get the appeal of Snapchat. We already got comfortable with smartphones and picture messaging. The only real purpose of using Snapchat is to send risqué pictures that won’t stay on the recipient’s phone forever, and we’re not big fans of sending/receiving those kinds of pictures in the first place.
  3. We think song lyrics should actually be about something. Those of us with old souls tend to listen to a lot of music that’s older than we are because we like when a song has a good message or story in it. If you listen to the radio today, it seems like every song is about casual sex or making money. We’ll listen to it occasionally as background music in the car, but we’ll always go for the classic tunes when we want to listen to real music that soothes the soul.
  4. We don’t want to do everything in/with a group. We live in a world where people do everything in groups, and we really don’t get the appeal of always being with a crowd. People think we’re weird when we’d rather be alone, but we need that alone time.
  5. We think most reality TV is completely ridiculous. We don’t understand the appeal of shows about the day-to-day drama of so-called real housewives or 50 grown adults living in essentially an overgrown frat/sorority house and alternately hooking up/fighting with each other. There’s no plot; it’s just constant drama and it’s annoying.
  6. We don’t want to play games or play the field. When we’re single, we just do our own thing. When we meet someone we like, we don’t want to play games and date other people in an attempt to make them jealous. If there’s a connection, we want to give it a shot and see if it could be the real deal. This becomes a struggle in a world where it seems like nobody wants to have serious relationships and people who refuse to play games are ignored.
  7. We’re not afraid of commitment, but everyone else is. We believe in true love, the old-fashioned love that makes us smile every time we think about a certain someone and imagine sitting on the front porch with them when we’re old and gray, still in love decades later. It seems like most people these days would rather end up sitting on that front porch alone because they’re afraid to commit their lives to one person.
  8. We fear for the next generation. Those of us who want children are in a unique predicament. Not only is it difficult to find someone who wants big commitments like marriage and kids, but we also wonder what kind of world our potential future children will grow up in. We don’t want to shelter them too much and make them hate us, but we also don’t want them to turn out like the people we see around us every day; the ones who know “Hotline Bling” by heart but have never heard “Hotel California.”
  9. We think modern beauty standards are ridiculous and unrealistic. Since when did it become a bad thing for women to have curves? That’s just ridiculous. If we were meant to have rock-hard abs and a 3” thigh gap, we would be built that way naturally, but we’re not. Even if the rest of the world thinks that’s attractive, we have no desire to look like that. Besides, we think cuddling with a pillow is much more pleasant than a rock.
  10. We give zero f*cks what others think of us. We’ve always been a little different, and we’re okay with that. People tend to think we’re weird or behind on the times, but we don’t want to “catch up.” We love our old souls because they make us who we are, and we don’t ever want to change.
  11. Staying in is much more appealing to us than going out. We love people and all, but we draw your energy from being alone. As so much information is swirling through our heads all day long, we need to give ourselves a rest. If given the choice, we’d definitely choose a night in doing our favorite hobby instead of a wild night out.
Anna Martin Yonk is a freelance writer and blogger in sunny North Carolina. She loves hanging out with her goofy husband and two rescue dogs and can be found at the beach with a drink in hand whenever possible. You can find her on Instagram @mrsyonkdogmom or on her Facebook page.
close-link
close-link