Why Being Single In Your 30s Is Awesome

Despite research that suggests that the average married woman is more unhappy than the average single woman, women are groomed to want long-term relationships and feel inadequate when they don’t have them, particularly as they approach their 30s (via Money). But being single is actually a blessing in disguise for many women, especially once they’ve hit 30. Here’s why singledom in your 30s is so amazing.

  1. You finally have the means to enjoy your freedom. By the time most people reach their 30s, they have more savings or a higher income than they did when they were younger. That means you finally have enough money to enjoy your freedom. If you live alone in your 30s, you can decorate your house exactly how you want — with furniture you can actually afford. You can travel where and when you like. Not having a partner and having more money allows you to splurge as you see fit without pushback or judgment.
  2. You have more confidence to stand alone. It can be hard to feel confident when you’re single in a couple’s world. But by the time you reach your 30s, you’re likely to have developed a little more belief in yourself. In this way, being single in your 30s is easier than being single in your 20s, when you might be more insecure about your single status.
  3. You have more time to put into your career. Being single often means having more time on your hands. When you’re in your 30s, it can be useful to have extra time to put towards your career. These may be the years when you can start earning a lot more or rising to new heights, as long as you have the time and energy to keep up with the demands.
  4. You’ll have more time for your passions. Life shouldn’t just be about work. Having more time as a single person usually means you’ll also have time for your passions—something that people balancing jobs and families or relationships often don’t have time for. As people get married, have kids, and advance in their careers, their hobbies and favorite pastimes tend to slip away. But when you’re single, that’s less likely to happen as you’re likely to have more time and fewer responsibilities.
  5. You can spend more time fostering meaningful friendships. Most people underestimate the importance of adult friendships. Some experts argue that healthy friendships are even more crucial to a person’s happiness than having a romantic relationship. When you’re single, you can put in the work required to foster and sustain meaningful friendships, while people in relationships might struggle to balance friendships with the other commitments required of them in their 30s.
  6. You’re wiser when it comes to dating. One of the best things about being single in your 30s is the wisdom you’ll have when it comes to dating. Typically, you would have been on a few dates in your 20s and learned a lot of lessons, some of them good and some of them hard. As a result, dating in your 30s is easier and more straightforward.
  7. You know what you want. When you’re a wiser woman in your 30s, there’s more chance that you’ll know what you’re looking for, in a partner and in life. Even if you don’t know exactly what you want yet, you’re likely to have more of an idea than you did when you were younger. This is another factor that can make dating a lot easier.
  8. You can get ahead financially. Many things in life are more expensive for single people. For example, buying a house with one income instead of two can be tricky. But being single still allows you to get ahead financially (via Wealthify). You are in control of your finances, which means you can choose the risks you want to partake in and avoid the ones you don’t. Additionally, you have more time for side hustles and education. You also don’t have the expense of children.
  9. You’ve learned from the mistakes and lives of other people. A lot of people consider their 20s to be their years of trial and error. By the time you reach your 30s, you’ll likely have friends who have separated or divorced from their long-term partners, been through nasty breakups, or suffered heartbreak. Did your friend marry someone she knew for two months and end up losing half her assets in a terrible divorce two years later? If so, you’re likely to be more careful about avoiding the same fate. With time on your side, you have the advantage of learning lessons from the lives and mistakes of others
  10. You know you haven’t settled. When you are single in your 30s, you have the privilege of knowing one thing: at least you haven’t settled. It’s always better to be alone than to be with the wrong person who doesn’t enhance your life or make you happy. Being alone when the majority of your friends have paired up can be tough, but you’ll have the peace of mind that you haven’t settled.
  11. You’re pushed out of your comfort zone. Despite the many perks of being single in your 30s, the experience can still be challenging. More than likely, there will be times when you’re pushed out of your comfort zone as a single woman in your 30s. But leaving your comfort zone is a good thing—this is precisely the time that you become stronger and learn how capable and adaptable you are.
Vanessa Locampo is an Aussie writer who’s equally obsessed with YA fiction and pasta. Her time is divided between writing all the things, reading all the things, listening to Queen, and bopping her cat on the nose. She has a bachelor’s degree in Creative Writing and has written for sites including Hotsprings.co and Discovering Montana, and currently works as an editor at Glam. You can keep up with her on Instagram @vanessaellewrites.
close-link
close-link