The Power of Positive Experiences Part 1 - effects and importance

In the realm of the self-dependent loner, a couple of strange things happen that aren't in the normal purview of those with a large amount of connection to the outer world. I've touched on these things, particularly in regards to my post on Hypervigilance, where you exercise a high degree of vigilance to threat with a view to avoiding anything that might come up before it does.

The main problem there is that once something does go wrong, it can land you in some really hard territory to get out of. It's hard to haul yourself to the doctor and then back home when you've got no one to take you, for example. Letting the house degenerate into squalor just means a whole lot of work for you, because there's no one but yourself to a)blame for letting it get that bad, and b)clean it up for you.

These sorts of things are part of why positive experiences - especially for introverts - are such powerful tools. Here are some of the ways they can help:

They provide relief from the particular grind that loners deal with day to day. They give you an opportunity to drop your baggage and concerns and just enjoy the ride for a while. Sure, this goes for everyone else too, but when you're running the whole show by yourself, that can be an especially huge boon.

They help reinforce the idea that you are playing the game right and not doing something that is too hard/wrong for your lifestyle. Personally this is something I've noticed after having a good time - I've often wondered if I should give up seeking my own rich inner life and thrusting myself 'out there'. After enjoying something good, I often reflect that I don't have to change anything about my life, because good things do come along.

They help reinvigorate you for getting back into what I've broadly termed 'the grind' (though that's probably a bit of an unhealthy term for it). They help break plateaus and motivate you to change things that have been hanging around for a while. Again, this is a fairly common effect of affirmative experiences for everyone, but it's especially poignant for those who manage their entire lives themselves.

Those are the three main positives that I get when I experience something good in my life and situation. I'm sure there are a lot more, but this isn't meant to be exhaustive - just provide a bit of an idea about what the benefits can be, and to act as a statement for why you should get out there and make an effort to have good things happen to you.

In my next post on Positive Experiences, I'm going to figure out what makes a positive experience in a fairly granulated, concept-y sort of way. I'll round out with a third post about suggestions for what can make a positive experience when you don't want to involve other people and just enjoy yourself.