DON'T CHASE OTHERS TO DO THE THINGS YOU CAN DO FOR YOURSELF

Learning to be independent is a continuous process for me. And I am broadly referring to independence as it relates to the various parts of our lives. You can be very independent at work and this might not necessarily be the case on the home front. It's important to know that if there is no one around you, you can take care of yourself. 

Emotional independence is important because when it comes to dating, you have to be a whole person without someone else being around you. You must be able to enjoy your own company. That way you can ask yourself important questions like why is this person in my life? 

So, what I am highlighting here is the fact that our relationships have to go beyond the mindset of "so that they wouldn't say I don't have anybody"

Financial independence is being able to meet your needs. It really does not matter how much you earn. What matters is that you are not at the mercy of money. 

Relying on other people excessively can be detrimental to our relationships. By relying on others, you unconsciously develop an entitlement mindset that can lead to offense in the future (especially when the person doesn't come through for you). Also, you are very likely to be disrespected by others. 

Furthermore, I think that we need to do certain things ourselves so that we can improve our skillset

I have a Chef friend that doesn't mind us coming over to his apartment for lunch on most Sundays. He makes amazing pasta! Recently, I was craving good food and because it was a Sunday,  I was so eager to go over to this buddy's place for food. 

At some point, I had to say to myself, "wait a minute, I can actually order my food from the nearby restaurant that I love!"

I realized then that the moment  I knew someone else could satisfy that particular need, I stopped thinking about how I could do the same for myself.

You are independent when you can take care of yourself and your needs. Being independent doesn't diminish the importance of co-existing and collaboration. However, my point is that we must not chase others to do the things we can do by ourselves.