Why does it seem difficult to eat alone in a restaurant? (Image Source: AI-Generated)
Lifestyle Desk, New Delhi. Imagine, you are standing outside a fancy restaurant. The smell of delicious food is coming from inside, light music is playing and the atmosphere is perfect. Your hunger is at its peak, but you are unable to muster the courage to go inside. You peek inside through the glass door and then take out your phone and start looking at it as if some very important work has come up.
In fact, you are just scared. The fear that as soon as you sit alone at the table, everyone present in the restaurant will leave their food and start staring only at you. Is this just an illusion of your mind or is there some deep secret behind it? Let us understand in detail.
What is the psychology behind this?
Psychologists call this the 'spotlight effect'. This is such a mental state where we feel that we are standing on a stage and all the lights of the world are shining on us. We feel that everyone is noticing our every action, our sitting alone and our way of eating food. Whereas the reality is that other people are so engrossed in their food and their gossip that they don't care if you are alone.
Society's pressure and our thinking
Right from childhood we are taught that eating is a 'social activity'. Be it a festival or a party, we always eat among our loved ones. Therefore, when we see someone eating alone, our brain associates it with 'loneliness' or 'sadness'. This fear also haunts us that other people might consider us a sad person. We start giving more importance to the opinions of others than our own happiness.
Eating alone is actually a 'superpower'
Just think, eating alone has its own pleasure. Neither the compulsion to talk to anyone, nor the hassle of sharing food, nor the worry about how long the other person will eat. Think of it as a 'solo date'. This is the best way to spend time with yourself, understand your thoughts and enjoy the real taste of food without any noise. This is a sign of confidence, not weakness.
How to remove hesitation?
If you feel scared in the beginning, you can keep a book in your hand or wear headphones and listen to your favorite music. Gradually you will find that the 'imaginary crowd' that was judging you did not actually exist. The day you learn to sit alone and enjoy your meal, you will become truly free.
Also read- Why is hotel check-in time at 12 noon? Most people may not know the inside story
Also read- 10 food experiments, seeing which will kill your hunger, people said that they are messing with the taste