People Who Stay Up Late Just To Get Time Alone With No Responsibility Usually Have 11 Highly Intelligent Traits
SeventyFour | Shutterstock Most people understand that sleep deprivation and an avoidance of rest can negatively affect personal health, cognition, and overall mood, but fewer people know that “night owl” behaviors, in general, have similar consequences. According to a study from Psychiatry Research, regardless of a person’s preferred bedtime and self-justifications for staying up late, everyone benefits from turning in early.
However, some people can’t help but cling to the alone time and quietness a late night provides. Whether it’s because they’re inherently reflective or emotionally attuned and need space to unpack what they’re thinking and feeling, people who stay up late just to get time alone with no responsibility usually have these highly intelligent traits.
People who stay up late just to get time alone with no responsibility usually have 11 highly intelligent traits
1. They’re highly reflective and self-aware
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People who need time to reflect on their thoughts, unpack everything that happened during the day, and process without distractions are usually the same people who stay up late just to get time alone with no responsibility. Especially for caretakers, parents, and overly busy people, who don’t get the chance for alone time during the day, they cling to this space at night with a tight grip.
Of course, the right balance of healthy solitude and rest at night is important. Without it, these individuals will carry both emotional and physical fatigue that makes everything much more difficult during the day.
2. They’re regulated people
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Regulated people often need alone time to address, process, and make sense of the emotions they’ve faced throughout the day. If they have a million obligations to attend to and distractions to rely on to ignore emotions in daily life, chances are the early morning hours are the only space they get to show up for themselves
While it might seem unimportant to someone who regularly runs from and avoids their complex emotions, a study from Personality and Individual Differences found that emotional regulation actually predicts several positive life outcomes, from mental health to social connections. So, this alone time at the end of the day is necessary, especially if they want to start the next day without the fatigue of suppression on their minds.
3. They have a strong inner voice
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People who have a strong inner voice often have a stronger connection to certain intelligent traits. They have the ability to think deeper and reflect, because their mind is always racing with new thoughts, questions, and feelings, even while everyone else is blank.
People who stay up late just to get time alone with no responsibility usually have these highly intelligent traits. They finally have the freedom to listen to their inner voice without obligations or distractions to attend to. Whether it’s growing inspired by thoughts they can creatively practice or simply reflecting on the day’s events, they must carve out this time, sometimes at the expense of rest.
4. They’re incredibly empathetic
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Many empaths and incredibly caring people put their own needs to the side during the day to show up for other people. While this kind of empathy can often boost well-being, mood, and social connections in the moment, as a 2021 study explains, at the end of the day, they can’t escape the internal emotions and needs that come up when they don’t have a distraction.
Their night owl tendencies may be necessary, especially if they have other traits like self-awareness and a strong inner voice that don’t get smaller from being ignored.
5. They’re creative
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According to a study from the University of Arizona, creative people are more likely to enjoy and seek out more idleness during the day than the average person. So, it’s not surprising that people who stay up late just to get time alone with no responsibility usually have these highly intelligent traits.
Of course, their intelligence lies in creative habits and innovative mindsets, but they also cultivate strength and meaning by making time for them. Without this alone time at night, where they can be artistic or think creatively without having to show up for anyone else or be productive, they’d constantly be yearning for space to be their most authentic selves.
6. They enjoy their own company
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Authenticity and an appreciation for solitude are both incredibly important indicators of life satisfaction and well-being. Not only are authentic people magnetic to others, but they also know what they want and what they don’t want in their routines.
So, if that means carving out space late at night to appreciate their own interests, alone time, and company, they’re willing to sacrifice a bit of sleep to do that. They may not be afraid to set boundaries and say “no” during the day, but often compromise to help people with a late night of solitude.
7. They crave silence
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While it’s often misunderstood in today’s world, silence, both in conversations and in solitude, is incredibly important. Not only does it promote brain clarity and focus, but it can also provide spaces for people to reflect on and regulate their own emotions, even when they’re around others.
People who stay up late just to get time with no responsibility usually have these highly intelligent traits. They’re craving silence and idleness so badly that they’re forced to find it in the most inconvenient part of their day, when most people are asleep.
8. They hold themselves to high standards
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During the day, it’s often the most intelligent people who consistently hold themselves to “perfectionist” standards. Whether it’s saying “yes” to a million projects at work or trying to help everyone in their lives with something, they often set themselves up for constant stimulation and exhaustion by overcommitting.
While most are trying to “prove” something or live up to the identity other people have crafted for them, it also means that they’re sabotaging their necessary silence and alone time. People who stay up late just to get alone time with no responsibility usually have these highly intelligent traits.
9. Their brain is always on
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Especially for people who are already quick, deep thinkers and pondering a million questions at a time, going to bed with the rest of the world can feel impossible. Especially for intelligent people who often need solitude and quietness to think through all of these things, they meet their brain where it is in the depths of the night, without distractions.
Whether they’re journaling from bed or indulging in creative hobbies to physically process their thoughts, they need the alone time that the early morning hours bring.
10. They’re most like themselves without distractions
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Without distractions from the world and other people around to encourage them into performance, people who are truly authentic use quietness and alone time to their advantage.
People who stay up late just to get time alone with no responsibility are intentional about carving out spaces for themselves to reconnect, both with their values and needs, but also with their bodies and minds. They refuse to let the needs and stereotypes of the world come home with them, and need this space as a reminder of what’s actually important to them.
11. They craft their homes intentionally
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For people who are often forced to conform to certain institutional expectations and norms when they’re living their lives out in the world, truly intelligent people make sure to craft a solace at home to come back to. Whether it’s simply home decor and comfort or specific rituals in their space that allow them to connect back to personal needs and values, these people crave enjoying these spaces as much as possible.
People who stay up late just to get this time alone in their space, with no responsibility, often have these traits and tendencies. They know what they want and craft their environments to best support them, especially when the outside world is stressful and overwhelming.
Zayda Slabbekoorn is a senior editorial strategist with a bachelor’s degree in social relations & policy and gender studies who focuses on psychology, relationships, self-help, and human interest stories.
