Valentine’s Day. Two words that can cause an entire room of people to roll their eyes and sigh.

Over the years it has seemed to become normal, even encouraged, to hate Valentine’s Day. The reasons behind despising the holiday vary from person to person.

Some people hate the commercial feel of the holiday, while others think you should be showing your love every day of the year, instead of just one. Others are just turned off from the holiday because they believe it is nothing more than a reminder of their single status.

When you focus on the idea that you need to have a significant other or that you need to prove your love on Valentine’s Day, I believe that you end up making yourself miserable for no good reason. In a world that is already hard enough, it just doesn’t make sense to be unnecessarily angry towards a holiday that is centered around love.

Love can come in all different forms and it isn’t simply the romantic love that can be celebrated on Valentine’s Day. Don’t feel that you are pigeonholed into one certain way of celebrating the holiday. You can celebrate your other loved ones as well. Friends, family and even colleagues will appreciate a fun, simple gift or even a kind greeting on the holiday.

There are a few things you can do to avoid being cynical on this holiday and actually enjoy the day.

Celebrate with friends
As fun and therapeutic as it can be to sit around and be completely cynical with a group of friends, it might be a good idea to change it up this year. Get together with a group to order pizza, watch a movie and exchange small gifts.

This shouldn’t be anything you’re going broke over, but it can be fun to spend a few dollars on some corny gifts. It will not only be a fun night but a memory you can look back on fondly. It sounds a lot better than those Valentine’s Day mope-fests, right?

Treat yourself
It also doesn’t hurt to spend a little quality time focusing on yourself. While it may be out of the question to purchase an elaborate spa-day gift package for yourself, it isn’t unreasonable to treat yourself in some simple ways. Make, or buy, your favorite dinner and settle down with a book or movie you’ve been dying to get your hands on.

During the year it can be hard to find a day to pamper yourself. With Valentine’s Day being focused on love, the day becomes a perfect opportunity to make sure you’re treating yourself properly too.

Help with a special day
Another way to celebrate the day is by helping somebody else. Valentine’s Day can be an opportune time for couples to get engaged. If a close friend is planning something and they ask for you help, try saying yes. It can be a lot of fun, and very rewarding, to help somebody out on their special day.

In addition to engagements, you might get an opportunity to help with an anniversary or a very special date between close friend or family couples. Why not help your dad plan something special for Mom or vice-versa?

If you’ve got creative juices flowing but no one to celebrate with, it can be helpful to channel your ideas and energy into helping someone you know. This way you’re helping someone and getting a chance to use your ideas.

If none of these ideas particularly jump out of you, don’t be afraid to come up with your own or add a twist to an existing idea. Just remember that your Valentine’s Day doesn’t have to be boring or unhappy just because you aren’t in a committed relationship. Enjoy the day no matter where you fall on the crazy spectrum of love.