It's 2015, and the era of the "strong independent woman who don't need no man" is in full swing. For the college crew, this is great news - what a more perfect training ground to practice your "I don't need you" attitude? But there's a difference between making #Independent your Instagram caption and making being independent your morning mantra. Here are six reasons that boost the value in making "independent" something to live by and not just your next hashtag.

You really "don't need no man".

Being independent means relying on yourself for basically everything, including your happiness. You know that relationships are great, but if and only if they are with the right person. You aren't interested in settling for just anyone, because quite frankly, why would you waste time on something that is sub-par when you could be out doing something great for yourself? You know that special someone will eventually come along, but until then, you will just keep doing your thing.

You become great at money management.

One of the biggest college struggles is trying to keep more than $10 in your bank account without having to fall back on your parents or guardians for a few extra bucks. Independent people take pride in making ends meet, even on minimum wage in an overpriced apartment, without help from anyone else (unless it is absolutely necessary). Making the conscious choice to try to get by on your own not only sets you up for the real world of adulthood, but teaches you what your priorities are as well. If you're skipping Chipotle this week to pay the electric bill or chapter fees, congratulations! You're really nailing this money management thing.

You become great at any management, really.

You don't need your roommate to make sure that you wake up for your early class, because you're probably up and out of the room an hour before the class starts anyway. You keep a detailed to do list and have calendars both in your backpack and on your desk. You know how much time you need to allow yourself to study every night in order to still get a good hour or two of Netflix in before bed. You have learned to function on your own, and because of that, you have become more self-sufficient than 96 percent of the people you know.

You are your own hero.

Long gone are the days when you waited for someone else to pick you up when you were feeling down. Having a shoulder to cry on is nice, but not necessary for the independent person to feel better. You know how long you can stay sad about a bad test grade or fight with a friend until it's time to move on better than anyone. You know what type of ice cream you like best to fix a bad day, or what Spotify radio station will calm you down. You are our own hero and you wear your own cape, because lets face it, you know yourself better than anyone else ever could.

You control your life.

A main key to being independent is knowing that you have the power to walk away from bad situations. If you're dating a person and you know it's not going to go the way you thought it would, you know you have every right to say what you feel, let it go, and stay civil. If you hate your job, you find another one and leave the old one in the past without causing a scene. If a friendship has turned sour, you cherish the good memories but don't let drama get in the way of ruining them. Being independent doesn't mean stepping on toes and walking all over people, but it does mean knowing your worth and what you do and do not deserve.

You are happy.

Just super content, simple, unadulterated happy. You are self-sufficient enough to keep yourself moving and healthy all of the time. You surround yourself with people who make you laugh until your stomach hurts and you don't deal with petty drama. You have learned to not sweat the small stuff. Most importantly, accomplishing things on your own that other people have probably doubted is just an irreplaceable feeling, and once you have gotten a taste of it, it becomes so addicting that you just can't stop.

If this isn't you yet, make it a goal to achieve small steps of independence, like not asking your roommate to wake you up for class in case you don't hear your alarm. Small goals make a big difference. If you are expressing your independence already, cheers!