"The last couple of years have been about defining life on my own terms," the singer, 24, tells PEOPLE in this week's 40th Anniversary issue.
"Being on my own, prioritizing my girlfriends, my family and my music above everything else and trying things I never thought I'd try," Swift says of the personal changes she has made. "It's really been a liberating and freeing time."
"I made the decision to spend time on my own and figure out who I am," she says of embracing the single life.
"When you take the other person out of the scenario and you're walking through life on your own, you end up figuring out what you actually like without anyone else's input."
"I'm not too worried about whether I meet someone," she says. "I'm going to be happy either way."
