The concept of goal setting is a popular topic at the beginning of a new year or new quarter, but it’s something you can start at any point in your life. If you are feeling like something’s gotta change, don’t wait for next month, next week, or tomorrow to start. Why not set new goals right now?

Creating a vision or goal for yourself has the power to help you see something bigger than what you are currently living or doing. I’m all for going towards expansion in your heart and life. Taking time to write down what your vision is, can give you a new sense of purpose and get you excited to work towards something new.

When we go through our daily actions and way of doing things, it becomes a habit. To move away from a habit, you have to disrupt your activities and mindset to get a new result. Having a new goal can help you see how you can do things differently to begin stepping into that new sense of self.

In personal style, the same struggle is real. Maybe you had been on autopilot, waking up, grabbing the same pieces and going about your day. Which is totally normal; we aren’t changing up our style constantly. But it becomes an issue when one day you open up your closet and start to question, “Do I like any of this clothing anymore?” “Why am I starting to feel like I want something more?” And even getting to the point of knowing, ”I don’t feel good in this clothing anymore.” 

The moment you become aware that you want something new, even if you aren’t quite sure what it is, that is when it’s time to ask yourself the right questions to see how you can move forward. Some people stay in this limbo place for days, weeks, even years before setting a new vision for their closet and seeing what they can change to feel aligned with what they wear again.

The big problem is when you are in this in-between phase and you skip the vision setting or what I like to call creating a Style Statement. Online shopping or a style box, becomes the quick fix to fill in your closet with something new. This usually results in a lot of new pieces that don’t necessarily fit together or fit you personally. 

Those great sale finds and new fancy pieces still make your wardrobe feel less than. 

Let me just say that if you’ve experienced this, you know this doesn’t solve your problem of feeling out of tune with your body. 

If you are in a place where your lifestyle has changed, you’ve switched careers, reached a new decade or have had significant change in your life, it’s time to get clear on your Style Statement. Here are the steps to create your own. 

What is a Style Statement?

A Style Statement is a declaration or a goal of how you want to feel and look in the clothing you wear.

Why write out your Style Statement?

When you know how you want to look and feel, you are able to be more decisive with the decisions you make. Knowing what to let go from your closet or keep is based on whether it fits your Style Statement or not. If that oversized shirt doesn’t make you feel like the powerful woman you declared in your Style Statement, it’s definitely an item you should let go. Even if you don’t know what else to purchase right now, that’s not something you need to hold onto. The energy you put out with your personality to what you wear doesn’t line up.

The Style Statement can also be used when you shop. As you scroll through your favorite websites and are about to add an item to your cart you can be more aware if it’s something you’ve just been comfortable with in the past, or is it something new that aligns with how you want to look moving forward. It’s easy to get caught shopping for things that feel similar to what we know works for us rather than venturing out into something new. Your Style Statement can get you out of old shopping habits and into developing new ones. 

It can even be used when you try on your new purchases at home or in person. If you try something on that you question and aren’t sure whether to keep or buy it, make sure it aligns with how you want to feel. If it matches and makes you light up, it’s worth keeping. If you fidget and question it too much, let it go, you’ll probably never wear it.

How to create your Style Statement?

When I work with clients, I can get an idea of what it is they are trying to achieve with their style as they share more about their life and what they’ve struggled with. Even though I know what they want and are looking for, I still question them and have them go through this process because it makes a difference saying or writing out what you want or don’t want when it comes to your style. 

Step #1: What three words would describe how you want to look or feel in what you wear?

It’s powerful to know what you want. Don’t be afraid to be honest here. Use descriptive words that feel like the best of you that you want to put out into the world. Clients use words like: put together, classy, feminine, flirty, powerful, edgy, really anything works as long as it lines up with who you are and how you want to reflect that through what you wear.

Step #2: Why do you want to feel or look this way?

Knowing the why is an extra layer of deepness that will bring to light what it is that makes you want to step into this person more. Why is it important to you to look and feel and look a certain way? Stories might come up about your workplace, or not feeling good in a part of your life, or wanting to step into a certain part of your personality more. It could also bring up traumas from past relationships of not feeling like enough or work relationships where you feel like you have to prove yourself. I want to warn you, when you write about it, sometimes the journaling takes you to a place you didn’t know and you find the true reason why your style is important to you.

Step #3: What two words would you use to describe how you DON’T want to look or feel in what you wear? 

Although this may seem counterproductive, it’s actually helpful to also acknowledge and know how you don’t want to look or feel. Sometimes you need that reminder of what doesn’t work for you when you are about to shop for the same kind of piece again that might take you back to where you were. To get out of habits, you have to step into a new place. When it might feel easy or comfortable to go back to what you know, you need a reminder of why you are moving forward instead of backward again.

Put all three parts together and you have a Style Statement you can take a photo of and have it on your phone, you can carry it in your wallet, or keep it near your desk or mirror to look at when you need to look at it again.

In a year, look back and see if it has changed for you. As your life moves in different directions, what’s important to you, what you are going through will reflect what you wear. Be open to your style evolving with time. 

For now, use this for the season or next couple seasons to guide you in your decision making process.

Is it time for you to create a Style Statement? Let us know in the comments below and follow us for more insights on Instagram @thecloset.edit