Have you ever met someone who’s wanted to change their style for ages, but just can’t seem to go through it? Well, what’s stopping them from taking the plunge? I did some analysis and number crunching (Okay, I asked a few people :-)), and here’s what I think are the top ‘style trappers’ holding people back from changing their personal styles:
Note: This post is not about the following:
- The lucky souls who’ve got their style parameters all figured out and are happy in their place
- The I’m-not-sure-what-to-call-them people who don’t have a clue what style or fashion is and who couldn’t care less about it.
Now, back to the style trappers :-)
- Mental Block/Hesitation to try anything new – You’ve been having the same style for so long that now you simply can’t think of getting out of your comfort zone, even though you know you can do much better.
- Societal/Peer pressures – In many places, people think that once you’ve had a kid you needn’t be fashionable any more. In others, it may be that your co workers/classmates are all badly dressed and you don’t want to stick out like a sore, albeit stylish, thumb.
- Familial pressures – This is kind of rare, but trickier than the rest. You are dying to change your wardrobe, but your husband/mother in law/mother consider fashion as something for ‘shallow’ people and would not like you to spend any time or effort on something so ‘frivolous’.
- Financial constraints – This is a no brainer. You’re having a rough patch with Mr. AccountBook and can’t really afford anything stylish for a while.
- Body image issues – You desperately want to look good and get out of your old clothes, but you’re convinced nothing will look good on your hips/backside/shoulders/arms.
- All of the above
Now, all of these are real issues to real people, and I don’t have an easy solution to any of them. However I do think that a way out of all these problems would be by going slow and taking it one little step at a time.
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Try to deal with the main issue bothering you, bit by bit. Rome
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As for me, I’m still a work in progress. Every makeover starts with accepting your body, figuring out what works for you and what doesn’t and going from there. It’s a long but fun journey. After all, you only get one life, so isn’t it better to keep it stylish rather than drab? Of course!!
My health resolutions are going fine this week, except for a couple of misdemeanors :-(. Resolutions for the next week are:
- Meals and snacks at fixed times – even if not at home
- Drink at least 1 litre of water every day, or even 1.5 (on hot days)
- One cup of green tea every alternate day
That’s for next week. For now,
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