doorway in brooklyn

In this follow up to What to do instead of finding your personal style, I’m here to remind you that you already have personal style. All you need to do is remember your personal style, and activate it.

Often, we turn outwards with questions that can really only be answered by turning inwards.

When we go about finding our personal style, we so often turn outwards for inspiration. We look at pinterest, and instagram, and magazines, and celebrities. Turning outwards with questions that can really only be answered by turning inwards. (This is why I focus on coaching rather than telling you what to wear.)

I wrote about what to do instead of finding your personal style before, here. I wrote about remembering back to when you knew exactly what you wanted to wear. At some point or other, I bet you knew exactly what you wanted to wear – maybe for some period of time, or to a specific event – but you knew what you wanted to wear and you were going to wear it, dammit.

I don’t try to remember those moments in order to recreate the exact look – but rather to remember what it felt like to be 100% absolutely, positively certain in what I wanted to wear.

In response, Rebecca brought up the distinction between listening to what you want now, and remembering what you wanted then.

Remembering, and listening.

Remember what you wanted to wear then.
Listen to what you want to wear now.
Remember you have personal style.

Remembering what you wanted to wear. Listening to what you want to wear now.

Listening to your internal voice. To your muse. To your hut (heart + gut = hut from Alex Franzen). Distinguishing between your deep desires, and the opinions of everyone else.

What do you want to wear?
What do you really want to wear?

The step after remembering what it was like to know your personal style without a doubt – is listening and paying attention to what your personal style is now.

Remember what it felt like to know without a doubt.
What it felt like to feel centered and certain.
What it felt like to clearly hear your internal voice.

And then listen.

The step after remembering is listening.

Where are you now? What do you want to wear now? What do you really want to wear now?

Where are you now?
What do you want to wear now?
What do you really want to wear now?

 many, many thanks for sparking this Rebecca!
|| written by Holly Chayes || photography by Madison Neugebauer ||