“Of all of the great works we can experience, nature is the most absolute and enduring… If we dedicated our lives solely to noticing the changes in natural light and shadow as the hours pass, we would constantly discover something new”. - Rick Rubin, The Creative Act
There is no “end result” in anything we pursue.
There is no permanence in anything we pursue. The only guarantee in life is change.
These are realities we can’t escape from- and they’re important to acknowledge surrounding personal style because our style can tend to directly reflect our lived experiences.
If we feel depressed, we wear what emotionally comforts us. If we feel aligned, we wear what inspires us. If we change as individuals, our style is prone to change. And we are all in a constant, inescapable state of change.
So how do we curate a closet that is favorable to change?
“It isn’t 10,000 hours that creates outliers, it’s 10,000 iterations.” - Naval Ravikant
Iteration is the goal.
There is no “perfectly curated closet” for anyone. It can’t possibly exist for more than a split second in time. Inspiration flows in, concepts that no longer serve flow out.
Setting a goal of reaching a destination that is your forever dream wardrobe is quite literally swimming against the current- choosing the path of most resistance on a journey to a place that doesn’t exist.
So we have to change our goal. Instead of grinding our way to this final destination of style perpetuity, our energy is better expended in the process of iteration.
Iterating requires playing with what you have in creative and inventive ways. It removes the isolating pressure of perfectionism and creates availability to enjoy what is through making subtle, intuitively guided changes.
Iterating allows you to get to intimately know your pieces too. The more you play & create the more you understand what you have & the potential that it all holds.
These realizations dramatically simplify getting dressed.
When the goal is iteration, we remove the pressure of achieving The Thing right here and right now, and instead are allowed to enjoy the baby steps. We are more present with each decision, each adjustment.
It brings back the joy in doing the thing and allows you to think more about how you want to feel on the path.
How though?
I’m so fascinated by this topic and in exploring the world wide web for more insight I came across this article by Allen Helton, “The Three Key Phases to Successful Iteration”.
It was written as a piece of advice for software engineers, but Helton has created a valuable system that can be applied to building any skillset.
He explains that successful iteration is broken down into three phases:
Do it.
Do it right.
Do it better.
Do it:
This is an experimental phase
This phase is about learning and discovery
Do it right:
Utilize established patterns to make your system strong and reliable
Turn your proof of concept into something high-quality
You will spend significantly more time in this phase than the prior
Do it better:
Make it easily maintainable
Optimize the process
My way of applying this to Personal Style:
Do it:
This is an experimental phase. Try new shit. Don’t overly invest financially or in concept.
This phase is about learning and discovery. Deeply analyze, assess, and tweak. Take your time.
Do it right:
Utilize established patterns to make your system strong and reliable. Understand what resonates and what doesn’t. Notice through-lines and contradictions. Patterns are clues and answers.
Turn your proof of concept into something high-quality. Trust what makes you feel solid. Run with that. Abandon what doesn’t.
You will spend significantly more time in this phase than the prior. Take your time.
Do it better:
Make it easily maintainable. Slowly and intentionally curate your closet to reflect your proven concepts. Create formulas that you can rely on. Take your time.
Optimize the process. Focus on the fun parts, leave the rest to me :).
To inquire about Sourcing & Styling Services please email: thecuratedtastemaker@gmail.com or see my website.
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