The five stages of grief tell us much about how a person handles change. In this ultra fast-paced ADD society, the only constant anymore seems to be change.
Rather than trying to see yourself in one fixed way, try to see yourself as an ever evolving person who is flexible and constantly growing. This will help you not get stuck in your ways.
Ask yourself by what personality and character traits do you define yourself? Also ask yourself, how your personal style and image helps define you? If any of the answers seems passé or rigid, it may be time to make a change.
In my workshops and beauty boot camps, I teach my students about the importance of going through the grieving process: for any life change and style change. It may seem trivial to include style change in the grieving process, but in order to stay fresh and modern our entire lives, our image must evolve like everything else. If it doesn’t it will stagnate.
It helps to realize that we only have two choices: change or stagnation. Change is growth and life. Stagnation is death. That realization helps us to embrace change.
As an image consultant, motivational speaker, and makeover coach, I must help people understand the motivation for changing and improving their image and appearance. There always is some sadness and resistance involved. Therefore I started teaching them about the Five Stages Of Grief based on psychologist, Elizabeth Kubler Ross’s ground breaking work.
The Five Stages of Grieving as I have coined it for image purposes are:
- Denial
- Anger
- Depression
- Bargaining
- Acceptance
The quicker a person can consciously more through these stages to embrace a new trend, style, or way of wearing something…the sooner they will refresh their image and keep themselves modern.
Remember it’s not aging that ages us; it’s our attitude about aging that does. You can decide to be viewed as a stylish modern flexible person till the day you die OR you can let yourself look old, un-relatable and frumpy. It’s a choice!
Your identity is created, not dictated by your own thoughts, beliefs and actions. In the world of change, there is no time for victims. People who are proactive will be the ones who triumph.
