“I will never change, but I’ll never stay the same either.”
Taylor Swift
One of the things I love about Taylor Swift (there are many) is the way she reinvents herself. With each new album she releases, she creates a reimagined identity for herself. She’s the same person at heart, but each new album is a different phase, or “chapter,” of her life. As she grows older, her music grows with her.
Each new album has its own new “vibe.” New sound, color scheme, aesthetic, and wardrobe. New thoughts on her mind. New perspective on relationships and love and living. Her third album, “Speak Now,” was glittery guitars, sundresses, curly hair, handwritten lyrics, and fairy tales; while her fifth album, “1989,” was all polaroids, wayfarer sunglasses, NYC skylines, and 1980’s-style synth pop.
As I noticed the way Taylor Swift evolves and yet stays consistent to herself, the way she shapes her identity to reflect the phases of her life, I began wondering what it would look like to reinvent myself in the same way. What if I began thinking of my own life in terms of “eras” or chapters?
Think about it. We change through our lives, but we can easily get caught up in continuity; trying to be the same, trying to live up to expectations of who we used to be. There’s immense freedom in constantly reinventing yourself, constantly finding new things to love and wonder about. You can dream the same old dreams in new colors.
There’s a striking quote by Lucy Maud Montgomery that has stuck with me ever since I read it in “Anne of Avonlea.” In this scene, Anne is considering making a decision that would potentially change her life. She asks the advice of her friend Mr. Harrison, and he tells her this:
“Changes ain’t totally pleasant but they’re excellent things. Two years is about long enough for things to stay the same. If they stayed put any longer they might grow mossy.”
L.M. Montgomery, “Anne of Avonlea”
Along similar lines, Taylor Swift has mentioned in a few interviews that she likes to think of her albums as chapters of her life. For most of her career, these chapters were compiled every two years.
A lot can change in two years: furthering education, changing jobs, travel, new relationships, different sense of self. Right now, I’m living the 2018-20 version of myself—the version of myself that’s in college, running this blog, discovering what it means to be in my twenties.
So what does it look like to “reinvent” yourself every few years? To put it simply, you start by looking around at your life, as it is right now, and try to express it creatively through music, art, or words.
Here are some ideas that have worked for me:
- decide on a new color scheme for life
- choose a new wardrobe
- what are your essentials?
- what have you been thinking about lately? What are you curious about?
- change up the style of journal entries and designs
- curate social media/instagram feeds
- what are your new obsessions? (books, movies, tv shows, etc.)
- document your changing taste in music with fresh playlists
- begin visualizing your new aesthetic on Pinterest or Tumblr for inspiration.
As a result of these “mini changes” in life, I’ve noticed that reinventing yourself alleviates identity crises. Instead of wailing like a Shakespearian tragic hero “WHO AM I AND WHAT IS THE MEANING OF LIFE?!”, you’re simply asking yourself, “Who am I in this season?”
As you begin to follow your changing self-expression, you can look back and see how you’ve changed over the course of a year, two years, or ten. In my life design notebook, I’ve made a new vision board each year since 2016. As I flip back through those pages, through the different colors and images, I can more easily see the person that I was then, what I’ve learned since, and how I’ve become the person I am today.
As you become more self-aware, you won’t be so influenced by what other people think of you. You can just kinda… “shake it off.” So to speak.
And lastly, reinventing yourself is just plain fun. As you journal, create vision boards, and figure out your own creative outlets, you can design your life in whatever way reflects and resonates with who you are right now…and who you are becoming.
<3 Olivia Grace
