Evolving lifestyle design

The new science of evolving lifestyle & the iterative lifestyle design approach

Lifestyle Design
Ivy, LyfStyled

Embrace the ever evolving journey

“I have spent the last seven years building a new life for myself and I want to live it now. “ “I want to live my life that I’ve been building and I will miss you terribly.” These are words of singer Adele said in August 2024 as she took to the stage for her final performance in Munich Germany and announced that she will be take a break from live music performances to enjoy the new lifestyle she has designed for herself.

Fans of Adele were stunned about this change to the musician’s lifestyle. Some applauded the signer for this taking this step as a part of the selfcare often neglected by other performing artists. Being able to take such a break is a luxury in the world that we live in. Ultimately, necessary if you want to adjust your lifestyle design to fit in what you value most.

The science of evolving lifestyles

As you progress through different stages of life – such as starting a new job in another town, starting a new relationship, becoming parents – it’s natural to find that you have a change in priorities too. On a closer look, you may find that the design you have chosen for your life previously, is no longer suitable for the circumstances you are in today nor accommodates what you value most.

LyfStyled defines an evolving lifestyle as a way of living that adapts and changes over time in response to personal growth, shifting priorities, life experiences, and external circumstances.

Adjusting the design of your lifestyle to be more suitable and accommodating to developments in specific areas of your life is essential. An evolving lifestyle does not require major shifts all at once, such the one made by Adele when she went from doing live performances to being out the public eye. It’s more about adopting a small, iterative process where minor adjustments over time provide significant, lasting transformations.

Lifestyle design should not be viewed as a one-time event, like the structured process used in designing a building’s architecture. Instead, it’s an ongoing journey of refinement and alignment that evolves with your values and aspirations.

Each refinement is a step you take in crafting your long term vision for your unique lifestyle.

Why an iterative lifestyle design process matter

If you continuously adapt your lifestyle by aligning it with your personal growth, you are said to be following an iterative approach to lifestyle design. This approach has been shown to enhance human development and overall feeling of one’s sense of well-being. The psychological and emotional benefits of being so adaptive and seeing the design of your lifestyle as a constant iterative exercise are as follows:

You can align your lifestyle to what you find valuable. This allows you to shape your daily activities to reflect what you value most and let go of activities that no longer do. The internet is filled with people sharing how they changed their lifestyles.Some people quit their jobs to start on an entrepreneurial journey. This allowed them to reclaim their finite valuable time.
The iterative lifestyle design process helps us to reduce the resistance to the transitions that life takes us through and helps us adapt faster with a stronger sense of resilience. A study published in the Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology found that personal growth initiative (PGI), which includes readiness for change and intentional behavior, predicts self-actualization and adaptive coping skills. This suggests that individuals who proactively engage in personal development are better equipped to handle life transitions, leading to greater life satisfaction.
The cherry on the cake is the sense of fulfillment, and long term sense of having purpose that one achieves when you engage in intentional lifestyle interaction. This is because, an evolving lifestyle foresters growth, which in turn places you ahead of 99% of your peers. In an ever-changing world, the ability to adjust to new situations and challenges is an essential life skill for achieving the goals that shape your ideal lifestyle.

Actionable steps for an iterative lifestyle design

An iterative approach to lifestyle design is not gatekept nor reserved for only the famous celebrities amongst us. There are actionable steps you can start following today to incorporate this approach in your lifestyle.

Step 1: Reflect and reassess regularly

By using tools such as your personal journal or having periodic look backs of your life, you can check if your daily actions include activities for what you value most. Check whether you are spending time on your lifelong priorities and whether you are building the lifelong habits you want to live by. This step helps you in taking the first steps towards intentional living.

Step 2: Experiment and adjust

Once you have assessed your current lifestyle, it’s time to learn from the results and make small adjustments to the life areas where your values or priorities have changed. You can make these small adjustments by:

First get your new priorities clear. Write them down and internalize so that you are able to take action on them. We have gone into detail on how you set your life priorities by following 5 easy steps on this post. We also provide a free template you can use to set these priorities.
Follow an iterative approach by making small tweaks to your habits, observing the outcomes and refining the outcomes, and refining further. For example:
- Experiment with a new morning routine to boost productivity.
- Gradually shifting your diet to include healthier options.
- Setting aside 10 minutes daily for mindfulness instead of attempting a complete schedule overhaul.

Incorporate the new habits that have proven to work for you into your existing routines.
Your routines will form part of the biggest systems you have built to support your life priorities.

Step 3: Embrace your journey

Each human on earth goes through changes. This is the normal “circle of life”. Without these changes, your ability to adapt would be stunted and you may never grow into the person you are meant to be. This thought alone should teach you not to shy away nor avoid these changes no matter how uncomfortable and sometimes painful they may be. Growth is an ongoing process. Embrace the process by exploring your creativity when adopting this iterative approach to designing your fulfilling lifestyle.