1 00:00:03,440 --> 00:00:06,720 Speaker 1: Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I Heart Radio. 2 00:00:09,720 --> 00:00:14,600 Speaker 1: Good Morning. This is Laura, Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast. 3 00:00:15,360 --> 00:00:18,880 Speaker 1: Today's tip is about how to spend less time getting 4 00:00:18,880 --> 00:00:21,680 Speaker 1: ready in the morning. With a little thought up front 5 00:00:22,239 --> 00:00:26,160 Speaker 1: and more importantly, some mindset shifts, you can figure out 6 00:00:26,160 --> 00:00:30,360 Speaker 1: ways to look great fast. I know that getting ready 7 00:00:30,360 --> 00:00:33,159 Speaker 1: for work or school in the morning can consume a 8 00:00:33,240 --> 00:00:38,120 Speaker 1: lot of time, and unfortunately, the expectations for polish are 9 00:00:38,200 --> 00:00:41,839 Speaker 1: higher for some folks than others. I recently got a 10 00:00:41,920 --> 00:00:44,360 Speaker 1: letter from a Before Breakfast listener who had started a 11 00:00:44,400 --> 00:00:47,640 Speaker 1: new job as an attorney. She had a long commute 12 00:00:48,000 --> 00:00:50,880 Speaker 1: and a family she wanted to spend time with. Because 13 00:00:50,920 --> 00:00:53,080 Speaker 1: I am working in law, I have to always look 14 00:00:53,120 --> 00:00:56,680 Speaker 1: my best, she wrote. She listed various reasons this took 15 00:00:56,680 --> 00:00:59,080 Speaker 1: her a while. I have a curly head of hair, 16 00:00:59,600 --> 00:01:02,680 Speaker 1: so it takes time to tainment and look presentable, she said. 17 00:01:03,400 --> 00:01:06,480 Speaker 1: She also wrote that because of her particular coloring, I 18 00:01:06,520 --> 00:01:08,680 Speaker 1: have a lot of makeup to do. I can't just 19 00:01:08,720 --> 00:01:11,839 Speaker 1: swipe some mascara and I'm good. Because of the amount 20 00:01:11,840 --> 00:01:14,160 Speaker 1: of time it takes to get ready, I feel I 21 00:01:14,200 --> 00:01:18,760 Speaker 1: am always getting ready, driving, working, and not much else. 22 00:01:19,760 --> 00:01:22,199 Speaker 1: This listener asked if I had tips for looking put 23 00:01:22,240 --> 00:01:26,080 Speaker 1: together in less time. This is the biggest deterrent in 24 00:01:26,120 --> 00:01:28,600 Speaker 1: my life, and I just wish I could look as 25 00:01:28,680 --> 00:01:33,680 Speaker 1: naturally pretty as some She wrote, Well, listeners, this letter 26 00:01:33,760 --> 00:01:37,520 Speaker 1: got me. I just hate the idea of anyone, and 27 00:01:37,600 --> 00:01:41,160 Speaker 1: particularly someone who's building a career and raising a family, 28 00:01:41,640 --> 00:01:44,760 Speaker 1: losing big chunks of her life in the service of 29 00:01:44,840 --> 00:01:48,560 Speaker 1: exacting beauty standards. I want to assure our listener and 30 00:01:48,680 --> 00:01:51,760 Speaker 1: everyone that people with all sorts of hair, textures and 31 00:01:51,800 --> 00:01:55,360 Speaker 1: colorings can be naturally pretty, which, by the way, is 32 00:01:55,360 --> 00:01:59,000 Speaker 1: an overrated concept. In general. Most of us are never 33 00:01:59,080 --> 00:02:02,360 Speaker 1: going to be models, and even models don't wake up 34 00:02:02,400 --> 00:02:05,440 Speaker 1: looking like they do in photo shoots. Whenever I do 35 00:02:05,640 --> 00:02:09,240 Speaker 1: on camera work, I'm struck by how long the hair 36 00:02:09,360 --> 00:02:12,359 Speaker 1: and makeup people have to hover over me, touching things 37 00:02:12,480 --> 00:02:16,320 Speaker 1: up between takes. This should never be the standard for 38 00:02:16,480 --> 00:02:19,600 Speaker 1: day to day life. Instead, I think it's more helpful 39 00:02:19,639 --> 00:02:22,760 Speaker 1: for us mere mortals to acknowledge that, yes, people can 40 00:02:22,840 --> 00:02:26,440 Speaker 1: sometimes treat us differently based on appearance, but any given 41 00:02:26,480 --> 00:02:29,840 Speaker 1: person's appearance is going to fall within a certain range, 42 00:02:30,440 --> 00:02:32,680 Speaker 1: and we can aim for the top of that range, 43 00:02:32,720 --> 00:02:35,760 Speaker 1: and doing so can maybe help us project the confidence 44 00:02:35,760 --> 00:02:39,680 Speaker 1: and happiness that make anyone look more attractive. But there's 45 00:02:39,720 --> 00:02:44,200 Speaker 1: also a point of diminishing returns time spent getting ready 46 00:02:44,320 --> 00:02:48,200 Speaker 1: it is time not spent calling clients and meeting their needs. 47 00:02:48,840 --> 00:02:52,320 Speaker 1: And ultimately, a lawyer's success depends more on her being 48 00:02:52,360 --> 00:02:56,079 Speaker 1: a thoughtful and dedicated advocate for her clients versus the 49 00:02:56,160 --> 00:03:00,720 Speaker 1: shape of her eyebrows. So that's today's rant from a soapbox. 50 00:03:01,200 --> 00:03:04,040 Speaker 1: Now onto the practical matter of looking our best while 51 00:03:04,080 --> 00:03:08,200 Speaker 1: optimizing the scarce resource of time. My first suggestion for 52 00:03:08,240 --> 00:03:10,519 Speaker 1: anyone looking to get a grip on this is to 53 00:03:10,600 --> 00:03:13,240 Speaker 1: track how long it currently takes you to get ready. 54 00:03:13,680 --> 00:03:16,080 Speaker 1: How long do you spend in the shower, what do 55 00:03:16,120 --> 00:03:18,320 Speaker 1: you do in there? How long does it take to 56 00:03:18,320 --> 00:03:20,639 Speaker 1: get dressed and do hair and make up if that's 57 00:03:20,680 --> 00:03:23,960 Speaker 1: part of your routine. When you have these numbers, you 58 00:03:23,960 --> 00:03:27,480 Speaker 1: can make thoughtful choices about what to trim. You wouldn't 59 00:03:27,520 --> 00:03:30,080 Speaker 1: want to nix something that took thirty seconds but had 60 00:03:30,120 --> 00:03:33,600 Speaker 1: a huge impact on your confidence. Something that takes ten 61 00:03:33,639 --> 00:03:37,120 Speaker 1: minutes and doesn't do much for you, well, that's worth cutting. 62 00:03:38,040 --> 00:03:41,440 Speaker 1: I would also recommend investing in some good building blocks. 63 00:03:41,960 --> 00:03:45,160 Speaker 1: A skilled hairstylist can give you a haircut that flatters 64 00:03:45,200 --> 00:03:49,200 Speaker 1: you but doesn't take a whole lot of maintenance. In general, 65 00:03:49,440 --> 00:03:52,360 Speaker 1: you're best off working with your natural hair texture, and 66 00:03:52,400 --> 00:03:55,440 Speaker 1: curly hair can definitely look professional. It might help to 67 00:03:55,440 --> 00:03:58,320 Speaker 1: spend a few minutes looking through online photo galleries of 68 00:03:58,320 --> 00:04:00,840 Speaker 1: people with similar hair to convince you of this and 69 00:04:00,920 --> 00:04:05,080 Speaker 1: to get ideas for your most flattering cut. Makeup can 70 00:04:05,120 --> 00:04:07,480 Speaker 1: likewise be paired down with the help of a pro. 71 00:04:08,400 --> 00:04:11,040 Speaker 1: Seek out a local makeup artist to give you pointers 72 00:04:11,440 --> 00:04:13,840 Speaker 1: and decide on a quantity of time you are willing 73 00:04:13,880 --> 00:04:17,040 Speaker 1: to devote to make up, ideally something lower than your 74 00:04:17,040 --> 00:04:20,320 Speaker 1: current tally. If you decide that you want to spend, say, 75 00:04:20,320 --> 00:04:23,200 Speaker 1: five minutes on daily makeup, then a professional can help 76 00:04:23,200 --> 00:04:27,000 Speaker 1: you optimize within that. The same goes for a wardrobe, 77 00:04:27,520 --> 00:04:29,599 Speaker 1: either on your own or with the help of a 78 00:04:29,600 --> 00:04:33,440 Speaker 1: stylist or a stylish friend. Pare down your work wardrobe 79 00:04:33,440 --> 00:04:37,320 Speaker 1: to say eleven outfits that fit perfectly and look fabulous 80 00:04:37,360 --> 00:04:41,360 Speaker 1: on you. Why eleven, Well, you can cycle through them 81 00:04:41,400 --> 00:04:43,480 Speaker 1: and then you won't always be wearing the same thing 82 00:04:43,960 --> 00:04:47,400 Speaker 1: on a Tuesday meeting. With the right basic pieces, you 83 00:04:47,400 --> 00:04:49,359 Speaker 1: can just pull out the next outfit in line, and 84 00:04:49,440 --> 00:04:53,479 Speaker 1: stop agonizing over this decision. Someone with a big job 85 00:04:53,520 --> 00:04:58,040 Speaker 1: and a family definitely has better things to do. Most importantly, though, 86 00:04:58,440 --> 00:05:02,080 Speaker 1: I'd recommend experimenting with a little mindset shift the hard 87 00:05:02,080 --> 00:05:05,200 Speaker 1: truth people pay far less attention to us than we 88 00:05:05,240 --> 00:05:08,560 Speaker 1: think they do. There's a famous experiment where a college 89 00:05:08,560 --> 00:05:11,080 Speaker 1: student interacted with peers while wearing a very man a 90 00:05:11,080 --> 00:05:14,760 Speaker 1: low T shirt, something the researchers deemed to be humiliating. 91 00:05:15,360 --> 00:05:19,960 Speaker 1: The subject assumed almost everyone noticed. The surveys afterward found 92 00:05:19,960 --> 00:05:23,280 Speaker 1: that almost no one noticed. The other students were too 93 00:05:23,320 --> 00:05:26,560 Speaker 1: concerned with their own appearances and their own lives to 94 00:05:26,640 --> 00:05:30,359 Speaker 1: notice someone else's T shirt. Likewise, if you work in 95 00:05:30,360 --> 00:05:33,480 Speaker 1: a professional environment with clients, you need to look polished, 96 00:05:34,120 --> 00:05:36,159 Speaker 1: But your clients are too wrapped up in their own 97 00:05:36,200 --> 00:05:39,640 Speaker 1: problems and the daily tedium of commutes and such to 98 00:05:39,760 --> 00:05:43,560 Speaker 1: notice the exact shape of anyone's eyebrows. To convince yourself 99 00:05:43,600 --> 00:05:46,840 Speaker 1: of this, try not doing something one day here and there. 100 00:05:47,560 --> 00:05:50,560 Speaker 1: On some morning, challenge yourself to spend two minutes on 101 00:05:50,640 --> 00:05:54,200 Speaker 1: makeup and see where the chips fall. On some other morning, 102 00:05:54,560 --> 00:05:57,000 Speaker 1: just comb your hair, put it in a low ponytail, 103 00:05:57,160 --> 00:06:00,480 Speaker 1: and walk out the door. Does anyone say anything? Does 104 00:06:00,520 --> 00:06:03,960 Speaker 1: anyone notice? I would bet a lot that the answer 105 00:06:04,480 --> 00:06:07,479 Speaker 1: is no. And once you see this, you can be 106 00:06:07,560 --> 00:06:11,279 Speaker 1: empowered to invest sometime in looking decent, but much more 107 00:06:11,320 --> 00:06:14,400 Speaker 1: time and being the sort of person that people want 108 00:06:14,440 --> 00:06:18,080 Speaker 1: to work with. Time is valuable and you don't want 109 00:06:18,120 --> 00:06:23,360 Speaker 1: to invest much of it and something with rapidly diminishing returns. Listeners, 110 00:06:23,400 --> 00:06:25,720 Speaker 1: if you have suggestions for getting ready and less time, 111 00:06:25,760 --> 00:06:28,480 Speaker 1: I'm all ears. You can let me know at Before 112 00:06:28,480 --> 00:06:32,480 Speaker 1: Breakfast podcast at i heeart media dot com. In the meantime, 113 00:06:32,960 --> 00:06:36,280 Speaker 1: this is Laura. Thanks for listening, and here's to making 114 00:06:36,279 --> 00:06:45,240 Speaker 1: the most of our time. Hey, everybody, I'd love to 115 00:06:45,279 --> 00:06:48,240 Speaker 1: hear from you. You can send me your tips, your questions, 116 00:06:48,360 --> 00:06:52,080 Speaker 1: or anything else. Just connect with me on Twitter, Facebook 117 00:06:52,200 --> 00:06:57,000 Speaker 1: and Instagram at Before Breakfast pod. That's b E the 118 00:06:57,080 --> 00:07:01,640 Speaker 1: number four than breakfast p O. You can also shoot 119 00:07:01,680 --> 00:07:05,080 Speaker 1: me an email at Before Breakfast podcast at i heeart 120 00:07:05,120 --> 00:07:07,920 Speaker 1: media dot com. That Before Breakfast is spelled out with 121 00:07:07,960 --> 00:07:10,640 Speaker 1: all the letters. Thanks so much, I look forward to 122 00:07:10,720 --> 00:07:18,920 Speaker 1: staying in touch. Before Breakfast is a production of I 123 00:07:19,040 --> 00:07:22,920 Speaker 1: Heart Radio. 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