Hot Girl Office Hours: Why I Put On Lipstick Before Opening My Laptop

Wrong. Never mind the fact that unless you live alone or literally never leave the house even to go for a walk, I highly doubt that no one sees you throughout the work day—you know who does see you? You. You see you! Everywhere you go, there you are.

Do you really think so little of yourself that your own opinion doesn’t matter? You’ll doll yourself up for total strangers, but you don’t value your own company or the quality of your day? And the type of woman you wish to be, is she someone who does the bare minimum, or does she put herself together, regardless of whether there’s an audience? These aren’t standards I came to on my own. They took a little outside inspiration, as most transformations do. 

Mine came from women who modeled this attitude in their content—content creators like stay-at-home mom Minazalie. Her philosophy? You don’t need an occasion. You are the occasion. That was so subtly profound to me. It moved me enough to try it. Hair, makeup, outfit, the works. It transformed my mentality from “make do” and “be cozy” to “show up” and “expect the best version of yourself.”

You Are the Occasion

If you work from home, or you’re a stay-at-home mom, or you rarely leave the house, I highly recommend you get ready in the morning as if you were going to class or an office. You don’t need to do a full beat that takes an hour or use high-end products. A little goes a long way. Minazalie swears by her ten-minute morning makeup routine that pulls her look together with a little bit of this and a little bit of that.

One of Mina’s videos that spoke to me was this attention-grabbing intro: “We’re camping and there’s this one person here that I really want to impress,” she begins. “So I’m going to do my makeup, do my hair, put on a cute outfit, put on my perfume. Let me show you who it is, hold on.” After a quick twirl of the camera, she pans back to herself. “It’s me,” she says excitedly. Seeing that sort of self-motivated appreciation for her own time, happiness, and confidence from another person made it click. I thought, “That’s so true. She does deserve to feel and look amazing, even if no one sees her. Isn’t that obvious?” But it’s not obvious or internalized by most of us, who think we need an audience to perceive us in order to put our best face forward. 

A few minutes later, she advises stay-at-home moms directly, but it’s equally applicable to any work-from-home set-up: “If you’re a stay-at-home mom and you feel like you need an event to go somewhere? Absolutely not. You woke up today, you are healthy, you are happy, you are alive. That is what we’re celebrating. Waking up is the occasion.” And that’s so true. How lucky we are to have woken up this morning, to have a face to present to the world, to have a self-perception, and the ability to feel beautiful. Why wouldn’t we want to bask in it as much as possible? Let its transformational positivity spread like fire. 

Why Getting Ready Can Transform Your Day

There are so many psychological and productive benefits to getting fully ready in the morning. Whether or not anyone’s watching, taking the time to make yourself look good is a validating act of self-worth. When we make ourselves look hot, we feel more confident and competent. In a 2017 Harvard study, 186 female undergraduate students were randomly assigned to one of three groups to determine if makeup application boosts academic performance by increasing self-esteem. The three groups were split by three different behaviors: applying makeup, listening to positive music, and doing face coloring. All three groups then took a simulated university exam. The women who applied makeup received significantly higher grades than the women who did not. The study’s findings concluded that makeup increases self-esteem (by boosting self-perceived beauty), which improves cognitive performance.

Another reason getting ready in the morning matters, especially when you have an unconventional work life, is that humans crave (and thrive) on routine. As much as we romanticize the “freedom” that comes with working from home, being our own boss, setting our own hours, workload, and pace, this freedom is no more than an illusion. One of the great disappointments you ought to get out of the way early, lest you delude yourself for too many years, is reckoning with the reality that we can’t truly escape our biological preference for rhythm, structure, or consistency. 

It’s for this reason you’ll need to make peace with the fact that, as much as you “can” operate in chaos, you ought to have the wisdom to know that you shouldn’t. Just like a baby throws a tantrum when it misses a meal or nap time, your adult self also suffers in quieter, more insidious ways when you deny yourself routine or order. It took me far too many years to realize that my “night owl” tendencies that robbed me of the next day’s daylight, unstructured days filled with disorganized tasks, and my frazzled mind were all connected. 

We want to think we can outsmart our biology, and maybe we can in some ways, but there are limits. We have designed entire social and work structures in alignment with the rise and fall of the sun. It’s why we wake and sleep at certain hours, and why work days are structured just so. So as much as you can roll out of bed in your pajamas at whatever hour of the day, sleep, wake, and work when or how you please, this will likely cost you productivity, organization and, most of all, sanity.

When we make ourselves look hot, we feel more confident and competent.

With that understanding, getting ready in the morning: brushing your hair, applying your makeup, getting dressed—these aren’t meaningless vanity rituals. It’s a biological cue telling your brain you’re now shifting gears into work mode. These cues are essential when you lack traditional work structures. Though you work from home, it can help to separate your relaxing and sleeping space from your work space. Ideally, these would be different rooms. And since you likely don’t have to report to work at a specific time, adhere to a dress code, or endure the daily work commute, your brain needs extra implementable cues that separate your work and home life. 

When these are blurred, we dabble in both at leisure, wasting countless hours a day, procrastinating and distracted because we haven’t mastered our space or routine to work for us. 

The paradox of the work-from-home freedom is that a greater burden of self-accountability is placed upon you. If you’re a Type B personality with a flight of ideas, a lack of discipline, and a chaotic environment, then God help you if you don’t seriously re-assess the way you’re living your life. Clinical and research psychologist Dr. Jordan B. Peterson believes that daily structure and routine don’t just make you a more effective and productive worker; they keep you sane. “What happens to people if they don’t have a routine and they get isolated is they start to drift, and they drift badly,” Peterson warns, “because the world is too complicated for you to keep it organized all by yourself. You just cannot do it.” 

That’s where the self-imposed structure of getting ready comes in. “You need structure. You need predictability. And you need more of it than you think,” says Peterson. When you think of it this way: as the habitual anchor conducive to a routine that supports your circadian rhythm, cognitive performance, and emotional regulation, you feel less silly LARPing as an in-office worker, taking 10 minutes in the morning to apply a little mascara and lipstick. 

Style Yourself as the Person You Want to Be and Watch Yourself Become Her

Naturally, before I sat down at my desk to organize my thoughts, outline this article, or articulate my point, I began the morning ritual that has become a mainstay of my daily work routine. It’s not the first thing I do, by any means. First, I need to brush my teeth, wash my face, caffeinate, and usually, have my breakfast. I might begin writing out my agenda for the day, sending some emails, or even putting together a few rough ideas for today’s article before being summoned to the upstairs vanity to put my face on. I often take my second coffee along for the occasion. The first one is functional, the second one is for enjoyment. 

Up I go, makeup caboodle in hand, to accentuate my features. Darken and elongate the eyelashes. Smooth out my complexion. Blushing cheeks. Sculpting with contour for depth. A neutral-toned eyeshadow for dimension. Winged eyeliner because it’s my signature ever since I discovered I had slightly downturned eyes as a pre-teen. I only recently put the whole picture together with an eyebrow pencil and a lip combo. Don’t skimp out on the eyebrows like I did until I was 26. It really elevates a made-up face from “not bad” to “va va voom.” They’re called the nipples of the face for a reason. Lips are probably more optional, but I’m here to encourage you to put your best face forward, not just get by. Get a good, reliable lip combo (lip liner and liquid lipstick or gloss) that’s long-lasting, doesn’t dry out, and is your right shade. A full face without a lippy is like wearing a ballroom dress with sneakers. They’re a package deal.

By the grace of God, I actually like my natural hair, though the Australian climate doesn’t much agree with it and often corrupts my agreeable waves into a mixture of frizz and flyaways. Nevertheless, I’m no longer possessed by the Flat Iron or Die mentality that ruled me in my teenage years (and fried off inches of my hair). So, hair is easy. I just have to keep tabs on my hair wash days to make sure my scalp isn’t too oily. An oily scalp day is a nightmare for the psyche. When I was in middle school, I had a nemesis who gave me the moniker “greasy French fry.” I should thank her for my conscientious scalp maintenance now. You’ll likely have similar circumstances. Maybe you don’t need to style your hair, or you have perfect eyebrows that look naturally micro-bladed. Or maybe you like to indulge in fun makeup and hair looks, but keep the outfit simple. 

If you consistently dress like someone who’s organized, competent, and successful, your brain starts to notice even if you don’t feel that way yet.

After all, if you’re reading this, you’re probably not going anywhere. It doesn’t matter. We’re not going anywhere, but we are showing up. Decide what moves the needle for you. The French won’t be caught dead wearing athleisure unless they’re actively working out, but if you genuinely feel great in a combo of cozy-aesthetic activewear, knock yourself out. However, if you’re trying to cultivate a specific type of energy, ask yourself if that kind of outfit reinforces or negates those ideals. For Mina, for example, she’s a stay-at-home mom and content creator whose content niche is fitness, walking, weight management, and her lifestyle as a stay-at-home mom. Athleisure tracks perfectly with the vibe she’s going for and clearly makes her feel amazing. It might be counter-productive, though, if your goals are completely different. Dress for the occasion—for the woman you want to be.

Self-perception theory posits that we come to understand our abilities, beliefs, and feelings not just from introspection but by observing our own behaviors. By observing our behaviors, we come to conclusions on what must have caused them and who we are. Your physical presentation is relevant because if you consistently dress like someone who’s organized, competent, and successful, your brain starts to notice even if you don’t feel that way yet. Over time, it can’t help but update its self-image to match the actions you’re taking. In other words, faking it ’til you make it is kind of real (but not in an Elizabeth Holmes sort of way). By dressing the part, you’re acting the part and reinforcing a desirable identity.

This echoes what James Clear, author of Atomic Habits, calls “identity based habits,” the idea that every action you take is a vote for the kind of person you want to become. These habits are powerful because they’re self-reinforcing: they don’t just help you reach your goals; they shape your identity along the way. You’re not just making yourself look good when you get ready each morning. You’re casting a daily vote for being someone who shows up, takes herself seriously, and deserves to feel her best.

If you don’t currently take the time each morning to put yourself together, I highly recommend giving it a try. Whether or not anyone else sees you is beside the point. You have to live in your body 24 hours a day. You catch your own reflection in the mirror. And if that reflection isn’t something you’re proud of, it shows—in your posture, your energy, your body language, even in the tone of your emails, articles, or presentations.

Try making yourself look hot. I promise you: you’ll speak with more authority, stop second-guessing your ideas, and carry yourself like someone who deserves to be exactly where she is. You’ll put out better work, feel better doing it, and start to genuinely believe in the person you’re presenting. This has been one of the lowest-effort, highest-reward experiments I’ve ever conducted, and I don’t plan on stopping.