Let me start by stating a firm belief: We shouldn't go through life trying to please everybody. If I think I need filler in my lips, I'm going to get it, despite my mother's protests ... I'll just pray that I don't get a botched job like these celebrities with bad plastic surgery did (validating that mom, indeed, does know best). If I choose to fall victim to one of these worst hair trends of all time, even though my BFF warned me that I didn't have the bone structure to pull off Scarlett Johansson's mullet during my punk phase, then gosh darn it, I'm going to fall.

As I was getting reading for work this AM (see how to look awake and refreshed -- every morning), I heard on NPR that the number of CEOs planning to resurrect something called hiring is at an all time high since mid-2007 -- this is according to a survey that implies that large U.S. companies are becoming more confident about the economic recovery.

FACT: Because of varying body chemistry, the same perfume can smell completely different on two separate women. (See which fragrances women agree smell the best).

Challenge: We asked celeb makeup artist, Napoleon Perdis, to create six makeup looks that can be done in four minutes. He passed with flying eyeshadow colors (see a list of the highest rated long-lasting shadows here), but can these looks realistically be pulled off by non-models or makeup artist types? Well, Total Beauty's editors took one for the team to put these quickie looks to the test -- with stop watches in hand. See the results below.

Celebrities get to have all the fun. They get to rock some serious body art (proof: check out this celebrity tattoo gallery). They get to wear crazy-cuckoo nails that would make the fiercest of DMV employees jealous (see some wacky celebrity nails here). They get to be super-duper sexy whenever they darn well please. It's so not fair.

Answer: Bronde. No really -- we're not making this up. Hair color guru Kim Vo coined it (though we think we have heard it before). To get that perfect blonde-brown hair color hybrid a la Sarah Jessica Parker et al. (you gotta check out these best and worst celeb hair color photos), Vo says it's achieved "by painting a few select top layer pieces of hair by using two different volume lifting creams" which creates "a beach-y look that is naturally sun-kissed with dimension and depth." To maintain your bronde hair and protect it from UV rays, try Kim Vo Brilliant Luster Glaze, $24 weekly for five minutes in the shower.

Scene:

We’re constantly looking for the next quick fix when it comes to our appearances -- creams, solutions, powders, etc. As part of a $170 billion worldwide industry, cosmetic companies feed off our desire for easy, artificial perfection, pumping new product after new product onto the shelves. But we don’t always pay attention to, nor understand what goes into these products, and, in this case, what we don’t know might hurt us. Next time you reach for that tube of mascara (see top-rated ones here), bottle of shampoo (read reviews of the best drugstore buys here), or jar of eye cream (view 16 of our readers' faves here), take a second to check the label for any of the following seven ingredients you might want to consider avoiding.

Collagen

Not to get on my feminist soapbox, but why does everything have to be gender-specific? (Speaking of soap … check out our top 21 body washes.) I mean those ridiculously long lines for the ladies room at concert venues could totally be avoided by introducing a unisex bathroom. And what if a skinny boy can only fit in "girl's" jeans or if a woman prefers "men's" shaving cream?

Your skin care routine is important (see 8 reason's why skin regimens work here). And actually, if you think about it, finding the right combination of skin care products is kinda like finding the perfect man. If your daily skin care regimen is missing one important quality that your skin needs, the relationship is destined for failure. It's similar to when that hot guy you dated in college (did you go to school in one of these hottest-guy cities?) couldn't keep up in the smarts department. If your face wash is great, but the moisturizer you apply after isn't right for your skin type, then the entire regimen won't work. Stop wasting your time and take this quiz to find the best skin care routine for you.