People who smile often are seen as being more intelligent, sincere, trustworthy and self-assured than those who don't, according to the "American Journal of Psychology." These positive attributes, given to people just for flashing some teeth, are worth their weight in gold -- literally.
To get your teeth ready for attention, try some at home whitening strips (Total Beauty readers love Crest Whitestrips Daily Multicare, $34.50). Also, eat crunchy foods (carrots, celery, lettuce, apples) at work when away from your toothbrush -- they displace plaque and debris from the mouth, keeping any embarrassing food out of your teeth.
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Tip 5: Try a bold lip
When it comes to makeup for the office, you want to keep it simple and professional. Carmindy says the key is to "look appropriate and confident without overdoing it. A stronger lip like a red or berry stain screams confidence and draws the attention to your mouth so people will listen to you." Try Tarte LipSurgence Natural Lip Stain in Moody, $24.
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Tip 6: Look more awake
No employer wants a tired-looking team member and you can't kick butt during a presentation if you're worried that people are staring at the bags under your eyes. You're working hard for that promotion, which likely means long hours, but you don't want to look run down or stressed either. What's Carmindy's solution? A brightening concealer "will wake up tired eyes in a flash," she says. Then use a pale blue eyeliner like Wet n Wild Mega Chrome Eyeliner Pencil in Cobalt Blue, $7.25 on your upper inner lashline to make your eyes appear bigger and even more alert, which "will do wonders" for making your face look more awake, says Carmindy.
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Tip 7: Keep caffeine to a minimum
It's easy to use coffee or tea as a crutch to get you through a grueling day at the office, but that third cup of Joe in the morning will just make you cranky and irritable come four o'clock. Borden says, when you hype up on caffeine, you will eventually crash and once that happens, you can forget about being productive. If you need some caffeine to kick start your morning, she suggests drinking one cup and then switching to water for the rest of the day. "No one wants to be around a moody caffeine addict," she says, and if no one wants to be around you, a promotion isn't likely.
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Tip 8: Cover your roots
Tell-tale roots look un-kept and when you look un-kept, you loose a professional advantage. If you're neglecting your hair (when it's so easy and inexpensive to do touch ups at home with hair color like Clairol Natural Instincts, $8.99), what else are you neglecting? Something you don't want your boss or any of your co-workers wondering.
Getting a promotion, raise, or heck, even keeping your current job in this economy is not an easy feat. The competition is fierce and money is tight. While these tough times can cause even the most competent to feel like a rat in the almighty race, jumping through hoops and over hurdles, it is still possible to achieve what seems like the impossible. Since you aren't sitting in one of those inspirational career seminars, we won't bore you with "You can do it!" or "Believe in the power of you!" spiels. We will however inform you that while we can't walk into your boss's office and demand you some recognition, we can do what we do best and offer up beauty tips that can aide in your "notice me"-plight.
So how on earth can beauty tips possibly garner you a promotion? And why does your appearance make a difference when you are clearly packing some awe-worthy qualifications? Well, recent research by "Newsweek" has confirmed what scientists have long been studying and proving -- your appearance effects the way you are perceived and compensated in the workplace. "Attractive" men and women are paid more than ordinary people for the same work, says the "American Economic Review". The question is � why?
If you think about it, appearance effects how we are treated and treat others all the time. Apparently even babies stare at "good-looking" faces for a longer amount of time. So why would the office be any different? "Newsweek" found that hiring managers rank appearance as the third most important character trait, right behind experience and then confidence. It's a no-brainer that you feel more confident in yourself when you look and feel your best, and that�s where these beauty tips come in.
Here to help us get a competitive advantage is Carmindy, makeup artist from "What Not to Wear" and co-creator of Sally Hansen Natural Beauty Inspired by Carmindy, and Ashley Borden, fitness and lifestyle consultant. Their health and beauty tips along with some recent research findings will hopefully help you finally get the promotion you deserve.
