My High-Performance Beauty Routine

When I think about the hours spent in beautification rituals, I think about the hours lost in idea generation. When I think about the endless moments spent worrying about my skin or hair, I get frustrated at how much space my image occupies in my brain. Naomi Wolf coined the term “Professional Beauty Qualification” referring to how women who look presentable earn more money and have more professional acceptance. I've wrestled with this for a while.

This is the visual world we live in and let’s be real, I like looking good. I often come back to the perfect double entendre quote by Victor, the protagonist from Bret Easton Ellis’ 2002 Novel, Glamorama, “The better you look, the more you see.” 

However, I don’t enjoy looking good at the expense of my time, so my ultimate priority in my beauty routine is High Performance. 

How do I define High-Performance Beauty? I'm a metrics girly so here goes...

1. Instant or Overnight results. If I don’t look visibly different within 24 Hours, it's in the bin. 
2. Instant Access - No waitlists, speak to my assistant, book on my bad website, 7 Day delivery, shopping without Apple Pay, queues, etc
3. Lasts at 21-30 Days. I don’t do anything weekly. That would be a ridiculous use of my schedule.
4. Consistent. Delivers the same thing, every time. Even years later.
5. Time Efficient. My calendar is my life. If it's not convenient for my schedule or location, it's not happening. 
6. Hand luggage only travel-worthy. I travel too much to lug around products.

What High-Performance Beauty is not:

1. Cheap. I am privileged to pay extra for convenience and am usually happy to do so. 
2. Risky. I’m done “testing” out new people and products. At this stage in my life, a freebie to try a new product is a low priority for me. I only do what I know will work or use new things from trusted sources. 
3. Experimental. That's what your 20s are for. I’m a big woman now and I know what I like. 
4. High Maintenance. I've accepted I’m never going to look like a proper IG Baddie. My hair will never be perfect, and my make-up never flawless. I just don’t care enough. 
5. Fad/Marketing led. I don’t give two hoots about the latest TikTok beauty trend or super ingredient. After trying everything in my 20s, I know what my skin needs now.
6. Cool. There are no secret products here.

Also: I shop PER/100ml not by pack price...

Some further context to make sense of this routine:

• I am a 40-year-old founder with a teen son and very busy life.
• I lived in Central London, UK. A high pollution area and I travel a lot so bad AC and varying sun levels, but now I live in the fresh air of the countryside and I've seen my skin change drastically
• I’m obsessed with a clean face.
• I have never had Botox or any work on my face. 
• I try to use the same amounts of product each time so I can predict usage, eg 1 pump, 3 squirts etc. 
• I'm BLACK.
• For all you twenty-somethings out there; I would read similar-ish articles in women’s magazines when I was younger I think damn these old women really spend a lot of money on their beauty eh? Now I am that woman. Soz.

Okay, so here we go: my High Performance Beauty Routine...