When the Face in the Mirror Changes, the Heart Changes — The Psychology of Beauty

We are a beauty company, so we owe an answer to this question: what do cosmetics actually change? The skin's condition, of course — but psychology suggests something beyond.

Research known as enclothed cognition reported that what we wear influences attention and behavior; likewise, many people repeatedly report feeling more confident and sociable on days they wear makeup.

The mirror, in other words, is not one-way: composing the face you turn toward the world is connected to composing the heart you turn toward it. I take this to be beauty's essence. What we make is not a film upon skin but the morning's first switch of "today, I can" — in psychology's terms, self-efficacy.

A person leaving home with that feeling stands a little straighter, attempts a little more, smiles a little more. A single cosmetic changes not microns of surface but the day's volume of action.

What do you work for?