Why we change our beauty routines as we become more senior at work

After a promotion (or several), you might notice a few changes to your daily grooming habits. Perhaps you now have a new-found liking for a particular lipstick shade, or swopped your usual scent for a more sophisticated signature fragrance.

Moving up the corporate ladder often prompts a more deliberate consideration of how you present yourself, from wardrobe choices and grooming to beauty and cosmetic treatments. But this goes beyond aesthetics. Every year, Her World takes an annual pulse check on Singapore women with our What Women Want survey and in 2024, 56 per cent of readers said they feel judged based on their looks in the workplace, suggesting that appearance can play a meaningful role in how women navigate their professional lives.

According to Shireena Shroff Manchharam, an image and mental health consultant and Her World Tribe member, adjusting your beauty regimen serves to solidify your personal brand, core values and professional identity. Research supports the idea that styling can influence professional perceptions: a 2016 study published in The Journal of Social Psychology, which examined how women’s styling affected perceptions of their leadership abilities, found that relatively subtle changes in appearance could influence how competent and warm they were perceived to be.

These changes don’t stem solely from within you – organisational expectations play a role too. Shireena tells us that she’s witnessed her clients adapting their aesthetics to align with not just their new leadership roles, but also to embody their company’s corporate culture.

This is especially true in Asian countries. While Western markets may be more open to embracing individual expression, Shireena shares that Asian countries still “tend to view leadership and success as looking a certain way”, keeping traditional expectations regarding how executives should look.

“For example, in countries such as Japan or South Korea, neutral colours are more favoured. This even extends to the amount of makeup, types of accessories and the height of the heels that women wear,” she notes. For women entering their first senior role, navigating grooming updates can feel challenging.

Shireena recommends reflecting on “what you want to look and sound like, and how you want to be noticed”. She adds: “You can emulate somebody else’s style, such as someone whom you find respectable, professional and credible, and align it with where you work, your personal branding and style.”

Routine refresh

Three executives reflect on how their beauty choices changed as they matured and took on bigger roles professionally.

“When I was young, life was busy so I didn’t even use foundation or eye pencil. As I grew older, I started using foundation and drawing my brows. Also, I stopped using coral shade lipstick because it somehow doesn’t look suitable any more.” – Rachel Eng, Managing Director, Eng and Co. LLC

“As I became more senior, I’ve become less focused on following beauty trends or feeling that I need to look a certain way. I started thinking more about how I wanted to feel when I walked into a room. That means a look that feels like me. When you feel comfortable in your own skin, that confidence shows.” – Sabrina Ho, Founder, Half the Sky

“I find my skin takes longer to bounce back now than it used to. During busy seasons, even basic moisturising can fall through the cracks. So I interject my routine with quick, high-impact rituals at home, like instant hydrating or brightening masks, and balance them with the occasional laser treatment when my skin needs a true reset.” – Angela Tan, Executive Director of a non-profit organisation