Okay, let’s get real – who else has been caught mid-zoom call reapplying lipstick while Jeff from accounting drones on about Q3 projections? 🙋♀️ Don’t get me wrong, Jeff’s great at his job, but honey, my fire-engine red lip stain deserves way more attention than his spreadsheet transitions.
This isn’t about vanity – it’s warfare. I discovered the power of bold lips during my first boardroom presentation three years ago. My hands shook so badly my smartwatch thought I was running a marathon. Then I remembered the tube of MAC Ruby Woo I’d impulse-bought during lunch. Swiping it on felt like strapping on armor. Suddenly, my voice didn’t quiver when the CFO asked about conversion rates. Was it magic? Nope – science.
A 2021 Harvard study found that women wearing “high chroma” lip colors (that’s science-speak for bold AF shades) were perceived as 23% more competent in mock salary negotiations. But here’s the kicker – the real power isn’t in how others see us. It’s how we see ourselves. That red lip became my “tell me I can’t” flag. When I walk into client meetings looking like I own the building (even if I’m secretly panicking about the coffee stain on my blazer), something shifts. My posture straightens. My handshake firms. I stop apologizing for existing.
Last Tuesday proved this isn’t just psychological fluff. During merger talks with a notoriously difficult client, their lead negotiator kept interrupting me. After my third ignored contribution, I “accidentally” dropped my lipstick. The metallic clang made everyone look as I slowly reapplied my signature crimson shade. Suddenly? Radio silence. My next point landed like a grenade. Coincidence? Please. That $12 drugstore bullet just earned our firm a 15% higher stake.
But here’s what the male-dominated self-help gurus won’t tell you – this power comes with backlash. I’ve been called “aggressive” for wearing berry tones to morning stand-ups and “distracting” when my coral gloss matched the sunset during a budget meeting. My favorite? The VP who suggested I “tone it down to be taken seriously.” Babe, my lipstick isn’t the problem – your inability to focus during a P&L review is.
This isn’t about makeup. It’s about claiming space. Every time I choose vampy plum over “office-appropriate” nude, I’m rejecting the idea that professionalism means erasing my personality. My lipstick ritual (7am, coffee in hand, carefully tracing the cupid’s bow my Nana taught me to accentuate) isn’t frivolous – it’s a daily recommitment to showing up unapologetically.
So next time someone implies your bold lip is “too much,” smile sweetly and say “I know – isn’t it fabulous?” Then go crush that quarterly report like the decorated warrior-queen you are. Your lipstick isn’t just makeup – it’s a middle finger to imposter syndrome, served in satin finish. 💋