The $20,000 Manicure Question
Posted by Lise on 28 Mar 2008 at 01:37 pm | Tagged as: personal appearance, work
My coworker buys a $12 manicure every week. You can do your own math to figure out how much that would cost over the next twenty years with 5% interest. Go on. It’s a lot - about $20,000, in fact.
Why is this relevant? My coworker is exquisitely well-groomed. She has perfect hair, fashionable clothes, and wears makeup every day. She’s also really good at listening, and even though we come from completely different backgrounds (she freely admits to spending most of high school reading fashion magazines), I like her a bunch. At work, I’d like to be like her - not just her looks, but her attitude.
One of the best blog series I’ve seen recently has been Trent’s Investing in Yourself. He argues in the Personal Appearance and Hygiene part of this series that “small efforts of personal appearance are tiny investments that do pay off.”
There are two facts about my job that tie into this:
- After a (very) rough adjustment period, I’ve decided that I enjoy it enough to stay here for a while and try to “advance through the ranks.” In this, I’ve accepted that a job worth doing is worth doing well, to cite the old adage.
- I don’t put as much effort into my appearance as half the women in my office. As long as I’m clean and my clothes match, I don’t much care how I look. I don’t wear makeup. I have a very limited wardrobe, and don’t follow fashion trends. I take a shower in the morning and arrive at work with messy, wet hair - which I haven’t had cut since August. I have never plucked my eyebrows, had a manicure or pedicure, or worried overly much about the condition of my skin.
Does any of this matter? I think it probably does in my workplace, which is largely populated by mainstream (read: non-geeky) women. My boss, for example, is female, and any promotion would come from her. I think investing in my appearance would show that I do, in fact, speak her language.
Just so I don’t lose my feminist cred, I do acknowledge the ridiculous beauty standards for women and the unfairness of the fact that women are practically required to put more money into keeping up appearances than men. But my workplace is not the place to be an activist. I won’t be getting plastic surgery or developing a sudden interest in fashion - we’re talking wearing makeup, getting regular haircuts, and blow-drying my hair before coming to work.
So where do I start - and how much do I spend? At what point will the initial investment exceed the expected payoff?
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Sometimes you have to play the game to change the game.
You need to start small, and see if small efforts provide small payouts or large ones. If there are no payouts, you can try adding something else, but beware the law of diminishing returns. Also by starting small, you can get out without much invested (time or money), and not feel you lost a lot in the trying. Also, by starting small, you won’t look like you’re completely reinventing yourself or changing yourself on purpose.
Maybe start with a haircut and a manicure? Small investment (time and money), effective for at least a month. Then hairdrying is an easy add, with a logical source of inspiration (new hairdo!). Then creep in bits of makeup at a time?
Not to be rude, but you did invite readers to do their own math.
$12/week * 52 weeks/year * 5 years = $3120
Even if you compound it weekly at a 5% rate, you’ll still end up with less than $4000; no where near $20k.
That said, the fact that career advancement could depend on manicure just appalls me. What a horrifying world we live in.
… yeah, you’re totally right.
I think I realize what I did. I started with twenty years, as the measure of someone’s long-term career path, and then decided “But someone generally only stays at one job for five years…” and changed the text without changing the math. Yeah. So I’m going to fix it now to say 20 years, not 5.
Thanks for pointing that out.
Oh, and on your other point: I think you underestimate the extent to which women judge other women on appearances. It’s sad, true, but unfortunately we all end up having to play games to get ahead at work. Men have their own, I’m sure.
Chad: you’re absolutely right. What I’m proposing is a series of habit changes, and those have to happen slowly over time to be realistic.
[...] The $20,000 Manicure Question [...]
$12/manicure is insanely cheap, I’ve never gotten one for less than $20. While a manicure is an investment in one’s looks, it’s also actually quite relaxing and fun. I’m girly than you, but by no means a girly-girl and I bite my nails. I’ve only gotten manicures for special occasions, but I’ve always found them fun and pampering. I keep trying to stop biting my nails and I always try to bribe myself with the promise of a manicure (stress beats bribery still though). See how you like it, but remember that the relaxation may be a benefit beyond what the manicure will bring you in appearance. Also despite what Chad said manicures do not last a month, they last at most a week and a half, though learning to touch them up yourself can prolong them.
I’m more into my appearance when it matters (date night, events, when I care to put forth the effort), but I don’t put that much into it otherwise. Given that, it’s important not to look like death warmed over.
To look nice, quickly and easily?
1. Invest in a good haircut, one that compliments your features and hair. It will take no time to do it.
2. Get your eyebrows done regularly. It’s only 2 - 3 x’s a month & will basically make you look like a totally different person with no daily effort.
3. Moisturizer, sunscreen, mascara and blush. All you need.
Great bra, good posture and friendliness.
From a girl who wishes she could go to work in her pajamas but still can’t deny she loves pink.
Hope it helps.
Thanks for the input, Nicole. I’m basically trying to improve my appearance, little by little. I started by getting a new haircut, which got rave reviews from my coworkers. I’ve made it a habit to wear my contacts daily. Still working my way from there.