How to glow up
These are the 6 tried and true steps to glow up. If you are desiring to improve your appearance and your life, and to become the best version of yourself this article will touch on exact ways you can start doing this today. These actions are not very common or talked about because they are subtle, but they make an incredible difference you will notice.You’ll learn that it’s nothing overwhelming, but a combination of little things that make a big difference. So let’s jump in!
You will notice yourself glowing up when you start doing these things:
Decide how you want to show up in the world
Stop looking for approval, know yourself
Learn to fall in love with your habits
Be disciplined
Get in control of your finances
Be more feminine
Decide how you want to show up in the world
The absolute first step in glowing up is to define what glowing up means to you. For some it’s very physical - hair, skin, hygiene. For others, it’s more like “growing up” into the woman you want to be. Be honest and specific with yourself of what glowing up means to you. For physical traits write them down exactly as you desire.
For example: I want my hair to be long, shiny, dark brown and slightly layered. When I leave the house my hair is neat, either pulled back without flyaways or styled without frizz.
We all have some idea of what it visually looks like to glow up, so get it out of your head and onto paper. Spend some time imagining this better version of yourself. It can be helpful to create a board on Pinterest as a visionary depiction for what you aspire to look like. A lot of us also have some woman in mind, like a celebrity or influencer who we gravitate to and gain inspiration from. Define what characteristics you like about them. More than likely it goes deeper than physical. You like their confidence or their humor, possibly their success traits like a boyfriend, family, or career. Think about those traits and examine what areas of your life you need to work on. Read books and listen to podcasts on those topics where you would like to grow.
Stop looking for approval, know yourself
Glowing up means you have a deep knowing of who you are. You clearly know how you want to show up in the world and you actually show up that way. Start to notice when you are asking for other people's approval. The obvious place is on social media where we post and then estimate our worth based on likes and comments. In your glow up phase, try not to post on social media. You need to do this for yourself and no one else. You must learn to ask yourself what you want and what you like and listen to the voice inside. The not so obvious place is within your family or friend dynamics. Are you trying to validate your decisions and get positive buy-in from your best friends, siblings, and parents? Of course a support system is extremely valuable, but notice if you have been making any decisions based on what others think or based truly on what you think and desire.
Tap into your intuition.
Think of going from the inside out. Start trusting your intuition and feelings more. Be aware of them, ponder them, think deeply about why you feel and think these things. When you start to tap in to what’s inside, you will start to be better at knowing what you want and being more decisive. Stop being the person who “doesn't care.” “Oh it doesn’t matter to me, whatever you guys want.” “Whenever, I’m free.” “I don’t have a preference, either way is fine.” Be more decisive. You owe it to yourself to have an opinion. When people ask your opinion, share it confidently. There’s a quote to remember: “An ambiguous response is but a weak refusal.” This means when you are always the one to take a step back and let everyone else decide when and how things will happen, you come off with a kind of weak energy. You don’t need to be difficult or aggressive, just respond with your preference. This is how people who know their worth and listen to their intuition respond. If plans change or something else works better, you can be easy going and in flow. As you glow up, don’t let yourself take the back seat in life, start being more proactive and decisive. You will feel much better and cultivate more confidence.
Learn to fall in love with your habits
This is so underrated! If you are not loving your life, it’s because you don’t love your habits. You must find joy in the littlest of things. That is where happiness comes from. Remember that most of your life is mundane. Wake up, work, eat, exercise, go to bed. That means most of your life is routine. Life = your habits. So why not create habits that bring you joy. The big accomplishments and iconic days like marriage, graduation, promotions, getting the dream job, etc. are little blips in the big scheme of life. Try not to be defined by those things. If you find yourself getting irritated, annoyed, feeling like things should be so much better - you are expecting a storyline from the movies. The secret to true joy and being a pleasant person is to fall in love with your habits. Put little things into your day that you love, these things must also be free. Washing your face in the morning, making your bed, lighting a candle, brushing your hair, going outside for a few breaths before you head out for the day, making a healthy breakfast, journaling, the list can go on and on. Everyone has different habits, but find things that you know when you do them you are happier and feel better. Incorporate more of that into your life. Try to enjoy doing the laundry and cleaning the dishes. Listen to a song you love or a podcast. To understand this is to mature and become a better version of yourself.
Be disciplined
If you want to glow up, you need to be disciplined. Results come from consistency. For a better body you have to be disciplined on what you are eating and work out regularly. It’s not easy, but it’s simple. Many people can start a diet or a program, but few will do it long enough to actually see results. Be the one who sees results. Discipline is a form of self-love. You respect yourself and your goals enough to go through with it. Keeping up with hair and skin also takes consistency. Taking your makeup off and applying serums every night will only make a difference if you do it all the time on a regular basis. Getting enough sleep also takes the discipline to say no to things and leave earlier. Glowing up in a career or professional sense also takes discipline to work on your craft and keep growing each and every day. This is the secret of success. You just have to be consistent with a few things and in no time you will be much farther ahead. Most people start and stop. They go so hard on something then crash and burn. Start small, with a few things and go from there.
Get in control of your finances
Glowing up and growing into a mature woman means you are on top of your finances. Do you know how much money comes in, goes out, and is put into savings each month? If not, take a look. For some this comes naturally, but for others it feels completely daunting. Try to be more rational in this area of your life. Are you spending too much? Are you saving enough? Remember habits = life. If you have bad money habits, it could lead to tough life circumstances. If you desire to have more money, then focus on ways to increase your income. Think about the lifestyle you aspire to have - dream as big as you can. Estimate what that lifestyle would actually cost. You will be surprised that it’s not so crazy of a number. Work toward this. Don’t forget about this area of your life when you are working to improve everything else. Your financial health is arguably just as important as your physical health. So much stress can come from finances which can take away from all other areas of your life you want to improve.
Take a look at your relationship with money. Understand what you were taught about money and decide if you truly believe these things. What do you want money to do for you in your life? What happens if you are able to make more money? Watch YouTube videos on how to budget and manage your money. Watch YouTube videos on how much you should save and invest. Educate yourself on these things. It will elevate you to understand how you can control these things. If you have someone close to you who is good with money, talk to them and learn what they do. Be curious and educated about how money works. Unfortunately this is not taught in school and it can be a taboo topic in families. Don’t be defined by how you grew up with money, decide how you want money to be a part of your life and learn how these things work.
Be more feminine
The last, but certainly not least, aspect of glowing up is to be more feminine. If you are desiring to elevate your appearance and aura, you desire to be a healthy feminine woman. A strong feminine woman takes care of herself, her belongings, and is emotionally intelligent. She is understanding and takes action to be her best self. She knows her worth and power. To be more feminine start slowing down. Do not be in a rush all the time. Give yourself space and time to get ready to the level you’d like in the morning. Plan out your day with intention. Take the time to put on an outfit that you feel good in. Try to throw on pants or a dress instead of workout clothes. This sends out a signal to the world and yourself that you take pride in yourself.
Look at your posture. Is your body in alignment? Do you exude “put-togetherness”? If you have bad posture, probably not. Are you fiddling with your hair, your jewelry, something in your pocket - these are little things that make you appear younger. Be aware of your mannerisms and how people might perceive you. Lean into your femininity and learn more about it. There are tons of books, videos, and podcasts on this topic. Everyone is different with how feminine they want to be and how they already are. But this is also something that isn’t taught as much from mothers and grandmothers because women are more focussed on school and career. But becoming more feminine is a major advantage in both school and work. You will be perceived as more competent and people will naturally respect you more when you have emotional intelligence and can clearly articulate your thoughts. It’s known that the most successful women CEOs are empathetic and have a feminine approach to business. This article on LinkedIn is from a few years ago, but it touches on exactly this. So lean into your femininity and learn how to use it.
All of these tips basically boil down to educating yourself on different areas of life. There is always room for improvement. Do more than just glow up in your appearance, glow up your life. There are so many beautiful lessons and experiences when we are open to growth. In life we are meant to constantly evolve and glowing up is a great way to do that. The fact that you desire to glow up is a testament to your potential in life. I hope these tips help in some way and that you are inspired to start working on one of these areas.
Next steps
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