I wanted to overcome my naturally lazy tendency. So naturally, I started with baby steps.

Putting make-up on every day isn’t something I relish.

But I’m not a spring chicken anymore on the outside. (I still feel that way on the inside.) My face is lined, and I’m pale except for those pesky brown spots that make me crazy. And like Nora Ephron (may she rest in peace), I hate my neck.

I know make-up will help and is less expensive than the alternative, but frankly… I’m lazy. Putting on make-up is not my idea of fun. (Don’t think about it… I’m not going for make-up tattoos! I know you’re thinking about that!)

First of all, I don’t think about make-up when I get up.

I wake early to walk the dogs, and they would rather go out and get some relief instead of waiting while I put on my face.

Plus, it’s dark, so no one would notice. Except me.

But some chores have to be done. I don’t relish cleaning out the lint trap in my drier, but I do it anyway. Regularly.

Do you watch The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel? (It’s a great show with fabulous clothes)

She was a housewife in the 1950s. She went to bed with full make-up so her husband would last see her at her best. After he fell asleep, she would get up and take her make-up off.

She got up before him in the mornings to put her make-up back on and then go back to bed to wait for it to be time to get up.

Wow!

What would she have done if there was a fire in the middle of the night and they had to leave suddenly? I dread to think about it.

Back to baby steps

I don’t wear make-up to bed. I put make-up in the exercise category. Something I have to do. Except I’ve been exercising and NOT wearing make-up.

I think you know where this is going. (NOOO! I am NOT going to stop exercising! Even though I would LOVE to!)

You’re probably wondering why I am even talking about make-up. Is it one of those “things we don’t talk about”?

(No. I am delaying that column working up the guts to bring up that subject, but it’s coming.)

No. I decided to up my game.

The creation of the Lipstick Challenge

I have to overcome my naturally lazy tendency. So I decided I needed a Lipstick Challenge.

I know the basic tenets of habit formation. I teach productivity after all! (Grab my book on being productive while you work from home here)

• Start small.
• Take baby steps.
• Go for an easy success so that I have a positive, “I can do this!” track record.
• Build slowly.
• Fast is not good in goal setting.
• Start too strong, and you burn out quickly.
• Slow and steady wins the race. (I sound like a mother, right?!!)

So, I did my first five-day Lipstick Challenge.

My challenge was to put lipstick on every morning for five days.

I put my lipstick next to my toothbrush. After I brushed my teeth, on went the lipstick.

To motivate myself, I took a picture each day of me wearing lipstick and sent it to my kids. They found it humorous.

Now you’re probably thinking you don’t care about me and my lipstick. I get that.

But this is about so much more than lipstick.

It’s about making a commitment and following through. It’s about starting a habit by taking small baby steps in the right direction. And it’s about showing up as my personal best.

Join me!

You’re invited to join me in my five-day challenge. Of course, your schtick is probably not about lipstick. You have your thing you’re avoiding for whatever reasons.

You’re invited to commit to something you’ve been avoiding and do it for the next five days.

Consider these five days the baby steps you need to result in a BIG shift.

You can respond to this email and share what you are committing to doing for the next five days. If you are bold, you can send photos!

My Instagram handle is alicia_berberich. You can check out my page and see if there are any photos of me wearing lipstick. (You’ll probably notice I have a preference for red lipstick. Subtlety is not my specialties)

I’ve found it’s challenging to keep lipstick where it belongs–on my lips. I found it all over my hands and in random spots on my face where no lips exist.

But I wore it every day!!! (this tells me I should have gone for a more neutral shade, but neutral is not my life colour…)

(Don’t miss this post on how small steps make big changes either!)

Figure out what your ONE THING is and go all out this week and see how it goes. Can you do it? Yes, you can! But if you’re going to do it, you need to get started and make the most of your time.

So get on it!!

Love,
Alicia

PS. What was amazing is, since I went to all the trouble to put lipstick on, I added some mascara. Since I had mascara on, I added a little colour to my cheeks… one good habit opens the door for other positive traits to build.

Of note, the same thing happens in reverse. One cookie opens the door for multiple cookies. Make sure your one thing is a positive thing!

Did you enjoy this article on baby steps and the Lipstick Challenge? Take a look at these other posts too:

How to Easily Change Your World View
Fly the Plane Before It’s Ready
Speaking Up in Church: What’s Stopping You?