It’s 6:30 AM, New Year’s Day. You awake with a head like a three-day old disco and a promise yourself that you’ll never do it again, but you know that you will, unless you change your routine. New year’s resolutions are a big thing; in the UK, around 16% of adults say they will make a New Year’s resolution with about 49% of those aspiring to improve their health and fitness, and another 41% wanting to eat more healthy food and lose weight. Others want to cut down on their alcohol intake or give up smoking.
The sad fact is though, that most will give up on their new resolution within a few weeks at best, because many people choose to try and change a behaviour that is usually too difficult to alter in one go. Much better that people aim a little lower and actually succeed. Many of these resolutions fail due of the persons inadequacy, but it’s also true that a resolution may be the wrong one for that person, for a couple of fundamental reasons:
- It is a resolve made in response to what another person - or even society - is advising them to alter.
- It is much too ambiguous.
- They lack a feasible strategy for reaching their resolution.
Like with most things, poor planning leads to poor performance, and simply deciding to give up something as fundamental as smoking or chocolate is doomed to fail unless you have a will of steel. But getting a good win one year, makes you up to 78% more likely to succeed at something even more impressive the next year. Win once, and you are more likely to win again.
But what then should you try and change in the first instance? It should definitely be something that makes you feel good, and for a growing number of men that means their hair and skin. If we look after outer self, our inner person thrives, and there is no better way to support the outer physiology than by treating our outer vibrance.
Here at Hawkins & Brimble, we have been perfecting our award-winning range of hair and skin products to make the most of what you have and help you start a new routine aimed at improving them. A growing number of men are electing to take better care of what they have, but they aren’t always using the best products, and we want to set that right.
But new year, new routine, isn’t just about using the right products, it’s about applying them in the right way too, particularly when it comes to cleaning and moisturising our skin. This is a resolution that is pretty easy to carry out, and you can win at, provided that you do it right.
Effective skincare entails much more than just cleaning your face with whatever soap you have on hand, slathering on some moisturiser from your partner's stockpile, and hoping for the best. As with everything important, it requires dedication, consistency, and care, as well as a healthy dose of experimenting until you discover the Hawkins & Brimble products that are right for you. You have to start right at the very beginning;
- Clean it. Before you start this, it’s worth going along to a high-street pharmacy/shop – there are plenty of them available - and asking the make-up department sales reps what kind of skin you have – dry, normal, greasy, ‘difficult’, rumbustious, etc. Make out that you might buy something from them and they will be happy to help in assessing your skin.
Now you have that expert knowledge, you can plan your cleansing routine. Cleansing is best done using a specialist product that is designed to remove everyday dirt and debris but not to break down the delicate natural oils in the upper dermis. Apply lightly and don’t rub hard, use circular motions, making sure that you get right round you face and neck. Rinse off with copious amounts of clean, warm water and reapply if you have especially greasy or ‘difficult’ skin. Pat your face dry with a soft, clean towel.
- Apply an eye cream. The soft skin around the eyes is very delicate and if you rub the area too hard, you’ll risk dark rings and damaged skin. Eye creams are light and easily absorbed, so they are ideal to apply to clean skin with small wiping motions going from your nose outwards, using something soft like cotton wool. Do it well and your eye cream will relive puffiness and dark circles, almost instantly making you look healthier.
- Moisturise. Many men shy away from moisturising because they believe that many creams are too heavy and they’ll end up feeling like Leatherface from Texas Chainsaw Massacre. But fear not, Hawkins & Brimble moisturisers are specially formulated for their light-weight feel and fast absorption. Apply penny-sized spots of cream to your cheeks, forehead, chin and tip of your nose, and the work it in fully with your fingers, using light, circular motions. If you do this well, all of the cream should be well absorbed, and the circular work with your fingers will help tighten up your skin too. Double-win. If you have been advised that your skin is a bit greasy, you might be better off with a more bespoke
Do this night and day, and you’ll have great looking skin, but more importantly, you’ll have actually succeeded in completing a resolution too. Small steps indeed, but fired up by this, maybe next you’ll be able to do something else significant, like quitting smoking, or learning to put your grubby socks and underpants in the washing basket rather than leaving them on the wet-room floor!
