Looking good on video has assumed newfound importance (and in some cases, notoriety) these days. While left-open doors and intruding pets & toddlers are part and parcel of working/studying from home, how you look when you “face” the world cannot be taken lightly. Here’s why:   

Dressing for the Job:  There’s an old cliché that goes something like “dress for the job you want, not the job you have.” Actually, both are true! Balancing home life with work/school life isn’t easy but some people are under the impression a video conference is a virtual extension of their home. Just the opposite: it’s an extension of their office or classroom. Dress, look, and act accordingly – your job or your grades may depend on it. 

Impressions Still Matter: You wouldn’t attend a budget meeting or a biology class wearing pajamas and rocking some serious “bed head”, now would you? Yet it happens, more often then you’d think! The internet is chock-a-block with tales of office drones who apparently roll out of bed and right into a video conference… just because they can! Think your boss, professor, co-workers, and/or classmates will be impressed by your “dreamy” look? Better think again.   

Look Sharp, Feel Sharp: When we look good, we feel good, and feeling like a million bucks will put you in the right frame of mind to work towards achieving your financial, professional or educational goals. Seeing yourself on video is a lot like looking in the mirror: you’ll feel better about yourself if you like what you see!   

Timing is Everything: One downside of working from home is the erosion of the traditional 9-to-5 (or 9-to-3, for many schools) day. Homework such as group projects is often conducted before or after the dinner hour and as for office workers, you’d best look bright-eyed and bushy-tailed when the boss wants something is done and they want to see you NOW. Oh, and don’t forget to take off that lobster bib before answering your boss’s urgent late-evening ZOOM invite.       

Appearance Pressure: For most kids these days, the pressure to fit in socially at school can exceed the need to ace their studies. Unflattering lighting, a bad hair day, chipped or mismatched nails, even an untimely “maskne” breakout… what may be passing embarrassments for most of us could trigger major anxiety in your school-age child.     

All of the above factors have now taken on even greater importance as summer vacation ends and the new school year begins. “The camera judges us without mercy,” states Cheryl Gushue, Professional Beauty Expert & Fashion Creative Curator at Beauty Hub. “If you’ve ever wondered why our favourite actors and actresses look so good, check out the credits at the end of the show. Professional makeup artists, lighting technicians and post-production engineers are paid handsomely to bring out the best in their subjects. If you had them on-call at home, you’d be the star of every video conference!”