SPONSORED POST: Smart women celebrate brains (as well as beauty)
AS women we may still be judged on our looks, but it’s our intelligence, wit, kindness and charm that will take us places.
Yes, it’s great to look and feel our best, but there has to be substance to back up our style, there has to be more to us all than just meets the eye. Otherwise, well, what on earth is the point?!
Intelligence, knowledge and wisdom are all greatly overlooked in my view but yet when it comes to the women who inspire me, it’s all of these qualities that makes me look up to them as the kind of woman I strive to be. These are the things I admire most of all.
Because whilst I can – and do – appreciate the beauty of women and (like many of us), adore pretty, feminine things, I like to think that my brain is just as attractive as my body, that my personal qualities are just as appealing as my face.
We put so much time into how we look don’t we? And there’s nothing wrong with that. It’s nice to, well, look nice! But how often do we exercise our brains? Push them to their limits? See what we are all truly capable of?
In fact, using my brain (or trying to!) is one of the things I love about getting older. Learning more, figuring stuff out, realising you don’t know nearly as much as you perhaps thought you did, recognising that you may not indeed know all of the answers.
In the Western world we are bombarded with images of breathtakingly stunning women. We are taught at a young age that to be successful in life, good looks is all that we need. But this is nonsense and actually couldn’t be further than the truth.
Yes, looking attractive may help to open up doors, but it’s your brains, your humour, your personality and your special qualities which will help to ensure that they are kept open for you, to ensure other exciting opportunities await.
All of this and more is why I am LOVING this short video from Clinique:
Why? Well, because celebrating smart women is a smart move.
Clinique have recognised that combining beauty and brains is a winning combination. Plus any opportunity to celebrate women can only ever be a good thing in my book. (There’s still not enough of this around for my liking!)
Let’s face it, the prettiest packaging in the world may be beautiful to look at, but at the end of the day it’s still just packaging. What counts is what’s inside and with more brands recognising this, hey you just never know, one day we may be as adored for our intelligence, as we are for our beauty.
Watch it and be inspired! And tell me (please, I would LOVE to hear!)….who’s the smartest woman you know?
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With love,
Kate
*Disclaimer – this is a sponsored post however as always, all views and opinions are my own.
When it comes to that dose of ‘smart’ that comes from years of experience, from living through and getting on, from learning by mistakes; I look no further that my amazing Mum. Although my lovely friends come a close second! And I think you’re right that we are still often judged by our looks – perhaps by those who don’t really KNOW us? It’s a distorted view of beauty that’s at odds with our true feminine wisdom. Lovely video x
Wise words Michelle and I’m sure your Mum would be thrilled to hear she is the ‘smartest’ woman you know. Thanks for popping by! x
I hope more brands can recognise this! Yes its nice to look nice but what’s on the inside is so much more important. There are (in my opinion) too many women who are rich & famous purely because of how they look, and young girls aspire to be them, and it makes me sad. We need girls to take pride in using their brains! Xx #allaboutyou
Me too Caroline! I certainly feel like a shift is occurring, I really hope so anyway. It’s rather depressing when you read about how few girls are ambitious about their futures or careers, which is why it’s important as bloggers and parents that we continue to give the message, that being smart is SMART!:) X
Hi lovely Katie.
I’m going to say “my mum” (cliche-tastic) but it’s true. She is a very clever lady.
She left school after her A-Levels and married my dad a couple of weeks later. She didn’t work when me and my brother were little and then, when she was in her late twenties, she did her degree in social work and now she has a pretty full-on role with a lot of responsibilty. Sometimes, when she talks about work, I’m actually taken back at how senior she is because I tend to think of her as my mum and only my mum, which is hugely unfair.
She has had the best of both worlds really; she had the opportunity to spend every day with us for years which is what she wanted but then she had the chance to retrain and have a career.
In comparison, I have a degree but I can only work three days a week because of childcare limitations (plus, I want to be with Gwenn, don’t get me wrong) so I feel stuck in a low-paid job that a school leaver could walk into. I don’t want Gwenn to see me heading off to work with a heavy heart. I know she will be able to look up to her Momar, but what about me?
Thanks for this post; inspiring and thought-provoking as always!
xx
#AllAboutYou
Hello lovely Betty! So pleased you found the post inspiring and thought provoking. That makes me one happy blogger!
Love that your Mum is the smartest woman you know. It’s wonderful! However, please don’t put yourself down in comparison. You sound incredibly smart to me, juggling any job with being a parent is tough. Know that you’re doing the best you can AND that we never know what fabulous opportunities are around the corner.
Keep believing, keep trying, keep reaching for the stars x
Loved reading this fabulous post :-) Go Clinique for this campaign, it’s nice to see. Pretty packaging with an airhead underneath wears thin quite quickly. Unfortunately we live in a world where Reality TV and constant sleek adverts give our youngsters mixed messages. It’s why we don’t have a telly in my house… Ultimately I’d much rather my girls grow up using their brains over their looks xxx #allaboutyou
Me too Mummy Tries! Me too! :) Let’s hope times are changing x
I agree! I’ve just read Caitlin Moran’s book, ‘How to be a Woman’. She talks about how women should ‘do’ not ‘be’. I really hope I can get this through to my daughters who have been bombarded with the message that just ‘being’ beautiful can take you places.
Aah she’s amazing isn’t she Jane?! Love Caitlin Moran. Very wise woman. And yes as a mum to a daughter, I feel your pain and concern. I think all we can do is make them realise that being clever and beautiful on the inside too is not just as important, but more so. x
Fab campaign and sentiments I back fully, like so many of the others, my Mum, always my Mum for her wisdom, intelligence, lack of emphasis on beauty (and boy was she a stunner as a young woman and even now) but not valuing that was crucial and means a lot even now, despite such a focus on how we look! Being smart and kind are more important than anything, such a wonderful post! Thanks for linking up to #brilliantblogposts x
Thanks Vicki! You’re spot on, being smart and kind are more important than ANYTHING. Love how your Mum is also your ‘smart’ hero although I’m sure she’d be equally as proud of her ‘smart’ and beautiful daughter x