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How The Beauty Industry Keeps Us Poor
Walk down any drugstore aisle or scroll through your social media feed and the message is clear: your face is a project. Pores must shrink, aging is a flaw and “natural” beauty requires a 10-step routine. The demand to enhance, correct and conceal is as ubiquitous as it is costly — which is why deciding to go bare-faced is not simply a preference, but a form of resistance. Valued at more than $500 billion, the global beauty industry continues to expand, largely driven by the commodification of insecurities. Beauty norms become both a trap and a tool for survival, especially for those navigating identity, security and acceptance within romantic, social…
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The Radical Power of Rest
In today’s hustle culture, the idea of rest often comes with a side of guilt. The glorification and even aestheticization of “busy-ness” from late nights to side gigs is so pervasive that even moments of downtime are seen as something to monetize or justify. But a growing number of thinkers, writers and everyday people are beginning to challenge that narrative. They argue that rest is not a sign of laziness or weakness, but a form of soft strength — one that quietly resists capitalist ideals of overwork, inherited guilt and the pressure to have to overachieve. From school to work, many of us are raised to believe that our worth…
