For Men and Women: 9 Steps to Avoid Being Late for Work in the Morning

Eighteen months after the coronavirus pandemic hit the United States, many major companies started to bring employees back to office work, such as American Express, Capital One, Discovery, McDonald's, and Wells Fargo.

For many, this means returning to the old morning routine of getting ready for work after they used to work in pajamas most of the time and wearing a hat or anything to cover their hair due to a lack of care. As for makeup application tips, they have been completely forgotten.

So, thinking about crawling back into the old morning routine—including putting on an appropriate outfit for the office, applying makeup, and styling your hair before going to work again—is going to cause some stress.

Productivity-improving coach Ellen Faye tells HuffPost about returning to the workplace after COVID-19, “Going back creates a lot of stress and anxiety, which is why it is so important to update routines.”

Fashion designers, makeup artists, and hairstylists present their techniques to employees about getting ready for work in flexible ways.

Steps to Avoid Being Late for Work in the Morning

1. Plan your morning routine at the beginning of the week

We've all heard old sayings about preparing clothes for any occasion the night before, but Coach Faye recommends preparing clothes for the entire work week before it starts. She justifies this by saying, "This way you save yourself the trouble of daily thinking when standing in front of the wardrobe in the morning."

She suggests we do the same with our hair care methods during the work week. For example, Faye says her client, who has thick hair, plans ahead of time to skip her Wednesday morning workout to wash, dry, and style her hair.

2. Check your wardrobe early

To reduce the agony of making the right dressing decision every day and to avoid wearing ill-fitting clothes, Southern Californian fashion designer Jess Dreyfus suggests, "You have to prepare in advance, just as you prepare for your homework. Head to the wardrobe, pick the clothes, and try them on. Try on everything (yeah, everything). You won't know whether the pieces that you think will work together or that you love will fit unless you try them on. Act as if you were buying from a clothing store. You should feel happy when you go to your favorite place and wear your well-chosen clothes every day.”

Designer Dreyfus suggests taking pictures while trying on outfits, so you can come back to them when you get confused in the morning. Browsing Pinterest and Instagram will help when you need some outfit inspiration.

3. Arrange your wardrobe according to the core colors

Cassandra Sethi, the founder of Next Level Wardrobe, recommends sticking to a classic color scheme in the wardrobe. She says, “You have to arrange clothes in solid color sets to make it easier to coordinate clothes.”

Sethi defines the basic colors as black, gray, white, and blue in all their shades. She recommends to her clients, "I always tell my clients, ‘Stick in that color palette and you can’t go wrong. You’ll always look great and you’ll always look put together."

4. Make sure that essential clothes are in the wardrobe

The wardrobe should contain a basic set of clothes that are suitable for use over time. Designer Dreyfuss believes everyone's wardrobe should contain a pair of straight-leg jeans, simple black pants, a black leather jacket, a white undershirt, and a denim shirt. She describes these fixed clothing pieces as "things you can wear in five years while still being fashionable."

Cassandra Sethi advocates keeping a matching shirt on hand, saying, "I'm not talking about a multi-purpose shirt that can be used for both sleeping and working out, but a shirt of good-quality fabric that fits really well and can appropriately be worn under a cardigan or blazer for work."

5. Simplify packing your work bag by using a smaller purse

Designer Dreyfuss says, "If you change your work bag from day to day, avoid rummaging around for lost essentials in the morning by putting them in a small purse that can be easily moved from one bag to another.”

If you want to finish the process completely, use a spacious bag for everyday use. Dreyfuss endorsed adding a simple leather bag to the wardrobe essentials.

The list of items you need to move around on a daily basis can also be shortened by purchasing another set of items to keep in the office, such as chargers and reusable water bottles. Faye says, "Simplify that process as much as possible so that you’re not having to do more."

6. Regarding makeup, pick three areas you want to focus on

Nicole Livia, a beauty expert from New Jersey, says, “Pick your top three favorite things, whether it's eyebrows, eye mascara, foundation, or hair styling with a cute hair tie or headband. No one has time during the working day to curl their hair or put on full makeup. So, sometimes these simple touches might make you feel tenfold better.”

7. Use multi-purpose products

You can save some of your morning getting-ready time and some space in your makeup bag by choosing multi-purpose products, like Victoria De Los Ríos' favorite product from Mac—Studio Fix Powder Plus. This product can be used as a foundation and face powder at the same time.

“Instead of applying foundation, concealer, and powder—three products—you can use just one,” says makeup artist Victoria. She also praises bareMinerals powder for its ability to double-hide imperfections.

Makeup boxes are a practical solution. They contain several things in one place, such as the Dior box.

Beauty expert Victoria called the powder palette the "rescue" palette and pointed out the possibility of using a contour and highlighter instead of eye shadow, as well as using it to add shine to the face.

8. Don’t wash your hair every day

Amidst the ongoing debate among celebrities about showering frequency, hairstylist Carly Zanoni states that it is enough to wash your hair 2-3 times a week. She says, "Washing it every day removes all the natural oils.” Furthermore, when your hair tries to compensate by producing loads of healthy natural oils, you shower more often, thinking that your hair is so greasy and that you have to wash it.

Zanoni told HuffPost that, "If you skip washing your hair for a few days, your hair will adjust. Using a set of helpful products, you can refresh your hair appearance so that you don't have to spend much time washing it every morning."

9. Use hair accessories to look effortlessly put-together for office work

Hair ties and hair bands that improve your appearance during Zoom meetings might suit office work.

Beauty expert Nicole Livia prefers to use a hair band to create a modern look that is quick and balanced at the same time.

Zanoni says that you can use a hair tie to create a sleek bun. You can also leave some tufts out intentionally to get a bun with some lovely messiness. Let's not forget the hair clip that became a trend in the 1990s. Hairstylist Zanoni describes it as a great tool for lifting hair from the back and keeping it away from the face.

Write down your morning routine steps on a sticky note

Once you've nailed down your morning routine for getting ready for work and how you want your morning to look, jot it down on a sticky note and pin it to the mirror.

Ellen Faye says, “Because of the mental distraction in the morning and the inability to make quick decisions or to think about the routine steps, time will run out before getting ready for work. So, instead of remembering all the details, writing the steps down will make it easier for you. All you have to do is execute them, step by step."

Coach Faye also recommended keeping a clock in the bathroom, or where you get ready, and setting a timer to go off after 10 minutes to leave. She continued, “The most important thing is to manage stress because change will cause additional anxiety. Therefore, to walk out the door fully prepared, you have to manage and reduce stress and then focus on the required steps. We have to treat ourselves kindly after everything we have been through."