11 Inner-Beauty Tips from Bobbi Brown

The cosmetics queen made a name for herself as a makeup artist, but learned more in the process.

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“There are so many images today that don’t necessarily give girls a way to feel good about themselves,” says cosmetics queen Bobbi Brown. “There are so many actresses who have starved themselves … they wear designer clothes, have hair dressers and makeup artists, and regular girls can’t compete.” That’s why she wrote Bobbi Brown Beauty Rules: Fabulous Looks, Beauty Essentials, and Life Lessons , published in 2010. “I wrote the book to help empower girls to realize that they rock and they are beautiful.” [Read more about Brown in the March 2012 issue of SUCCESS.]

The book offers“Bobbi’s Basic Life Rules,” which include the following:

Rule No. 1: Be nice; I’m not kidding. The more you give to others, the more you get.

Rule No. 2: Tell the truth.

Rule No. 3: Take risks.

Rule No. 4: Never give up. When I started working in makeup, I had no experience. A lot of times I had to work for free to prove myself and sometimes people wouldn’t even let me do that. Even though I had really discouraging days, I never let no become the final answer.

Rule No. 5: Be on time. But if you are going to be more than five minutes late—call!

Rule No. 6: Be open!!! When I was doing an in-store appearance, an older lady asked me for tips to make her lipstick last. I took time to give her my best advice. … Turns out the little red-haired woman was the grandmother of the Today show’s executive producer. That meeting helped me become the show’s guest beauty editor.

Rule No. 7: Care about something.

Rule No. 8: Give back. Find a cause that’s meaningful to you and make it your own.

Rule No. 9: Work hard. Start at the bottom and learn all you can. Be strong.

Rule No. 10: Look people in the eye; it shows confidence.

Rule No. 11: Dream big.

Except from Bobbi Brown Beauty Rules: Fabulous Looks, Beauty Essentials, and Life Lessons, 2010, Chronicle Books.