In this week’s Crisis Talks, we’re carrying on our conversation about confidence — but this time we’re getting into the complicated relationship between confidence, appearance, clothes and getting older.

Does looking good really make you feel more confident? Why can one outfit make you feel fantastic one day and completely rubbish the next? And why, as women, are we still so obsessed with what we’re “allowed” to look like as we get older?

We talk about:

* Why what you wear can have a huge impact on how confident you feel
* Why getting older can make confidence around appearance more complicated
* The ridiculous idea that an older face is somehow a “worse” face
* Wrinkles, grey hair and why we should be allowed to actually LOOK our age
* The pressure on women to maintain a younger-looking appearance
* Hollywood, social media and the unrealistic image of what women in their 40s, 50s and beyond are supposed to look like
* Body changes as we get older — and learning to accept that your body isn't supposed to look like it did in your 30s
* Why we need to stop trying to “fix” every change that happens to our bodies
* The dreaded tummy, post-kids bodies and the pressure to train ourselves into a completely different shape
* Why sometimes you just need to say “fuck it” and wear the bikini
* Dressing for confidence at work
* The outfits we reach for when we want to feel good
* Why getting older might actually mean caring less about what everyone else thinks
* Quality over quantity when it comes to clothes
* Wearing the same outfit twice without having an existential crisis
* Why we should experiment more with clothes as we get older
* Barrel-leg trousers, skinny jeans and the eternal fashion struggle
* And, most importantly… WHY ARE WE SO RUBBISH AT ACCEPTING COMPLIMENTS?!

Our challenge this week is simple:

Tell someone they look nice.

And when someone tells YOU that you look nice?

JUST SAY THANK YOU.

No “Oh, it's only from Tesco.”

No “I've had it for years.”

No “God, I've put weight on.”

No explaining why the compliment isn't valid.

Just…

THANK YOU.

Because maybe giving compliments — and actually accepting them — is one of the easiest ways we can make each other feel a little more confident.

And, of course, there’s plenty of nonsense along the way, including Saga cruises, The Golden Girls, Hollywood, Alton Towers, raincoats, ponchos and Katy preparing to celebrate her 50th birthday!

Watch/listen now and let us know:

What makes YOU feel confident?

And are you any good at accepting a compliment?

#MidlifeNoCrisis #CrisisTalk #Confidence #WomenOver40 #WomenOver50 #Turning50 #MidlifeWomen #Aging #Ageing #BodyConfidence #BodyImage #Menopause #Perimenopause #FashionOver40 #FashionOver50

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