Top Skin Care Advice, Hear What Our Thinkers Think
Marco PoltronieriHindsight is 20-20. Merriam-Webster defines it as:
“THE FULL KNOWLEDGE
and COMPLETE UNDERSTANDING
that one has about an event only AFTER it has happened.”
As far as idioms go, well, this one’s pretty spot on. With the passage of time, we do tend to see things more clearly in perspective. So, we thought, what do some of our Thinkers think about their own 20-20 hindsight? Knowing what they know now, what would they do differently? So, we posed the following question:
“What skin care and life advice would you give your age 23 self?”
As a Collective, our goal is to share and learn from each other. So, let’s hear what our Thinkers think.

Reoccurring themes, they’re onto something
To paraphrase the renown American poet, Dr. Maya Angelou, when you know better, you do better. As we received from our Thinkers their advice to themselves, we began to see some patterns.
First, were they super eager to share their life-earned wisdom with their age 23 selves. They were not only willing participants, but very motivated to mentor themselves.
Second, there were reoccurring themes in their advice. Regardless of where they are in the world, they often had similar advice.
While we were not surprised by this, we were not expecting it to be a clear majority.
The Top 3 skin care advice to their age 23 years self?
<< 53% of advice: Wear sunscreen and correctly
<< 21% of advice: Hydrate skin regularly
<< 16% of advice: Cleanse skin regularly
The #1 life advice to their young adult selves?
<< 88% of advice: Seize the moment
We hope that their answers inspire you to think of your own 20-20 hindsight.

“We want to speak about Prevention”
What skin care advice would you give yourself at age 23?


FLORA T
HONG KONG
DEAR AGE 23 FLORA, please use better UV protection. It’s a great time to enjoy the outdoors and play, so it is important to have enough protection before your skin gets damaged.


MARIA MANTERO
LAKE COMO
DEAR AGE 23 MARIA, always drink lots of water. Always cleanse your skin in the morning and in the evening.


CLAUDIO C
SOLOMEO
DEAR AGE 23 CLAUDIO, always use sunscreen. Don’t ever, never use the tanning reflector après ski – that is the stupidest thing that you will do.


GABRIELE T
MILANO
DEAR AGE 23 GABRIELE, take care of, protect, and hydrate the skin because clean and moisturized skin is a symptom of well-being, I see it a bit like an accessory on a suit, it must be worn with style and chosen with care.


MARCO P
MILANO
DEAR AGE 23 MARCO, always protect your skin from the sun by applying a sunscreen, preferably with a high protection factor to prevent damage caused by UV rays such as premature aging and the risk of skin cancer.
It’s also essential to hydrate your skin on a daily basis, either by drinking enough water or with a moisturizer suited to your skin type. Hydration helps keep skin healthy and glowing.
Always eat a balanced diet rich in antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals (fruits, vegetables, and whole grains). A healthy diet contributes to and improves overall skin health.


VITTORIA Z
MILANO
DEAR AGE 23 VITTORIA, use sunscreen in the summer, especially at the beach. You will spend years applying nothing and now it’s something you will always do.


ELEONORA C
LONDON
DEAR AGE 23 ELEONORA, always clean deeply your skin before going to bed and moisturize it. If you have a long busy day, do it before dinner, this is a tip that I found it useful to avoid doing it fast or not at all.
Sun, we love our sun, but we need to protect our skin at an early age to avoid ageing and dark spots. I wish I protected my skin more when I was 23…


LINDA C
MILL VALLEY
DEAR AGE 23 LINDA, do not simply follow skincare advice from ads & marketing campaigns. Oil is not the enemy; removing oil does not prevent breakouts.
It’s all about balance! And wear sunscreen everyday!


CHANTEL H
VANCOUVER
DEAR AGE 23 CHANTEL, you’ve always known the importance of applying sun protection, but you need to reapply every 2-3 hours.


JEFFREY TM
HONOLULU
DEAR AGE 23 JEFFREY, always use sunscreen every day, especially since you live in Hawaii. Your skin feels indestructible now, but it won’t be once you hit 40. The sun spots that will start to appear will make you really regret it.

“We want to speak about what’s truly important”
What life advice would you tell your age 23 self?


FLORA T
HONG KONG
DEAR AGE 23 FLORA, learn and absorb as much as you can, the world is so big and there are always something interesting and fun at the corner.


CLAUDIO C
SOLOMEO
DEAR AGE 23 CLAUDIO, focus on your dreams because they can come true.


GABRIELE T
MILANO
DEAR AGE 23 GABRIELE, be curious, travel, discover, and keep wanting to take action and grow. Every experience will shape your future.


MARCO P
MILANO
DEAR AGE 23 MARCO, make the most of your time and use it to get to know yourself better, cultivate your interests, define your goals and find your passions.
Cultivate friendships, dedicate time to them, true friends will be important at every stage of your life. Invest energy in cultivating your relationships with friends, share experiences, interests and travels. Special moments will remain in your heart.


VITTORIA Z
MILANO
DEAR AGE 23 VITTORIA, live more carefree and enjoy every minute you have. Time flies away so fast.


LINDA C
MILL VALLEY
DEAR AGE 23 LINDA, as a Gen-Xer, achieving success and happiness in life does not require “paying your dues” through endless work. Instead, understand that establishing a work-life balance from the start is the key. Nourishing your mind and spirit through professional and personal experiences paves the path to success and happiness.


CHANTEL H
VANCOUVER
DEAR AGE 23 CHANTEL, follow your passion and do something that is truly meaningful and sustainable in the long run. It’s also ok to fail and remind yourself that every failure is a moment of reflection.


JEFFREY TM
HONOLULU
DEAR AGE 23 JEFFREY, no one will remember all the times you will fall. What they and you will remember is that you did get up.
A big grazie to our Thinkers around the world for sharing their lived experiences with all of us.
What did you learn about your own skin care and life advice after reading theirs? We hope this sparked some inspiration of your own.
20-20 Hindsight is a new quarterly column where all Thinkers are invited to share and grow together. Let us know!
The next prompt for September 2023:
- What skin care alert would you give yourself at age 23? That is, what’s an embarrassing skin care mistake you made that you would like to tell your age 23 self to avoid?
- What life flash would you like to share with your age 23 self? That is, what is one special moment the age 23 you can look forward to?
Write us at bthq@beautythinkers.com. We’ll share the best ones on Instagram!
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