Blog Posts by Marie Claire

Three powerful women, among the best in their fields, reveal what it really took to get ahead--and what the view looks like from the top. (Hint: It's spectacular!)

marie claireLisa Randall Theoretical physicist, Harvard University

1. DON'T LOOK FOR GLASS CEILINGS. In male-dominated professions, sometimes it's best to hunker down, work hard, and pay no mind to the challenges. "The fact that I was first meant there was no one before me--but it wasn't an active thing I was doing," Randall says of her accomplishments.

2. DON'T UNDERSELL YOURSELF. Too many women downplay their skills. Not Randall. "I was always good at math," she says. "But I was good at everything. It sounds obnoxious, but I was just smart."

3. LOOKING POLISHED PAYS OFF. Randall's fashion sense and good looks help sell her message: to demystify physics and get more women into the profession. "When you're reaching out to people beyond the scientific community, image does matter," she says.

10 Tips To Climb To The Top of Your Career

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From finding new dining options to sorting through a pile of business cards, these downloads will make your life far easier.


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AroundMe

This business traveler's lifesaver finds the nearest café, pharmacy, gas station, dry cleaner, or bar anywhere in the world, then maps a route for you. (Free)





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Dragon Dictation

Convert your spoken words into notes, texts, e-mails, even Facebook status updates and tweets. Up to five times faster than typing, and surprisingly accurate. (Free)



How to Look Great in Every Photomarie claire





Business Card Reader

Got a stack of business cards in your purse? This genius app scans and uploads the details into your address book. It's also multilingual. ($4.99)
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Battery Sense by Philips

You're on the road and down to one bar with no charger in sight. This ultra-useful app tells you how much juice is left and how to make it last. (Free)


10 Tips To Climb To The Top of Your Career

marie claire
Eat Street App

Break out of your Quiznos rut by hitting the sidewalk this spring. Find nearby

Maxed out on time? Steal these productivity tips from busy pros and plow through that daunting to-do list. By Elise Nersesian-Solé

marie claireDON'T LINGER OVER DEADLINES: "When I'm faced with a tough decision, I give myself 48 hours to resolve the problem-long enough to prevent me from making impulse decisions and also enough time to weigh my options. It's easy to waste time on all the pros and cons, but when you have only 48 hours to decide, you focus on the big picture." - Lynn Truong, 34, editor, wisebread.com, a personal-finance website, Los Angeles

SPELL OUT YOUR TASKS: "When I write my to-do list, I give myself clear orders, not reminders. So instead of 'Call the store,' I'll write, 'Call Dave at Treat Cupcake Bar to get update on store design and build-out.' I never wonder what the task means when I look at my list later, and the actionable order prompts me to actually do it." - Ani Collum, 34, partner and retail consultant, Retail Concepts, Boston

7 Bedtime Habits That Are Ruining Your

marie claireDieting would be a breeze - if it didn't make us so hungry. Enter Volumetrics, the science-backed strategy that doctors and big-portion lovers swear by. Here, a slimming cheat sheet of the latest findings of Penn State nutrition professor Barbara Rolls, Ph.D., author of The Ultimate Volumetrics Diet:

1. Start with a high-water-content appetizer. Subjects who ate non-cream-based soup or a green salad ended up consuming fewer total calories by the end of the meal.

12 Celebrity Body Secrets

2. Incorporate nutritionally dense, low-calorie foods (broth, greens, luscious fruits like watermelon) into main entrées to make them heartier - for instance, 3 ounces of salmon served atop a plateful of spinach or 3 ounces of chicken sliced and stir-fried with a big bowl of broccoli and sprouts.

3. Brush your teeth or chew minty gum before eating - subjects who did so ate less.

The Most Iconic Movie Dresses of All Time

4. Choose airy snacks, like mousse-style yogurt, rice cakes, or puffed cereals.

Some people swear by ballet boot camp or sweaty yoga sessions, but which workout really delivers the best full-body results? Before you invest in the next fitness craze, see how five pros measure up.
By Maureen Choi


The RunnerTHE RUNNER
NAME: Kimberly Strother
WORKOUT ROUTINE: Runs between five and 12 miles every day and swims a mile at least once a week.
THE VERDICT: No gym? No problem! Strother's cross-country running regimen - which has produced a bod of lean muscle mass, good flexibility, and solid upper-body strength - is the perfect (and free!) workout for building cardio strength and burning calories. Supplement jogs with core-strengthening moves like crunches or planks to ensure total body conditioning.

Visit MaireClaire.com to see how the runner compares to the competition.


The YogiTHE YOGI
NAME: Lucie Basamanowicz
WORKOUT ROUTINE: In addition to teaching power vinyasa yoga, she takes two to three 90-minute classes daily and adds cardio workouts on the elliptical machine for at least 30

Look like a million - on a budget - with Brooklyn's Woodley & Bunny Salon owner and stylist Erin Anderson's lust-worthy goods.

marie claire1. "Perfect for creating instant volume." Goody Large Velcro Rollers, $5 for four.

2. "I always travel with this warm pine-and-cypress-laced candle - it makes any room smell like home!" Voluspa Golden Cypress Sawara Petite Candle, $6.

10 Ways To Get Your Energy Up In 5 Minutes Or Less

3. "This Spanish toothpaste keeps sensitive teeth fresh and clean." Couto Toothpaste, $7.

4. "A shea-and-cocoa-butter-based balm that smooths lips and flyaways." American Mortals BLAM! Right in the Kisser Lip Balm, $7.

5. "The best double-duty wash for hair and body. The yummy coconut scent is to die for." Lush Trichomania solid shampoo, $9.95 for 3.5 oz.

How to Look Great in Every Photo

6. "These discreet elastics stay snug all day." Blax Snag-Free Hair Elastics in Clear, $4.

7. "A precise tool for cleaning up strays around the hairline." Swissco Wood Toothbrush Medium

When it comes to facial cleansing, there are two schools of thought: old-fashioned soap-and-water or every-bell-and-whistle-at-the-beauty-counter. Turns out, neither is right. By Gina Way

marie claireMost of us assume that cleansing is a task so basic it can be accomplished even when you're completely exhausted or slightly tipsy - which, of course, it can. But with all the latest options (lotions, milks, foaming mousses, oils, wipes, motorized brushes) and antiaging ingredients to consider, there's a lot more to it than soap and water, says Dr. Doris Day, NYC dermatologist and author of Forget the Facelift. "With so many sophisticated, gentle cleansers that won't strip the skin, using the right one allows moisturizing and antiaging products to absorb more effectively." Clearly, an old-school splash and scrub won't do. Here, the new rules for getting your freshest face.

Myth 1: WASH AND GO It's more of a two-step process. "Remove your makeup before you wash your face," says Montclair, New Jersey,

Gilt Groupe co-founders Alexis Maybank and Alexandra Wilkis Wilson tell us how they make it all work. By Meghan McCloskey

marie claire Talk about expert advice! We got the rundown from self-made startup sensations Alexis Maybank and Alexandra Wilkis Wilson, the co-founders of the members-only sample sale site, Gilt Groupe. They gave us their best tips and insider information for female entrepreneurs in anticipation of their new book By Invitation Only: How We Built Gilt and Changed the Way Millions Shop, hitting shelves on April 12th. Here, they dish on everything from mixing business with friendship to their continued appreciation of one of MC's own editors.

Start from the beginning - how did the initial idea for Gilt Groupe come about?
With Gilt, we drew inspiration from something we were really excited about here in New York City: the designer by-invitation-only sample sale. We used to sneak out of the office when Alexandra worked at Louis Vuitton and Alexis was at AOL to attend these sales