Lauren from lifestyle & parenting blog Belle du Brighton reviews Psychologies Magazine - the self-styled 'positive living bible’. Subscribe today.
"Psychologies is the magazine for life curious women that helps you know more, grow more"
Yes, Psychologies is a 'glossy' magazine aimed at women, but for once it's not full of articles telling you the best place to 'find the perfect man' (newsflash: he doesn't exist, nobody is perfect!) or how to get a beach body in 2 weeks. Instead it is packed full of insightful and useful articles that encourage you to think differently, help you reach your goals, and motivate you.
There are thought-provoking interviews with people who count, exploring the reasons behind their actions and extracting actionable advice for problems that the average person might experience in their day-to-day life. It's not just aimed at businesswomen either - many of the issues raised help you develop as a person, in ways that you may not have thought about, suiting people who aren't totally career driven.
Personally, as someone who has worked for a very corporate business for thirteen years, I find a lot of the articles really eye-opening, and like to sit and reflect on what I've read afterwards. Who knew there were other ways of doing things in the workplace? I think I was pretty stifled in my job and our planning children came at a great time for me work-wise – I badly needed a break.
I don't really want to go back to my previous job in a full-time capacity when my babies are more grown up and at school, and I’m getting a lot of inspiration and ideas for ways to make life changes for our family so I can do something that’s more 'me' and therefore be much, much happier in my job in the future!
In the last issue there was an interesting article about how to deal with a difficult mum, with useful tips and strategies to help. I paid great attention to this, as it’s is something I've found tricky in the past, but never really even wanted to talk to anyone about. But, in just a few pages of the magazine, I now have lots of different things to try to make my relationship with my mum better.
Along with the thought-provoking articles that you'll want to read again (and then possibly once more, making some notes!) there are also some interiors features, including sneak peeks into real peoples’ homes - not just show homes set up to sell you things. I love that there are a few recipes to try per issue, and have already popped a few into my recipe folder to try at a later date.
“People often ask me who the Psychologies reader is and it’s a joy to reply that you won’t be put into any box I can find.”
- Suzy Greaves, Psychologies Editor
Another thing that I love about Psychologies is that it's not filled with fashion shoots full of dresses that you'd have to forgo a month of hot dinners to pay for, or that are just so plain odd-looking that people would cross the street to avoid you if they saw you wearing it! In fact, the beauty and fashion featured in the magazine are actually relevant to the season and most importantly, wearable!
Definitely a magazine to read for people who feel they've outgrown the likes of Glamour and Cosmo, and want to feel like they've grown a little as a result of reading a magazine!
So is this the one to move onto after years of subscribing to Red but skipping over the fashion pages?