GRWM: why we love watching you get ready

'Get Ready With Me', or GRWM: you know the format. Someone gets ready on camera, applies their cream, picks an outfit, narrates their day along the way. On the surface, nothing spectacular. Yet these videos rack up huge audiences. Why watch someone brush their teeth and hesitate between two sweaters? Because GRWM blends two pleasures: picking up beauty or style tips, and sharing an intimate moment, almost like a video call with a friend.

Intimacy as spectacle

GRWM works because it breaks the distance. No set, no perfect lighting: a bathroom, a mirror, a voice talking straight to you. Media researchers call it the 'parasocial relationship': that sense of closeness you develop toward someone you follow, even without knowing them. The format also fits every variation: GRWM before an exam, before a night out, morning, evening. It's a filmed diary where routine becomes a story you want to follow.

The 'everything perfect' trap

On the shadow side, GRWM can make it seem everyone has perfect skin, ten skincare products and a flawless routine. But many of these videos are lit, edited, sometimes sponsored. Comparing your real bathroom to an optimised GRWM is rough on your mood. The trick: remember it's content, not a mirror of life. Use it to grab a technique or discover a style, but keep the critical filter: the 'perfect routine' doesn't really exist. The best GRWM, in the end, is yours, at your own pace. Confidence isn't sold in a bottle.