Marissa Carter on how taking a break can actually bring about the BEST ideas and results

Brought to you by Carter Beauty Cosmetics.

Have you ever just been so swamped, so stressed and confused, that you had to push all priorities aside and just breathe?

Us too. Marissa Carter launched her incredible 103-product Carter Beauty Cosmetics in August and we've been slapping on that lippy and eyeshadow ever since. But building a makeup brand that gets everyone talking, and for all the right reasons, doesn't come without months of blood, sweat and tears. Sometimes though, when you've given all you can possibly give and you're quite literally burned out — it's time to take a breath and surrender. It's not a weakness, in fact it can often be a necessity, and if we're being honest — it all turned out pretty well for Marissa and her brand.

"Claudia said to me, 'Listen, you are going to China next week. They want to have finished samples of the packaging ready. We still haven’t signed off on the design. The designers are saying they need it by 3 o’clock today. If we don’t sign off, nothing is going to be ready. "I had a bit of a heart attack and I got really, really stressed, and I said look – I just have to go and get some head space. I’m going to go get my nails done..."

Okay, so, probably not what her right-hand woman Claudia wanted to hear, but we trust it was necessary. All this branding, packaging and design means a hell of a lot when it comes to selling a product. The product itself could be super, but if the packaging is a little off — it could be dire for getting a business like this up off the ground. It was this stressful day at work, followed by a pampering at the salon, where Marissa finally had that lightbulb moment!

"I went out and got this beautiful lilac pastel colour put on my nails. Walking back up to the office I saw the colour of my nails against the baby pink jumper I was wearing, and I took a photograph of it. "I wanted Carter Beauty to stand out as much as I know Cocoa Brown stands out. "I wanted people to be able to walk into a store and instantly recognise and be able to see the beautiful lilac purple colour and the light baby pink, and for it to really stand out against all the other black makeup stands. "I think we’ve achieved that."

Be sure to tune into our all-new six-part docu-series where we go #BehindTheBrand with Carter Beauty Cosmetics. Watch episode 4 - Packaging: Looks Are Everything on Her's IGTV, Facebook and YouTube right here. Brought to you by Carter Beauty Cosmetics.