In what is kind of an a-ha beauty collab moment, healthy-hair staple Joico has teamed up with Minnie Driver to celebrate the launch of their the brand’s newest collection, YouthLock. Besides “sharing the process” of what it was like to sit down (and stay sitting down) to write her recently released memoir of personal essays, Managing Expectations, the 52-year-old actress chatted with us to talk curly hair, the “shift” in raising a teenager, and what she wishes she could tell the younger version of herself.

Have you always wanted to write a book and what was the process like?

“Well, I don’t know if I’ve always wanted to write a book, but I’ve always had a lot of stories, and I’ve always been a storyteller, and I’ve always loved seeing the reaction of those stories. Then, in that great pause that we all had during COVID, I had the space to actually write them all down, so the book came out of that space. I loved the process—it was very hard—but I quite like things that have a high degree of difficulty. They tend to be really satisfying once you’ve done them.”

What was the hardest thing about sitting down to write it?

“The hardest thing about sitting down to write is sitting down to write. You’re literally just sitting and looking at the cursor flashing on a blank page on your computer, which is quite overwhelming. But I knew if I could just get the title of the story, I could begin, so that’s how I would begin. It is hard—you procrastinate and there is always something else you can do—but finally when you do sit down, you just have to stay sitting down and you get it done.”

If you could give one piece of advice to your younger self, what would it be?

“I would tell my younger self to appreciate her life more and to notice what was happening. Things sped by when I was young very quickly, and I was always looking to the next thing, as opposed to being in what was happening and being grateful for that.”

You have a teenager now. What’s the biggest challenge there?

“I miss having my kid around all the time thinking that I’m the greatest thing in the universe. I miss that. I would carry him around in my pocket if I could. He’s the greatest person I know. I am kind of like a puppy around him now—when he used to be a puppy around me—so it’s tricky making that switch, but it’s great. I’m proud of the person that I’ve helped put into the world.”

You are well-known for your curly hair. Have you embraced it over the years?

“Yes, I have; I definitely have! It was a nightmare growing up—it really was. There were no products. There was nothing and there was humidity in England and the Caribbean where I grew up, so I had the power of fall, which was not great. I did learn to really love it and that was when I learned about using the right products and how they can help your hair.”

What are some of your go-to beauty products or current favorites?

“I obviously love the Joico YouthLock collection, which is formulated with collagen. I live for the shampoo, conditioner, masque and, if I’m blowing it out, the amazing blowout crème. If I’m wearing my hair curly, I love the Curl Confidence. I don’t want to do too much to my hair when it’s curly. I just want to wash it and spray something in it, scrunch it and let it dry naturally. That Curl Confidence will create the perfect curl, so I don’t have to do anything or worry about it.”