Today, I want to expand on the obvious benefits to your health, wellbeing, and physical quality of life of looking good and why you should care so much.
Because as much as we hate to admit it, we all judge a book by its cover… and judge people on how they look.
You’d agree that when you look good, you feel good. But, looking great can also be a HUGE bonus to your bank account.
Attractive people earn more money than their less attractive peers. This has been researched scientifically and is called the ‘ugliness penalty’.
Surprisingly, men are MORE subject to the penalty than women. In a Canadian and American survey, ugly men earned -9% of average income, while ugly women earned —6%.
China was the only country where the penalty was higher for women.
Why does this happen? Are attractive people smarter? More qualified?
NO! Just look at the track record of many handsome or pretty movie stars.
The ugliness penalty happens because of the ‘Halo Effect’.
The Halo Effect is a trick of our subconscious. Our inner minds look for signs of health – a throwback to SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST. We assume that people who have a symmetrical face, a trim waist, and a healthy glow are better than their lackluster counterparts.
The good news is the Halo Effect diminishes with time. The longer we know a person the less likely we are to base our judgment on their looks.
The bad news is beauty is still in the eye of the beholder.
More bad news: Some people are born with an undeniable natural unattractiveness.
Good news: Thankfully, there are measures that everyone can take to appear more attractive.
GOOD HEALTH is the universal indicator of attractiveness.
You can achieve a healthy look through proper DIET, regular EXERCISE and LOW STRESS levels.
Moderation is another key to the look of attractive health. Excesses that can diminish attractiveness include alcohol, smoking, and drug use.
On the other hand, multivitamins and meticulous grooming can go far towards improving your looks.
The ULTIMATE way to look your best is to have confidence in yourself. No amount of sparkle and glow can make up for the look of someone who is unsure of him/herself.
I know this all sounds obvious, but here’s the twist that you are probably expecting…
What is 6 or 9% of your wage/earnings/salary?
If you make $50,000, it’s $3,000 to $4,500 in lost income.
If you make $100,000 it’s $6,000 to $9,000.
I know you never quite saw it this way – sure makes your gym membership seem inexpensive doesn’t it?
This post is all about getting you to think differently about things as – Einstein said “No problem can be solved from the same level of consciousness that created it.”
______________________________________________
References
Halo Effect
www.face-and-emotion.com/dataface/facets/attractiveness.jsp
“To those that have, shall be given”, The Economist, 22 December
2007, page 69
Surawski, M., & Ossoff, E. (2006). The Effects of Physical and
Vocal Attractiveness on Impression Formation of Politicians.
Current Psychology, 25(1), 15-27
Entries (RSS)