How much does it pay to be pretty?

[Kanzler]

I think this is true - to an extent. You have to have the knowledge or experience (or money) to get to the point where you can make yourself attractive if you're not conventionally attractive. A conventionally attractive person has a head start, having people admiring them in high school and boosting their confidence, for example. Confidence is a part of attractiveness after all. And when you're just starting out, trying to get your first job or whatever, you have that extra something by being attractive and having confidence.

Confidence is part of attractiveness, but I wouldn't consider the two to be so coupled. I'd argue that the reverse relationship is tenuous. There's a lot of physically attractive people that aren't confident. I think it's an assumption to call physical attractiveness conventional. Having a personal presence has always been part of attractiveness.

 

[Rezilia]

I don't think attractiveness is as important as people think it is (besides modeling and acting). More attractive people generally have more confidence, and that is a factor that can't be ignored. The more confident you are, the better off you'll be as far as getting a job, making friends, or dating. If you can be less than even easy on the eyes, but still be confident, you'll be better off.

I completely agree.

I don't know if I can link or img it, since I'm not yet familiar with the age group of this forum, but I was once shown a picture showing "Skinny Models" vs "Average Women". It was by Dove, I believe. The extra-skinny models were all frowning or, atleast, not smiling. On the other hand, the what-doctors-tend-to-call-fat-or-obese women were all smiling, striking natural poses, and overall enjoying themselves while being comfortable with their bodies.

When I see two men - a metrosexual and a redneck - standing beside one another, I'm not going to choose based on looks. Both, from my experience, tend to be brimming with confidence and are very used to themselves, happy with their way of life. That's what matters to me.

I, myself, want to get skinnier, healthier, and even learn a few martial arts. But I'm not normally happy. When I look in the mirror, I don't like what I see. That's why I'm changing myself. And once I do, I may exude confidence like those with the same description as I have now yet are fine with themselves.

 

[Trev]

Looks really only matter when in high school if you're trying to find someone to date. I'll be honest, my face is not exactly what I'd want it to be (particularly my eyes; they're not as wide as I want, which sucks because I actually have good eyes), so I really have no luck there. Honestly, it's harder in life not being very attractive, so sometimes showing sexy face has its advantages. Just know that it shouldn't run your life and will never affect your long-term goals unless you plan to go into a career that centers around looking good. A lot of unattractive people have become extremely successful (Mark Zuckerberg, Steve Jobs, etc.) and their appearance surely didn't hinder them.

Now, on-topic: businesses rarely care about how someone looks unless they have to interact with people in some way. Ignoring the modeling/acting thing, it's almost a standard that attractive people are usually hired to work around social environments. People who run well-paying (read: well) counter jobs, like lobby secretaries or clothing store cashiers, are usually expected to be moderately attractive in some way because it appeals to customers to talk to a pretty face. Now, would you find an extreme hot girl working at a supermarket? Possibly. But it's less likely because it's a completely different environment. Somehow, someway, the human brain associates professionalism with attractiveness. They expect a respectable business to employ good-looking people and minor public businesses, like supermarkets or obscure clothing stores, to employ less-attractive workers.

Now, is that really a good thing? Probably not. But it doesn't always apply to everyone. Being attractive does not equal success. Success can only be achieved through hard work and being well-rounded at whatever you do. Maybe you won't have it as easy as that cute executive, but if you're really amazing at your job, you'll get recognition. If that doesn't happen and you're positive you've helped your employer/company significantly, it's time for a new job.

Hence point, don't base your whole life on looking good, because good looks only go so far if you can't do anything useful for others or yourself. Period.