Do more attractive women go into "less difficult" careers?
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Anonymous
| Beauty fades. Attractiveness is mutable. I've been on both sides of the line (along the lines of "she has such a pretty face"). Depending on my weight I'm "hot" or an untouchable "fat chick." Cultivate your mind. With any luck you'll always have that. |
Anonymous
| the nerdiest girl i knew from growing up was a beauty editor at elle magazine. |
Anonymous
This...but I wouldn't say I'm HOT stuff when slender, but I am attractive when thinner and I get much more attention. When my weight gets up there I am treated totally differently-sometimes I just become invisible to people or they act like it. Looks matter. They open doors. It definitely helps in fields like sales, but I think it helps in just about every field. That said, they do fade. I am lucky I was never HOT growing up and if anything my looks probably improved when I grew into my features. I have friends who were HOT STUFF growing up and when they lost that due to weight gain or wrinkles or whatever they fell apart-not a breakdown, but just depressed over it and can't seem to get over it. All of us who couldn't get by on looks growing up set our sites high on grad school and beyond and we planned out careers early on. My very attractive friends seemed to assume they would marry rich and when that didn't happen they tried to find themselves and eventually go back to school. |
Anonymous
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I know DCUMers don't like anecdotes like this but I remember when I was applying to accountancy firms to do my articles many years ago in London. I interviewed with Deloitte Haskins & Sells, as it was called then, and during the final interview I was asked by the hiring manager whether I would mind working in one of their satilite offices rather than their London office because he felt I was too "feminine" (his words) to work in the London office. This was 26 years ago now.
All through my career as an accountant, if I had a $ for everytime I was told by clients that I didn't look like an accountant or that I was too attractive (whatever that meant) to be an accountant, I would be a very rich woman now. Please don't take this as a brag, it was just my experience. |
Anonymous
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I think it's silly simply because attractive/not attractive is a false dichotomy. As PP's have pointed out, most women are simply average, and the difference between them being hot or homely is about diet, clothes, makeup, hair, and lots of other things that are within their control.
Even IF it was true that the average pharmaceutical rep is significantly more likely to be considered highly attractive than the average lawyer, that doesn't mean that they started that way. It's more likely that the pharm. rep is in an industry that highly values physical appearance, and so she is more likely to prioritize grooming, fashion, exercise and diet than a woman who has chosen a career in which she works long hours and will be judged primarily on her credentials. |
Anonymous
| I work in a hard core science field and I'd actually say most women I work with i would rate as above average attractiveness. And they are hella smart. |
Anonymous
I am overweight. When I was skinny, I was considered pretty hot. I was treated so much differently back then. Now, i regularly get the "you have such a beautiful face" or "you carry your weight so well". It is pretty sad. I was in recruiting and most of my colleagues were attractive women or gay men. I think it is so sad that I was given preferential treatment when i was more slender. Our society is disgusting. |
Anonymous
| Being attractive is an advantage and a "gift" for women, but I think it's best to be "above average" but not amazingly hot. The reason I say this is that a certain amount of attractiveness definitely opens doors in life, especially for a female. At the same time, being too good looking runs the risk of putting all of your eggs in one basket and not developing other skills and talents, including intellect and a great personality. These other attributes will serve you well, and in some situations they are more advantageous than appearance. |
Anonymous
Really? I probably know her. But overall, the magazine's staff is filled with stunning women. Men love to linger by the building's entrance at lunchtime. |
Anonymous
| This theory is ridiculous. Do attractive men chose "less difficult" fields? |
Anonymous
| I'm a lawyer and most of the female lawyers I know are above average in looks. Some are stunningly attractive. |
Anonymous
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I have been told I am pretty good looking since after high school, never during or before, but it has really hindered my work.
Once I am hired its been fine, but with clients and during interviews I can really tell people completely underestimate me and my intelligence. I also look young (not bragging, but people always guess I am 10 years younger) and again, it is always a major hindrance since clients assume I am 25 and totally inexperienced when the truth is I am 35 and worked in my field for 12 years I get treat like a complete airhead until people realize that I actually know what I am talking about |
Anonymous
How do you feel about that? You're not to blame (if that's the right word). But it's still an unfair advantage, as there are plenty of smart women w/o the looks who are coming in second . . . or third. What if your daughter was the Plain Jane? So I don't think it's hilarious at all really. Men still have the control in your world, I'm assuming, and while you're smart, it's your looks that are more helpful to you. |
Anonymous
Bitter? Do think she could be a lawyer on looks alone? She is being honest about the world we live in. You are in denial. |
Anonymous
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Law is hard?! Lol!
Signed, female engineer (I am average looking.) |