People often wonder why someone gets hired more easily than the others – is it experience, charisma, high intelligence, pure luck or something else? Most of us forget that the looks have a significant role in the hiring process as well – and more than we’d like to admit. Do attractive people really get a good job with less effort? It’s not fair, but certain factors that are not related to work performance, education and talent (such as attractiveness) have much influence on your career advancement.
Various studies point to the fact that the likelihood of getting a job is increased for the people that are perceived as attractive. Not only that the appearance affects your chances of getting hired – in certain cases it increases the chance of getting promoted as well. For example, one study has shown that income and women’s weight are in correlation – the more you weight, the less money you earn. We can also say that the cases of discrimination towards overweight job candidates are not so rare.
In the majority of cases, beautiful women get more easily hired by male employers. It appears that the explanation is very simple: male employers will (subconsciously) increase their probability of having sex with attractive females by hiring them. This is why attractive women won’t be hired by other women that frequently – sometimes it’s quite the opposite. According to the latest research, good looks can backfire on you. Attractive women who attached their photos to their resumes were less likely to be invited to an interview, if the employees in the human resources departments were women.
Also, attractive male job applicants may pose “threat” to the same sex employers but not in the less competitive environments. In such workplaces, bosses will more likely hire attractive men. The reason for this is that their attractiveness is looked upon as an asset. In competitive surroundings where the employees are valued by their individual success, male bosses will likely employ less attractive applicants. Therefore, good looking men are at a disadvantage and the fact that attractive people get jobs more easily is brought into question one more time.
The chance of getting promoted may depend on attractiveness as well. However, the studies are inconsistent. In certain cultures and surroundings, attractive people (especially women) may be perceived as less competent and they may face certain difficulties in career advancement. Also, due to gender discrimination, women will less likely advance in typically “male” professions, especially in management, finances, construction and engineering. So, the conclusion might be: it’s allowed to be attractive, but not too attractive and only if the employer is of the opposite gender.
The aim of these findings is not to discourage people who are looking for a job, or to suggest that we should completely modify our appearance in order to get hired. Even the plastic surgeon experts don’t advise cosmetic surgery for the wrong reasons and in cases when you truly don’t want to change your appearance. Changing your looks through plastic surgery is a life-changing decision and make sure that you’re 100 percent sure that you want to do it. Always have in mind both advantages and downsides of surgery and consult an expert before deciding anything.
Surgery is not the only way to increase your chances of getting hired. If you’re not fond of cosmetic surgery, applying a bit of makeup and having a neat hairstyle for the interview may help a lot – and it certainly won’t hurt. Another research, conducted by the Harvard University, Boston University, and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute shows that women who are wearing makeup were perceived as more competent than those wearing no makeup. Makeup also affected the perceived level of women’s their likeability and trustworthiness.
Despite certain drawbacks of being good-looking, the overall results show that attractive people will be invited to more interviews and benefit from their looks. The good thing about these results is that they make us aware of the people’s belief that beautiful is often equal to good. So, what could be the conclusion? Regardless of the tactics and methods you’re going to use to get hired, always have in mind that good looks helps – but it can occasionally work against you. If you wish to improve your looks and be more attractive – do it only if you’ll be doing it for yourself.