Financially trying times and competitive labor markets are making it more and more difficult for people to land the jobs they want. With the growing competition in the workplace, even keeping a job can prove difficult. Whether you like it or not, in addition to your qualifications and how you do your job, your looks do matter. If you are appearing for an interview or trying to climb the corporate ladder, you need to take stock of what your appearance is saying.
Besides professionalism, experience and skills, employers look for traits like confidence and high energy and consider personal appearance, fitness and grooming when they make the hiring or pay raise decision. In the corporate world, there’s a lot of stress on “image”, and image goes with self-confidence. Some studies show that cosmetic surgery can help you break down these barriers that stand between you and your career goals. Technologic advancements have resulted in minimally invasive and non-invasive treatments that can help you achieve your aesthetic goals in minimal downtime. So if you are in a job, you wouldn’t have to take much time off from work.
The Impact of Appearance on Career Trajectory
According to one report published in 2012, more and more men in South Korea are seeking plastic surgery to enhance their looks in order to boost their competitiveness and improve their confidence. Forbes reported that between 1997 and 2013, the proportion of men getting plastic surgery in the U.S. rose by 273%, with liposuction, eyelid surgery, breast reduction and ear shaping being the most popular procedures.
Being fit is also important, so if you are overweight, enroll in a weight loss program. Employers tend to see an overweight person as lacking self-discipline and motivation. They may even think that you may develop health problems, which would make you a costly investment! Even after you’re hired, weight matters as an obese person earns less than a slim coworker.
A fresh and more youthful look will give anyone an edge when it comes to career advancement and plastic surgery can help you achieve this. It can also help correct flaws. Cosmetic procedures such as tattoo removal, stretched earlobe corrective surgery and Botox are important to get that professional look that hiring managers look for.
Many studies have focused on how cosmetic surgery can improve income potential and career prospects. According to one report, a Harvard Study of Health and Life Quality in May 2009 showed that job seekers who were attractive and confident had a better chance of getting hired.