Do looks matter in life and ib?

Duh

No it doesn’t. Tons of pretty girls / guys at my BB that suck at their job and get low bucket / laid off.

Nothing worse than somebody who’s shit at their job, no matter how good that look

My goal is to maximize my skills while also looking decent and staying healthy. There shouldn't be a trade-off between the two.

It matters a lot

No, looks don’t matter at all in life. That’s why you see so many 10 women with 2 men!

seriously….

It clearly matters for "life", that's almost trivial. At least insofar as you want to have a romantic partner where I'd say (A) this is one of the most important aspects of your life, and (B) however much we all like to pretend that we're deep and contemplative, appearance is super important in attracting someone and selecting a partner ourselves.

As for career, I like to think it doesn't. The data is against me on this - there are plenty of studies linking height and appearance to monetary outcomes, and I sort of understand it if I really ask myself (subconcious decision-making, etc.). That said, in so much of finance (particularly in 2024, where decision-making has become so much more process-focused and quantitative), the decisions that matter need to be backed up and documented (for example, an IC at a PE firm needs to see DD reports from X different advisors, a credible model wth IRRs that meet hurdles, an explanation of how we're comfortable with specific risks, etc.) But look, do we subconsciously believe the BP projections laid out by the handsome, trim, well-dressed CEO more than the average chap? Probably we do.

So, what do I mean by "think it doesn't"? Perhaps looks matters professionally. But on the margin. Far, far more of your success is going to be driven by your smarts, creativity, presentation skills, confidence, and a dozen other things.

Also, I've made it this far in my career and I'm a freaking gargoyle, so there's that.

Height - male respect + male intimidation + female attraction + signals competency/maturity (halo effect)

Face - male respect + female attraction + signals competency (halo effect)

Physique - male respect + male intimidation + female attraction + signal discipline/hard work

Grooming (Clothes/Hair/Skin/Teeth/Nails) - signals being put together

This has to be rage bait.

Looks definitely matter in life, but there are diminishing returns to your attractiveness. There comes a point where no one gives af how hot, tall, or in shape you are if you're dumb af. People treat you better when you look better, and there is a halo effect, but if everything that comes out of your mouth is trash, or you provide no other value, then people will eventually get tired of you. The good thing is most people look better than the way they present themselves. A gym membership, a healthy diet, water, vitamins, some fashion sense, a good haircut, regular dentist visits, a skincare routine, good hygiene, rest, mindfulness, and no bad drug or alcohol habit will take you at least 2 or 3 points up the scale alone. Being well-read, useful, and charismatic can give you a halo effect and take you up another 1 or 2 spots as well. Notice I didn't say intelligent. You can overcompensate for being below average or average intelligence by being pleasant to be around, with a skill that people need, and being informed. You'd be surprised how many people don't check all those boxes and blame their looks or hate people who look better than them. Anyone is capable of a glow-up.

Troll

Hi OP - interesting question. Here's my view for what it's worth - I'm a guy in his mid-thirties who is maybe slightly above average in terms of looks, in good (but not amazing shape), and professionally successful with 10+ yrs in IB and now PE. Whilst far from the greatest "player" of all time by any means, I've dated a number of pretty to very attractive women over the years (of various intelligence/careers). So whilst this is just my anecdotal experience, I feel I have a decent take on your question. Here goes:

Romantically, yes definitely looks matter. However there's a big caveat here, in that a) looks are partly subjective and can also be "enhanced" by both guys/girls, and b) looks are just part of the overall package (especially for guys from girls' perspective). Let's go into this:

- What do I mean by looks can be enhanced? My personal view is that the majority of people have the ability to become at least a "7/10" (I'm not a fan of rankings but just using for simplicity here), through lifestyle, self-care and to an extent personal confidence. Obviously genetics is a huge factor here, you will have guys/girls who don't ever hit the gym yet are still really attractive. However if you're an "average guy" you can significantly improve your appearance through hitting the gym, having a good haircut, having good teeth, and wearing good clothes. And having confidence will give you a further edge - I'm not talking about being an "alpha male" or anything, but just not being socially awkward.

I mean, look at Chris Pratt pre and post Parks & Rec. The way his character looked in the show, most women wouldn't have given him much of a second glance on the street (he wasn't ugly by any means but average-looking at best). Yet now most women would say he's a 10/10 Hollywood hunk, due to him taking care of himself/being in exceptional shape/having the confidence of being a movie star. I'm not saying we can all be like him, but in the same way he changed his appearance, I believe a lot of guys who might be 4-5/10s can get to at least 7/10 if they have the time/dedication/money to take care of themselves properly.

Girls are the same in many ways. Of course there are women who will always look 10/10 even in a dirty tracksuit, but there are many girls who might be "average" who could easily become "hot" if they lost weight, spent a lot on cosmetics/hair etc, dressed well and projected confidence etc. However I think it's easier for guys to improve their appearance, due to my next point:

- Looks are just part of the overall package. By this I mean that for women, a guy's looks are just part of the package (same applies with men towards women but just to a lesser extent). To take the extremes, a really attractive guy who is still unemployed & living at home in his 30s will struggle to get into relationships with attractive, successful, intelligent women. So having a good job and money certainly helps a lot! But it's more than that - having professional success and money to do experiences like travel, do interesting things, makes you an interesting person which is attractive to potential partners. And that segues into the next characteristic that matters, which is personality - a guy/girl who might be above-average in looks can become much more attractive if they are very funny, witty, confident etc.

So to sum up this stream of consciousness, I would say OP that for romantic partners - if you make sure you're in the best shape you can practicably be in, be always working on yourself physically & mentally, then you should be "attractive enough" to get pretty/hot women especially as you get older. If you're a "7/10" but also have a really great sense of humour or are really intelligent or really successful, that can "boost" your attractiveness so it's not unrealistic to be with a very hot girl who is a 9/10 for example.

I think the frustrated "incel"/Andrew Tate attitudes I see online (not on WSO but elsewhere) usually comes from guys who don't want to do any of the work, e.g. work out, fix their teeth, hair, get decent clothes, hold down a good job, or even develop an interesting personality - yet they think they deserve a 10/10 girl. My question would always be - what are you offering your potential partners? I don't mean to make dating sound transactional, but it kinda is in a way (at least initially). Note the same does apply for girls too - I have female friends in their 30s with great jobs but who are either average looking and/or have quite dull personalities due to working so much, yet they expect a young Brad Pitt who also earns $500k+ and has a six-pack. Those are also somewhat unrealistic standards.

Professionally in IB, I really don't think looks matter that much so don't have much to say here. Yes if you're really overweight or really good-looking people may initially judge you negatively/positively - but in reality what matters is your work product & your communication skills/personality. If you look like a troll but are good at your job, nobody will care about your looks - likewise if you're a supermodel but can't do basic work without errors then your looks won't save you long-term. Of course this is in IB - looks might matter much more if you're a real estate agent for instance. And like I said at the start, most people are in (or have the potential) to be in at least the "5-7/10" range. Maybe I'm too charitable but in my view there are very few objectively ugly/repulsive people, by definition most people will be average and so have the potential to boost themselves up by using the approaches I suggested above. I mean just look at celebrities - there are more than a few unconventionally attractive stars who are considered very desirable (both male and female). Which supports all my points above I think.

Professionally, showing up hair clipped, clothes well fitted and pressed, shoes shined and keeping generally clean will take you like 80% of the way appearance wise. 

You don't need to be good looking to be successful but your appearance definitely matters in every visible thing you do. Looks are part of appearance, but IMO less important than grooming/hygiene, health/fitness, and what you choose to wear. You could be the best looking guy/gal in the world but if you show up to work wearing a hole-y t-shirt covered in mosaic of suspicious stains with your hair unkempt it won't matter. Similarly, if you have strong genetics to be conventionally attractive, but let yourself become obese or overweight, you won't come across well.

The good news here is if you're ugly or less-than-conventionally attractive, it is never a deal-breaker as long as you put care in the aspects of your appearance you can control. I've worked with folks across all ends of the spectrum - the only ones I ever judge are those who obviously don't care to put in a respectable effort in their appearance.

Lots of studies on this topic but I think the crux of why the studies all conclude looks matter for success is a combination of the following:

1. People who put in the time to be well put together, and healthy/fit, typically have other aspects of their life well put together. 

2. People who care about the appearance they give to the world typically care about the elements that enable "success", like quality of their work deliverables.

3. As you gain wealth/success, you'll inevitably find yourself increasingly surrounded by similar folks, and through exposure and osmosis you'll inevitably want to up or maintain your appearance game to match. My first suit was a $150 untailored situation from J Crew, for example, but now I'm partial to $800 - $1000 "custom" sets from Suit Supply. Chirp me all you want for this take but I'm a massive suit-supply-simp. 

Yea its great being attractive, can not worry about career at all and still score with women on a whim. Men automatically respect you. You can get away with more, dont need to be a provider simp to get action/respect.

A lot of bankers are hot. But a lot of dudes get into finance thinking it will help them with women. You are better off actually getting hot and doing cool/hot things if that is your end goal

If you are both female and incompetent, looking good will get you opportunities you wouldn't otherwise get.

If that description doesn't fit you, it's not going to matter much.

IMO they mostly matter if you also suck at your job or are unlikable. Yes the tall attractive guy will be better perceived. It’s been well-studied that good looking people get the benefit of the doubt. But just look at senior guys on Wall Street - you can’t tell me a short / balding guy can’t make it. Even ornery ones are up there. “I’m ugly” is such a cope. Go to constantinople if you need, stop eating like shit, get some sun, and get some bitches. 

Looks always matter

They don't seem to matter for David Tepper or Steve Cohen :-)

For "life" aka social life and dating, it matters a lot. I've realized good looking people often have a lot of friends due to their looks. You can also get away with much more and treat others like crap without any repercussions. 

For work, number 1 thing is being good at your job. But looks matter here too. These days almost anyone can do the job well so things like looks and race come into the picture.