LearnVest always seeks to educate and inform, but every once in a while, a financial matter hits the headlines and makes us go, “Huh.” Sometimes it even provides us a lens to learn about ourselves. In that spirit, from bad money decisions to financial lessons worth millions, consider our Money Mayhem your source of financial edu-tainment.
In your latest bit of, “Oh no she didn’t!” news, a British blond wrote a story for the U.K.’s Daily Mail saying it’s hard being beautiful.
She’s never been asked to be a bridesmaid, is frozen out by jealous acquaintances and–what we find most fascinating–has had career doors slammed shut in her face.
“Insecure female bosses have barred me from promotions at work,” Samantha Brick says, citing one who refused to sign off on a promotion and sneered at her in front of colleagues. In another instance, a female boss accused her own partner of “fancying” Brick before turning to Brick and calling her unrepeatable names.
Brick claims she dresses demurely–even frumpishly–at work and in real life to put other women at ease and forestall their “paranoia” that their husbands and boyfriends will try to sleep with her, but it doesn’t matter. Being the most beautiful women in the room has ruined friendships, thrown kinks in her career and drained her happiness. She says she pines for old age and the wrinkles that come with it so that women will finally treat her kindly.
It’s cold comfort that men regularly send her champagne and offer her flowers, of course.
The internet has reacted predictably, with Brick-hating practically becoming the national British sport. Thousands have commented on the original article with a cold assessment of her looks, calling her delusional and arrogant, and wondering if the article was a belated April Fool’s joke. Other (rarer) commenters identified with the embarrassment and travails of being hit on constantly by men and harassed by women. She’s gotten thousands of hate mail, hate tweets and hate voicemails, and even virtually walked in on a slamfest on Facebook by her friends.
Brick has made several TV appearances on both sides of the pond to defend herself, and penned a followup post:
“While I’ve been shocked and hurt by the global condemnation, I have just this to say: my detractors have simply proved my point. Their level of anger only underlines that no one in this world is more reviled than a pretty woman.”
Unfortunately for Brick’s hypothesis, statistically, beautiful people actually earn more than their more homely counterparts. So which is it? Does beauty hurt your career? Or does it advance it?
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