Six ways to make yourself more attractive instantly

Posted on: January 05, 2009 11:01 | Posted by: Tracey Cox

Most of us aren't even close to objective when judging our own looks - one minute we think we look great, the next we don't... here's how to help yourself!

Think of yourself as more attractive: If you think you look good, you move and behave more confidently, which means others perceive you as more attractive.

Hang around ugly people: It's called the contrast effect. We feel pretty around ugly people and ugly around pretty people. The good news is you don't have to switch friends if they're attractive because it works the other way around...

Hang around pretty people: This works in a different way. We're defined by our friends and peer group and the cooler and better-looking they are, the cooler and better-looking we appear to others. This is assuming, of course, that you have a healthy self-esteem that lets you realise you're as good as the others.

Don't idealise: Women in particular, compare themselves to an ideal standard of beauty (genetic freaks called supermodels). If asked to rate something like our interpersonal skills, however, we measure ourselves against the norm rather than compare ourselves against Freud. In one study, researchers got men and women to sit a simply mathematical exam. Both sexes scored evenly. Then they repeated the exercise, but got everyone to do it in their bathing suits. Forced to sit there in a bikini, the women's results dived while the men's didn't alter. Instead of concentrating on the problem in hand, women concentrated on other women's bodies, checking out how they measured up, as well as wondering how the men were rating them.

Show people you like them: We like people who like us. The easiest way to make yourself more appealing to others is to be friendly and warm.

Get older: There's evidence that people feel more attractive with age, even if they don't look it.

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