7 Completely Uncontrollable Things That Will Apparently Make You Successful

Want to be successful? You’ll have to transform yourself into a very tall, blonde, first-born child named Deborah.

I know, right? Now tell your friends!
7 Completely Uncontrollable Things That Wi...
Hillary Reinsberg

1. Being tall.

It’s long been known that we live in a height-ist society. Research from 2009 found that for every two inches taller you were, you’d earn an average of $1000 more per year.

Image by Dan Kitwood / Getty Images

2. Being blonde.

In a 2010 Australian study, researchers found that blonde women, on average, make seven percent more than their non-blonde counterparts.

Oddly, the study also found that blonde women on average married wealthier men. The president of the International Blondes Association (a thing that actually exists) explained this by saying, “Blondes have wealthier husbands because we are more fun and outgoing, and men are more attracted to us.”

So make of that what you will.

Image by Mario Anzuoni / Reuters

3. Being a psychopath.

CEOs are four times more likely to be psychopaths, journalist Jon Ronson found in his book The Psychopath Test: A Journey Through the Madness Industry. In the regular population, only about one percent of people are considered psychopaths. Among CEOs, that number is about four percent.

4. Having thick eyebrows.

A 2010 Duke study called “A Corporate Beauty Contest,” compared facial traits of CEOs with those of lower level executives. The highest ranking CEOs, they found, were likely to have thick, bushy eyebrows.

Image by Joe Scarnici / Getty Images

5. Being named Peter or Deborah.

Or Bob or Cynthia. According to LinkedIn data, Deborah, Sally, and Cynthia are the most popular names among female CEOs. Among men, it’s Bob, Peter, and Jack.

6. Being a first born child.

First children are most likely to have successful careers, according to Norwegian researchers. As an explanation, they say first-borns are likely to have slightly higher IQs, and are likely to be more competitive.

Image by Pool / Reuters

7. Being born in June.

A survey by England’s Office for National Statistics found that the highest number of executives — plus 23% of the last 22 Nobel peace prize winners — were born in the month of June.

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