Body Weight Can Affect A Woman in Business

You have two women vying for a managerial position. One is petite. The other candidate is visibly overweight. Of the two, the heavy set woman is better qualified for the job requirements. Who will get the job?

When it comes to job hiring or career advancement, a common phrase is “it’s not just what you know, it’s who you know,” but research on weight–based bias suggests “it’s how you look.”

Does being extra heavy or obese hinder the opportunity of getting a job or moving up the work ladder?

A recent study conducted at Wayne State University in Detroit, MI, shows that, yes, obesity can and does have a denigrating effect in the workplace.

“There are a whole set of stereotypes that go along with being overweight, and a lot of them transfer into the workplace in terms of people’s judgment about others’ abilities and appearance in relation to job performance,” said doctoral candidate Cort Rudolph.

But that’s not necessarily the case when it comes to doing business on the internet.  People are less inclined to consider body image when conducting business.  Your integrity is more important by far.  Can you produce RESULTS or do you have a product the customer needs?  What you look like tends to be irrelevant.

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