5 bizarre ways to know if you will be rich
It's very easy to lie down and dream about your future. The vast majority of the time, somebodies 'dream' future will include them being extremely wealthy. The problem is, it's just a dream, and no matter how confident you are, it's pretty hard to know whether you will be successful. Luckily for you, there are some pretty useful/bizarre ways that will statistically make you more likely to be rich.
Here they are:
5) Not Being Obese
This one is rather surprising. Instead of claiming that you will be richer by not drinking, the study carried out by Bethany L. Peters and Stringham claims quite the opposite. By drinking, it is claimed that your 'social capital' increases. I guess this study seems like a bit of a long shot, but they have found that on average, drinkers earn 10-14% more than abstainers.
Bethany L. Peters and Stringham, Edward (2006): No Booze? You May Lose: Why Drinkers Earn More Money Than Nondrinkers, Journal of Labor Research, 27 (3).
3) Not Smoking
Here they are:
5) Not Being Obese
Although the natural conclusion to jump to is that employers discriminate against obese people, this idea actually has some logic. Obese people have higher medical costs and obviously that eats into their savings. On average, for every one unit increase in a persons BMI, there will be an 8% drop in wealth. Talk about losing some pounds!
Jay L. Zagorsky (2005): "Health and Wealth: The Late-20th-century Obesity Epidemic in the U.S." Economics & Human Biology, 3 (2), 296-313.
4) Drinking
Bethany L. Peters and Stringham, Edward (2006): No Booze? You May Lose: Why Drinkers Earn More Money Than Nondrinkers, Journal of Labor Research, 27 (3).
3) Not Smoking
Before you get carried away, I should probably mention that smoking doesn't statistically make you better off. Which obviously makes perfect sense. Smoking can be very costly, and over time can add up to a lot of money, creating a dent in your wealth. In fact, it's so costly, that non smokers are actually claimed to have a net wealth of 50% ore than that of smokers.
J.L. Zagorsky (2004): The Wealth Effects of Smoking Tobacco Control, 13 (4), 370-374.
2) Being Blonde
This one doesn't really apply to men, but surprisingly women with blonde hair make more money than those without. 7% more in fact. Although blonde is the hair colour associated with being stupid, it's also associated with being attractive, and when it comes to making money, that helps.
David W. Johnston (2010): Physical Appearance and Wages: Do Blondes Have More Fun? Economic Letters, 108 (1), 10-12.
1) Being Tall
Although there is very little you can do to control this. A study has shown that every additional inch in height amount to an extra $789 per year. That means that somebody who is 6 foot will earn $5,525 more every year than somebody who is 5 foot 5.