Do You Make Less Money Than Your Taller Peers?

A recent study at the University of Florida found that over the span of their careers short people earn less money than their taller counterparts. In terms of cold hard cash, each extra inch in height equals roughly $800 difference in annual pay. So, essentially a person standing at 5 ft 8 inches tall will make about $9600 less annually than someone standing at 6 ft 8 inches tall.

It's surprise that in this post-modern era our incomes are influenced so strongly by our physical statures. The figure of $9600 per year, in the example above, should be a stark enough example of this - but the practice seems even more unsettling when multiplied over a career spanning 30 years. Just by being a foot shorter than your peers, you are likely to earn $288,000 less over 30 years than they do.

You would think that in an 'enlightened era,' such as the one in which we live, that payscale would be based on individual and team results rather than physical height characteristics. Unfortunately the study shows otherwise.

So, what are we to do?

Should we form an affirmative action group to pursue the correction of these practices?

It's too tough to legislate changes into people minds. Plus, there's a ton of other baggage that goes along with it. You'd have to define what 'short' is. You'd have to create a government entity to monitor and enforce penalties against discriminators. Too expensive. Too negative. Too divisive.

My solution focuses on blatantly impressing upon people that shorter people are worth paying more.

Let me illustrate with an example out of the world of real estate.

A nice house sat vacant for many months with no potential buyers showing interest. The homeowner kept dropping the price from time to time over the course of the year and still no potential buyers showed interest. Eventually, the seller took a shockingly different approach and RAISED the asking price several thousand dollars above what the original asking price had been.

The house sold in a matter of days.

Perceived value can play a huge role in economics. And apparently, according to this study, there's a perceived value that the shorter a person is, the less they can be paid.

How do we change that perception?

Let's get thousands of people who consider themselves short in stature and under salaried, and let's raise their pricetag ? just like the homeowner raised their asking price.

Teach these individuals how to create wealth rather than have jobs. Show them how to make hundreds of thousands of dollar per month. Then showcase them as power-brokers. An elite group of people with a common characteristic of shorter stature and greater wealth can leave an indelible mark on the psyches of the world's population that shorter people are worth paying more money than taller individuals.

We may believe the words in the Declaration of Independence of the United States that all people are created equal, but we end up seeing that people are treated unequal. Instead of waiting for someone else to change societies impressions of us, that responsibility falls into our own hands.

We may be created equal ? but within our power ? within our individual realms of influence - we have incredible opportunities to become unequal. We have the power to choose whether we're treated unequal in ways we dislike, or treated unequal in ways we like.

So now that we're working toward being treated unequally in ways we like, we'd better start making plans for using those hundreds of thousands of dollars. Right?

How about bankrolling the next grant for another round of research that will show the next wave of trends in pay as related to height - that shorter people started earning more than their taller counterparts beginning in 2003?

About The Author

C.S. Deam is a small business owner. His eBook Leverage Yourself Out of the Rat Race is available for immediate download at www.LinkertonPublishing.com where you can sign up for FREE E-Courses & Newsletters to help you on your path to self-employment.

---

Coaches, Do You Make These 7 Deadly Cash Flow Mistakes in Your Practice?

Managing cash flow is every small business owner's most important function. Avoid these seven deadly mistakes to make sure you aren't creating cash flow problems in your... Read More

Theres Gold in that Silence

Can you recall a time where you utilized silence to make a point? If you can consciously recall, you probably know your silence made more than just... Read More

Six Steps for Creating Work-Life Balance

Today an increasing number of us are experiencing burnout, low productivity, insomnia, and stress related illnesses?undoubtedly due to a lack of balance between our work and personal... Read More

Success: Cant Achieve It By Yourself? Pay A Professional!

So many people go through the motions of trying to achieve success. But just going through the motions doesn't work. And while you may fool a few... Read More

Addiction to Thinking

Randall sought my help because he was stuck being miserable and had no idea how to get out of his misery. In his life he had experienced... Read More

Becoming An Empowered Consumer

How many times have you said to yourself?"I just wish that company would treat me like they appreciated my business!"?For many years I trained Customer Service Reps... Read More

Guilt: Is it Getting in the Way of Your Self-Care?

When Do We Usually Feel Guilty? When:We're not feeling ok about who we are.We're not feeling ok about the choices we're making.We haven't met our own expectations.We... Read More

Sheep Do Not Start Out Lost

Have you ever thought about how sheep get lost? Even with a shepherd, they still get lost. How does this happen? The one thing I know for... Read More

Learn to Say No!

How many times have you agreed to do something that you actually didn't want to do? For someone at work? Your friends? Even your spouse? All you... Read More

Budda In Your Back Pocket

The other day I was late for something. Not very late. In fact, I was actually on time but an angry voice berated me anyway, saying, "You... Read More

Why a Self Help Book May Not Help You

For a self help book to work, we have to read right it through to the end. While this may seem like a no-brainer, many people never... Read More

Why Bosses Dont Get All the News

Not long ago, a friend who works in television complained that the industry has no interest in real business stories. And, I had to agree with him,... Read More

An Easy Way to End The Year

As a healthy business owner or independent professional, how do you end your year? Well, I tell my clients to stop working. That's right, stop working. The... Read More

Media Underload! The Stress Reducing Psych-Diet

The war, taxes, the economy, increased health problems, crime on the rise, overwhelming divorce rate, corruption in corporate America, and, oh yes, Janet at the Super Bowl!... Read More

Communicating with Case Studies

Not long ago, I made a partnership pitch, on behalf of an organization I represent, to another organization with similar interests. If the idea had come to... Read More

Make a Decision and Take Action!

How are you progressing with the goals you set yourself this year?Have you made a start? Or are you still thinking about it or caught the very... Read More

5 Minute Morning Balance Ritual

"3 Questions, 5 Minutes a Day: Make leaps towards greater balance in one single week with the Shicka Boom 5 Minute Morning Balance Ritual" By Laura Lallone,... Read More

Success Coaching - What Bill Gates and You Should Have In Common

He was just a teenager, but he was already displaying the powerful habits that would one day make him a billionaire.I had to dart down to Atlanta... Read More

Living On Purpose

The purpose of life is to live a life of purpose. Those individuals who live their lives 'on purpose' are not prone to wondering what the meaning... Read More

Leadership Coaching at Gettysburg

The battle at Gettysburg is one of the most notable events in U.S. History. It is a battle where more lives were taken than in any other... Read More

Help! I Need to Make a Decision!

Many people who come to my office say they have a difficult time making decisions. I have developed a process to help my clients master this skill.... Read More

You Have The Right

The other day I was having a interesting conversation with an acquaintance, but it soon turned out to be surprising and unpleasant. The other person blurted out... Read More

Plug in Your Systems for Success

Have you ever noticed that so many of us who work diligently and ethically rarely achieve our objectives? And, why is it that those who-seemingly-work half as... Read More

Growing On G.R.O.W ? A More Specific Coaching Model For Busy Managers

The effective coaching of employees by their line managers is fast becoming an expectation from both senior management and from the employees themselves. Many managers are now... Read More

Executive Coaching ? Finding a Coach and Understanding the Process

Nobody in business can fail to have noticed the recent rise in the number of coaches and consultants offering their services. But how do you go about... Read More

Mailey?s Introspections [Monday, December 6th 2005]

As I work with clients as their introspective Inner Peace/Relationship coach, an issue that has come to my awareness is the tendency we have as human beings... Read More