There’s an old quote that says, “Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder”. This is in so many ways true because everyone has different standards of what they think is beautiful, meaning everyone can judge each other and decide what meets their definition of beautiful. Looks matter so much and that makes many people, so conscious, so concerned, and so anxious to conform to the standard. You usually have a first impression of everyone by looking at their looks, which is alright and completely normal, however, when you do this too much, the bad outweighs the good, so don’t judge someone by their appearance. Firstly, everyone has an individual and different opinion on whether someone’s beautiful or not. Secondly, these opinions should be kept private because there is no one who wants to hear anything offensive or insulting about their looks. Not only that, but these “labels” don't really describe a person’s personality and who they are inside.

Everyone can see the same thing, but everyone judges what they see differently. Just because you think something doesn’t ensure that it is correct. Maybe you might find someone extremely unattractive, but that person can appear absolutely gorgeous to someone else. Isn’t it obvious that no one thinks the same thing? Everyone in this world is beautiful; everyone has something to be proud of, both inside AND out. We’re all made the same, we just look different, and that’s what makes every individual unique. Beautiful doesn’t mean someone has to look like a Barbie doll because no one was made in a factory. Like John Legend’s song, “All of Me”, everyone’s imperfections are perfect to someone - all the different scars, beauty marks, smiles, they’re all perfectly imperfect because these little things are what others use to describe a person or distinguish them from another person. Therefore, what you think of someone’s appearance, whether you think they are “ugly”, “pretty”, or “decent” does not apply to everyone else.

When people hear terrible things about their looks, they freak out. For sure, no one will be happy to be labeled “UGLY”.  This blatant truth created so many adverse effects on people. Some people become frustrated, covetous, others become proud, many become judgmental, disdainful, and cruel; think about how that would feel if someone said something offensive about your looks. Well, even the kindest human beings get mean sometimes because everyone in this whole wide world is a visual creation. What people see physically is how they describe a being.  If you think someone is ugly, fat, too skinny, or anything that would sound offensive in general, try to keep it to yourself. These small remarks can turn into big insults, which can then turn into bullying. According to the article “More than half of schoolgirls are bullied because of their appearance” on Daily Mail UK, “Just over half of young women who were bullied said they played truant from school, with one girl missing six months of education and her SAT exams. The main reason for bullying was weight, followed by hair colour - almost entirely girls with red hair. Other reasons included height, clothing and racism.” This shows that most people take these “labels” that get put on them VERY personally, and it affects them in many different ways. In conclusion, just learn how to limit this constant judging entirely based on appearance because it’s as painful as rubbing salt in a wound.

Many people have argued that it is important to look beautiful and presentable because it is beneficial when applying for a job, get dates to prom, you name it. According to “Appearance Matters: The Importance of Looking Presentable” by Nancy Perkins, “In a face-to-face interview, you want your prospective employer to view you as someone professional.” This suggests that it is important to look good when you need to impress people or when you need to make yourself seem qualified for something as people see what you look like before they talk to you. Although this argument is perfectly reasonable, it only applies for special occasions and certain things where people need to make themselves look presentable. Everyone is able to make themselves look presentable if they try, but at the end of the day, it honestly doesn’t matter because no one can change what they look like. For example, if someone kindhearted, smart, hardworking, and trustworthy wore a formal and presentable outfit to go to a job interview and they didn’t look well-dressed, beautiful, or presentable enough to interviewer, it wouldn’t matter because what they can do and what they act like is going to determine whether they are suitable for the job or not. Beauty is from within, and you won’t know someone’s story or who they are just by looking at them. Everybody’s physical features are basically book covers that no one got to design, and we all have deep and meaningful stories from within that make us who we are. Looking at what people look like and what they dress like is basically reading one passage of that person’s story. If you want to know who someone is and if you’re gonna judge them based on their looks, find an actual reason and don’t use their physical features as your reason.

These three main reasons should be able to convince everyone that jumping to conclusions based on how someone looks is usually pretty much unnecessary. Trust me, there are many more reasons, but just know that if an offensive opinion of yours (about someone’s looks) is shared, it will hurt them and there will be many consequences beyond that. Start out by trying to get to know people then judging them based on who they really are inside; everyone has a story.