There’s Actually A Secret To Being Hot (And It’s Really Easy)

People, even if they don’t want to admit to it, want to be deemed attractive. Even if they’re well aware that the chances of them ever reaching Angie Jolie status in the looks department just isn’t going to happen, they still want to be considered at least somewhat easy on the eyes. As someone who puts brains above beauty on the scale of importance, even and I can come clean and say that yes, please, someone, find me pretty. Anyone? Anyone at all? Bueller? No one, and I mean no one, says, “Oh, I really wish I were ugly.”

While the world is full of ways of how to be pretty or, at the very least, make yourself more bearable on your surrounding human beings — Use this product! Do this to your hair! Wear this particular color! — there is one way, in particular, in which you can up your looks in no time at all. What is it, you ask? BE NICE. Don’t be like any of these people.

I know, I know; for those of us who are just naturally evil to the core the thought of being nice is actually painful. It pulls at our soul and makes us angry to play nice when we’re inherently just bad people. But, I think we can all agree that Regina George was prettier after she stopped being awful? Yes.

A study out of China, just published in Personality and Individual Differences, found that someone’s behavior, as in being nice or mean, has a very large effect on how others see them.

The 120 participants of the study were asked to rate 60 unfamiliar female faces in regards to how attractive they found them to be, without any background story about the women in the photos. Two weeks later the participants were shown the same photos, but were now given some details about the women. This time, each photos was assigned either positive or negatives traits, as in who was sweet and nice, and who were pretty much the devil. Women who were portrayed as being mean not only scored much lower than the nice women, but they even received far lower ratings from the first time their photos were viewed.

What does this mean? Well, if you’re wandering around the world being evil, putting people down, and being a general a**hole, then you’re ugly. You’re not just ugly inside, but it reaches outside, from your black heart, and destroys your face, too! How does that make you feel? Oh, I’m sorry… am I being mean?

While some of you will shun this scientific study and continue about your miserable ways, for those of you who do care about how pretty or handsome the world sees you, then smile—throw someone a compliment, hold the door open for a stranger, even offer to buy coffee for that coworker you hate.

Yes, it will take a bit to get used to all the niceness in your heart, but if it means you’ll be rated the best looking at your next job review (because they do that, right?), then that’s what really matters. Right, hot stuff?

This post originally appeared at YourTango.