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I strongly agree with this. Every programmer who became "upper management" also happened to be 6'1"+. Shocking. Funny enough, the shorter programmers were gene

I strongly agree with this. Every programmer who became "upper management" also happened to be 6'1"+. Shocking. Funny enough, the shorter programmers were generally much more competent from having to actually earn their place. If you have to pick a doctor or lawyer on looks alone, I recommend picking the shorter guy (or the woman!)

TameAntelope 5y ago
As someone taller than 6'1", I will say this advantage is, well, shrinking with the advent of WFH culture. Multiple people have told me I surprise them with how tall I am when we finally meet in person, mostly because I keep my camera at the top of my computer, which gives a slightly down-leaning angle, as if they were looking down at me. This could be used to a real advantage by putting the camera under the monitor. It's also not quite a flattering look so I avoid it, but I wonder if this is to my detriment...
- thaumasiotes 5y ago
  Are you sure they're getting the idea that they can look down at you from the fact that your camera looks down on you from above your screen, as opposed to the fact that they themselves literally look down on you as you appear on their screen?
  - rightbyte 5y ago
    Good point, if they use laptops? Most people have their desktop screens at eye hight right.
    - jacobr1 5y ago
      I suspect (without any data) that laptop use dominates external monitors among the post-2020 WFH crowd.
- teddyh 5y ago
  https://dilbert.com/strip/2020-10-06 https://dilbert.com/strip/2020-10-06
- TigeriusKirk 5y ago
  Someone will write an article on how it's a power move to scale your Zoom background to make you look taller.
thaumasiotes 5y ago
> If you have to pick a doctor or lawyer on looks alone, I recommend picking the shorter guy Well, there is a consideration for management positions that says an appearance that evokes deference is a genuine qualification for the job. And while it would be difficult to make that argument for doctors, it's not at all difficult for lawyers.
caffeine 5y ago
Let’s imagine hypothetically there is some circuit genetically encoded in every human’s brain that gives +10% probability of agreeing with someone if they are a tall male. Let’s also imagine hypothetically that in many situations, the speed and strength of consensus itself has value beyond the quality of the decision reached, so eg. quickly reaching a strong consensus on the 2nd-best solution would be better than fighting a drawn-out battle to reach a strained consensus on the best solution. In this (very hypothetical) world, it’s optimal to favour, by some amount, tall males over higher-performing non-tall-males.
- Siira 5y ago
  Hypothetically, genetic engineering seems to outperform in such a world.
- bumbledraven 5y ago
  The conclusion would also be hold if the "circuit" was cultural.
- marktangotango 5y ago
  I was pondering this recently and I wondered if ones relationship with their father as a small child impacts this effect as well. If as a kid one looked up to their father, literally, and had positive interactions, well that's some pretty deeply ingrained feedback loops there. Yes this is pop psych nonsense, but one does wonder.
  - sangnoir 5y ago
    The cynical side of me says it's one's hindbrain may be subconsciously whispering "This person is bigger than I am and could beat me to death, it's better not to antagonize them, or 'compete' with them in any way. They look like they'll always be on the winning side, so that's where I'll be".
deleted 5y ago
[deleted]

TameAntelope 5y ago

As someone taller than 6'1", I will say this advantage is, well, shrinking with the advent of WFH culture. Multiple people have told me I surprise them with how tall I am when we finally meet in person, mostly because I keep my camera at the top of my computer, which gives a slightly down-leaning angle, as if they were looking down at me. This could be used to a real advantage by putting the camera under the monitor. It's also not quite a flattering look so I avoid it, but I wonder if this is to my detriment...

thaumasiotes 5y ago
Are you sure they're getting the idea that they can look down at you from the fact that your camera looks down on you from above your screen, as opposed to the fact that they themselves literally look down on you as you appear on their screen?
- rightbyte 5y ago
  Good point, if they use laptops? Most people have their desktop screens at eye hight right.
  - jacobr1 5y ago
    I suspect (without any data) that laptop use dominates external monitors among the post-2020 WFH crowd.
teddyh 5y ago
https://dilbert.com/strip/2020-10-06 https://dilbert.com/strip/2020-10-06
TigeriusKirk 5y ago
Someone will write an article on how it's a power move to scale your Zoom background to make you look taller.

thaumasiotes 5y ago

> If you have to pick a doctor or lawyer on looks alone, I recommend picking the shorter guy Well, there is a consideration for management positions that says an appearance that evokes deference is a genuine qualification for the job. And while it would be difficult to make that argument for doctors, it's not at all difficult for lawyers.

caffeine 5y ago

Let’s imagine hypothetically there is some circuit genetically encoded in every human’s brain that gives +10% probability of agreeing with someone if they are a tall male. Let’s also imagine hypothetically that in many situations, the speed and strength of consensus itself has value beyond the quality of the decision reached, so eg. quickly reaching a strong consensus on the 2nd-best solution would be better than fighting a drawn-out battle to reach a strained consensus on the best solution. In this (very hypothetical) world, it’s optimal to favour, by some amount, tall males over higher-performing non-tall-males.

Siira 5y ago
Hypothetically, genetic engineering seems to outperform in such a world.
bumbledraven 5y ago
The conclusion would also be hold if the "circuit" was cultural.
marktangotango 5y ago
I was pondering this recently and I wondered if ones relationship with their father as a small child impacts this effect as well. If as a kid one looked up to their father, literally, and had positive interactions, well that's some pretty deeply ingrained feedback loops there. Yes this is pop psych nonsense, but one does wonder.
- sangnoir 5y ago
  The cynical side of me says it's one's hindbrain may be subconsciously whispering "This person is bigger than I am and could beat me to death, it's better not to antagonize them, or 'compete' with them in any way. They look like they'll always be on the winning side, so that's where I'll be".

deleted 5y ago

[deleted]