Looksmaxxing Is Just Another Dead End

"I've often asked patients why they're so preoccupied with becoming the best in some domain, why they need something so much that they're willing to organize their lives around it, sacrificing all types of pleasures for it. Most of the time, there isn't much of an answer. It's like a game, a distraction, and a fantasy; there's no rhyme or reason, no sense of why they do it or what's to come, and no understanding of how being the best generates long-standing happiness."

"With little general forethought, looksmaxxing blends the elements of perfectionism-obsessiveness, sensitivity to criticism and rejection, desire for widespread and complete approval, the need to be part of an elite group, and the intolerance of one's flaws-with vanity-the preoccupation with being extremely physically attractive. Like all of the other forms of perfectionism, looksmaxxing is based on a highly flawed perspective of the world and how one becomes influential in it, yet it contains kernels of truth, which weakens one's cognitive defenses."

Looksmaxxing is a contemporary expression of perfectionism that promises increased influence through improved appearance but often delivers harm. Declines in moral perfectionism and saturation of success-oriented perfectionism have allowed looksmaxxing to emerge as a new focus. Perfectionism adapts to cultural currents and can fixate on any domain. Individuals pursuing looksmaxxing frequently organize their lives around appearance, sacrificing pleasures without clear reasons or lasting happiness. The pattern combines obsessiveness, sensitivity to criticism and rejection, craving for total approval, elitism, intolerance of flaws, and vanity. The pursuit rests on a flawed model of influence yet contains kernels of truth that weaken cognitive defenses.

Read at Psychology Today