Is life easier or harder as a beautiful woman?

Hmm. Well, in my teens to mid-twenties, I was often referred to as a "9/10" and got asked to do a few commercials (based on having the right "look"), so I'll submit those as my credentials. Was definitely never a supermodel, though - just a girl virtually everyone seemed to regard as very pretty. In my thirties now and I think I'm maybe a bit above average on a good day - my face is mostly the same but I'm now chubby rather than thin.

Honestly, I'd say that for me, life has been... about the same. I got more attention when I was more conventionally attractive, both good and bad. I was never really the type to focus on what people thought of me, but my friends would sometimes point out that certain people would either show favouritism or enmity toward me based on my looks alone. All your usual things, really. Maybe I'd get hired for a job over somebody because the employer thought I'd be the better face to show to clients. Maybe, at the same time, I'd have people whispering against me for being "shallow" and "stuck-up" and "trying to steal their boyfriends" (despite never having even spoken to said boyfriends). People admire me less than they used to, but I'm also no longer perceived as as much of either a "threat" or "trophy," looks-wise. All very predictable.

Generally, though, I'd say the difference has been negligible. Growing up, I always pushed very hard against allowing my looks to define me, so it helped with the transition from "beautiful" to "ordinary" quite a bit. It's much easier now not to be defined by my looks, at least. I will say that, irrespective of being conventionally attractive or not, I've always more or less adhered to a certain "look" - clean hair, light makeup, neat and generally fashionable clothing. I'd say my particular styling, more than my basic looks, have generally led to my life being easier. People continue to be polite and friendly toward me. It's only on days when I look a bit more "sloppy" (say, unbrushed hair, baggy clothes, scuffed shoes) that people become - not so much rude, per se, as perhaps a bit "dismissive."

TL;DR Not much of a difference for me, but then I'm not the type to pay much attention to all that anyway. The larger part of the difference may also have been buttressed by my generally "professional" styling as well.

/r/AskWomen Thread