What do you want your daughter to be when she grows up?
Happy? Wise? Successful?
A British mum has sparked off a controversy by writing an opinion piece saying she just wants her daughter to be pretty. In fact, Polly Phillips believes beauty will get her 21-month-old daughter Lala further in life than every other quality put together.
“While we all want what’s best for our daughters, few of us are brave enough to face the reality that more attractive people tend to do better in life,” Phillips wrote for MailOnline.
“And more importantly, that even, wave after wave of feminism later, women still worry about their looks more than anything else.”
“Last week, a survey by Lloyds Pharmacy discovered that almost half of all women admit their self-esteem was directly linked to the way that they look and that a third of them were actually scared to go into the office when they felt unattractive.”
“I don’t want that for my daughter. I want her to wake up and be excited to face the day ahead.”
Oh, Polly. Where do I begin?
Firstly, where did you get this idea from that pretty women do better in life? Go to the Forbes list of the world's most powerful women. Check out number one, German Chancellor Angela Merkel. I doubt she spends too long admiring herself in the mirror each morning... probably because she's too busy running a country.
Sure, pretty women might be more likely to be hired as bar staff and waitresses. If that's the career you want for your daughter, great. Otherwise, I would suggest that qualities such as intelligence, creativity and persistence might be more important.