by
Mr. Macchiato
I have a confession: I am 5'8". I know that I am not tall, but I don't think about my height very often. My wife is 5'2", so we fit together nicely. Still though, I was doing some Googling today and came across this
depressing quote on Wikipedia:
[S]tudies have shown that short people are paid less than taller people, with disparities similar in magnitude to the race and gender gaps.
A survey of Fortune 500 CEO height in 2005 revealed that they were on average 6 feet tall, which is approximately 3 inches taller than the average American man. Fully 30% of these CEOs were 6 foot 2 inches tall or more; in comparison only 3.9% of the overall United States population is of this height. Equally significantly, similar surveys have uncovered that less than 3% of CEOs were below 5′7″ in height. Ninety percent of CEOs are of above average height.
Wow, maybe height really does matter!
Whenever I think about height, I always think of my third grade teacher, Mrs. McAllister.
There were these two short girls in my class, and one day I overheard them crying to Mrs. McAllister about how short they were. She gathered them on her lap and told them height doesn't matter for girls.
"Boys will only date girls that are shorter than them." she told them soothingly. "So since you are shorter than average, almost any boy will go out with you! But if you were a tall girl, then you would have a much harder time finding a date."
I remember thinking, "Wow is that true??"
Years later, I think maybe Mrs. McAllister was right! I can honestly say I have never dated anyone taller than me. And come to think of it, it might be hard for me to date someone taller than me. I'll never forget when Nicole Kidman went on Oprah after her divorce, and Oprah asked how life was after the breakup... and Nicole said, "I can finally wear heels again!" Damn, that's cold!
I guess I met someone and all the stars lined up except for height, I could live with it. How about you guys out there: would it bug you at all if your date was taller than you? What about girls: do you prefer to date guys that are taller than you?
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Comments (177)
I'm pretty short, so I don't have much choice. I have to say, though, it'd be pretty awkward for me if my date was substantially shorter than me. :/ I mean, I'm only 5'2".
:edit: Holy crap, first post. O_o
I say, short or tall in terms of love, just be sure the connection is there. I am sure my girlfriend is taller, but that doesn't mean the ibgger you are, the better end of the deal you get. Heck, I have dated tall people, or people of my height.
i've always dated guys taller than me. granted, i'm only 5 ft. it'd be kinda weird if i dated a guy that height or shorter. my average guy height would be 5'8"-ish.
Umm.
If I were to date anyone shorter than me, I'd be dating a midget ):
I'm 4'11.
That's really odd third grade advice.
I'm 6'1" and I wouldn't mind dating a girl taller than me, as long as she is not wider than me.
I never really have. I'm 5'7". If I'm dating a guy, he has to be taller. If I'm dating a girl, she has to be shorter.
Nothing biased. They just catch my attention a lot quicker.
I'm short-ish (5'1"), so it's kind of hard to find a guy shorter than I am. In my mind, I'd say I'd like my boyfriend to be taller than me, but in reality, it wouldn't really matter THAT much unless he was MUCH shorter than I am. (But, for the record, the guy I like now is actually quite a bit taller than I am.)
yah... unfortunately... height is a deal breaker. i've tried dating guys that are in the 5'7"-5'9" range and it was always bad (i'm 5'6").
i just like being able to snuggle up against the guy as he comes up behind me and wraps his arms around me... he'd have a hard time doing it if he's around my height or shorter than me. after several tries, i found 5'10" to be the minimum for me.
but that's not to say other girls won't date shorter guys. it just doesn't work for me.
Well, I'm one of those short girls, luckily .. haha
Actually, it's pretty hard to find a guy shorter than me since I'm only 5"1'. If I did find a guy who was my height or shorter it would be pretty weird, I'm so used to everyone (including a lot of women) being taller than me.
let me put it this way.
if i dated anyone taller than me, they would be 6'3".
thats ridiculous to me.
im tall enough as it is and am used to being tall.
being looked down upon just seems like a gloomy prospect.
::Rico::
i think if i ever date a guy who is shorter than me i would feel like a giant the entire time.
@cokeaddict@xanga - amen to the snuggling height range.
I'm 5'8". I was always tall for my age, so I like dating a guy who makes me feel little and feminine. Both of the boyfriends I have had were about 6'2" and most of my love interests have been taller than me, except in junior high when no one was. I don't feel badly for turning shorter guys down, because most women are shorter than I am, so they shouldn't have too much trouble.
I am about 5'11" tall, and every guy I have dated has been shorter than me. My current boyfriend is about 7 inches shorter than me.
I do agree, it is harder to find a guy, but in the end I do not think height matters.
It sort of hurt me when I read this post.
Beyond a certain height disparity things get absurd, but people are (and should be) willing to put up with a lot in the name of love.
I'm not going to say that it's a big deal because, depending on the guy, I don't think height would be my focus. However, I am a little taller than average, so if I had to pick an ideal range, it might be 6'1 - 6'3. I've liked guys that were the same height or an inch-ish shorter than me though. Definitely not a deal-breaker.
I'm 6 feet tall, and my hubby is about an inch shorter than me.
My first beau was only about 5 feet 6 inches. Cute, li'l Irish boy.
It's kind of hard for a woman to be taller than me. I'm not EXTRAORDINARILY tall, but I'm just about 6'1", and Asian so... yeah. It's mostly Asian women who go for me, and there aren't many Asian women who are taller than me.
To be honest though, I like my women about 5'7" or so. I think it looks the best that way. I had an ex that was 4'11" and that just looked really odd. I'm casually dating a girl that's 5'11" right now, and I think it's pretty stunning to see, but wow she's hella tall.
Funny thing is that my two closest friends are 6'8" and 6'5", so I'm the short guy around them.
I'm 5'1 so majority of men are taller than me. But I prefer someone who is a good few inches taller than me, I don't know why but it just gives me a sense of protection.
i'm 5'6.. kinda tall for an asian chick, but yea I definitely prefer guys who are taller. looks better, and the whole 'wow i feel secure' when he's standing next to me =]
@lauralen@xanga - Wow, how tall are you exactly, L? I had no idea you were so tall!
someone (or more than one someone) always said: doesn't matter when both of you are horizontal.
i always tend to date guys who are taller than me (i'm 5'1) but there was this one guy i think who was around the same height when i was wearing sneakers. for some reason, that was too weird. haha.
my bf is about 5'7 so when i'm barefoot i have to stand on my toes to kiss him. that's pretty fun.
I dated a guy shorter than me. His insecurities just tore the whole thing apart.
i have never dated a girl taller than me, but i wouldn't mind it. however, i think most girls do look for guys who are taller than them.