She Says vs. He Says: What's Height Got to Do With Love?
By Christine Hassler and Jason Ryan Dorsey
Special to Yahoo! Personals
Updated: Jun 10, 2008
Agreeing
on the "right height" for a healthy relationship has
been a hot topic since before Darwin tried to explain why both genders
finally stood up. In this debate, authors Christine Hassler and Jason
Ryan Dorsey attempt to demystify what each gender thinks about height
and its impact on dating. This discussion is particularly important for
single people who want to improve their chances of finding a date
online by adjusting their personal height stats.
SHE
SAYS: When it comes to initial attraction, height
matters. A woman wants to look up to a man, both
literally and figuratively. Now I know a lot of women may disagree with
me here and say it's all about equality, but when it comes to height,
many women aren't drawn to a level playing field. I don't know if it's
feeling a taller man can better protect us or simply look good on
holiday postcards, but short guys definitely have to work harder to
stand out in a crowd.
But here is the thing,

if you take the time to get beyond the
superficial stuff and see someone for who they are, then height doesn't
matter at all
if you take the time to get beyond the
superficial stuff and see someone for who they are, then height doesn't
matter at all. When it comes to love, physical
attraction may spark a relationship but it rarely sustains one. And,
hey, as a woman, I know that there's a lot a guy has to offer when he is
not standing. The things that matter when it comes to love are whether
or not your values, life goals, priorities, and communication skills
align -- not whether you can see over him when you wear your favorite
stiletto heels.
HE SAYS: As a guy who is vertically
mediocre, I don't think height is the deciding factor when it comes to
falling in love -- unless you want your future children to play college
basketball on scholarship. However, when a short guy shows up at a
restaurant on a date with a much taller woman you know that some of the
other guys in the place are thinking, "What does he
do?" That particular situation has never happened to
me, but it sure sounds cool. What I do know is that love doesn't come
with a minimum height requirement like a ride at Six Flags. Sometimes
the one you end up falling head over 3-inch heels for doesn't
necessarily fit your "type," but then maybe she is exactly your type
after all. I mean you may not end up seeing eye-to-eye on your wedding
day, but that shouldn't matter because you can always PhotoShop the
pictures. I did.
Christine Hassler is a life coach, speaker, and author of "
20 Something Manifesto." She leads seminars and coaching programs on dealing with "Expectation Hangovers" at colleges and corporations. Find her at
www.christinehassler.com.
Jason Ryan Dorsey is the "Gen Y Guy." He has delivered 1,800 keynotes on bridging the generation gap in the workplace at conferences and corporations around the world. Download free chapters from his new book, "
My Reality Check Bounced!," at
www.jasondorsey.com.