--- description: Self-discipline is a better predictor of success than IQ. Happiness translates into success and happier people are more successful. Just don’t be too happy. Gay... title: These Types of People End Up More Successful and Make More Money image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0f225a028ce0434d/698777e135ba6f4799c06463/money.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Ideas](/section/ideas/) ## Ideas Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Psychology](/tag/psychology/) ## Psychology Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # These Types of People End Up More Successful and Make More Money by [Eric Barker](/author/eric-barker/) ## Eric Barker Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jan 7, 2015 5:01 AM CUT  large largeGetty Images by [Eric Barker](/author/eric-barker/) ## Eric Barker Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jan 7, 2015 5:01 AM CUT * [Self-discipline](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/whats-better-than-iq-at-determining-who-will? "undefined") is a better predictor of success than IQ. * Happiness [translates into success](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/does-success-make-us-happy-or-does-happiness "undefined") and happier people [are more successful](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/which-college-freshmen-end-up-making-more-mon "undefined"). Just don’t be [too happy](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/is-too-much-happiness-a-bad-thing "undefined"). * Gay men have 12 percent lower personal incomes and lesbians have 15 percent higher personal incomes [than heterosexual men and women](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/do-gay-people-earn-as-much-as-straight-people "undefined"). * Nice guys [make less money](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/do-nice-guys-make-less-money "undefined"), rude people [have higher credit scores](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/do-rude-people-have-higher-credit-scores "undefined") and being ethical [can hurt your income](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/can-being-ethical-hurt-your-income "undefined"). * Taller people make more money and it’s [because they’re smarter](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/do-taller-people-earn-more-money-because-they "undefined"). Thin women [make more money](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/when-it-comes-to-salary-do-the-thin-win "undefined"). Weight has a positive effect on men’s salary until they’re obese. * Beautiful people are [more successful](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/are-beautiful-people-more-successful-why "undefined") and it’s largely because they’re more confident. [Beautiful people](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/is-life-better-for-beautiful-people "undefined") are likely to be happier, earn more money, get a bank loan with a lower interest rate and marry a good-looking and highly educated spouse. Hot college professors [make more](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/do-hot-college-professors-make-more-money "undefined") and your house will sell for more money if [your real estate agent is attractive](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/does-the-attractiveness-of-your-real-estate-a "undefined"). * What if you’re not so beautiful? Well [groomed](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/should-you-shave-more-carefully-if-youre-ugly "undefined") people [earn more too](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/can-good-grooming-increase-your-income "undefined"). * Married men [make more than single men](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/why-do-married-men-earn-more-than-single-men "undefined"). This is even true for [professional baseball players](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/do-married-baseball-players-make-more-money "undefined"). It isn’t true for [gay men](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/is-there-a-marriage-premium-for-gay-men "undefined"), however. * [Drinkers](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/does-drinking-and-smoking-make-you-wealthier "undefined") make more money. [Smokers](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/do-smokers-make-more-money "undefined") don’t. * The [best prostitutes](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/do-the-best-prostitutes-get-paid-less-than-av "undefined") make less money than average ones. [Sexist men](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/do-sexist-men-earn-more-money? "undefined") bring home bigger checks. * People with [easy to pronounce names](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/does-your-name-affect-your-salary "undefined") and [wives who don’t take their husband’s name](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/how-does-taking-her-husbands-name-cost-a-woma "undefined") have higher incomes. * [Self-esteem](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/how-does-your-self-esteem-affect-your-salary "undefined"), [personality](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/what-personality-traits-predict-higher-income "undefined") and the [season of your birth](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/can-the-season-of-your-birth-affect-your-futu "undefined") are all relevant factors as well. **_This piece originally appeared on_** [**_Barking Up the Wrong Tree_**](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2012/05/which-people-end-up-more-successful-and-make/ "undefined")**_._** **Join over 151,000 readers. Get a free weekly update via email** [**here**](http://eepurl.com/o6uAD "undefined")**.** Related posts: [6 Hostage Negotiation Techniques That Will Get You What You Want](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2013/06/hostage-negotiation/ "undefined") [How To Get People To Like You: 7 Ways From An FBI Behavior Expert](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2014/10/how-to-get-people-to-like-you/ "undefined") [How To Stop Being Lazy And Get More Done – 5 Expert Tips](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2014/08/how-to-stop-being-lazy/ "undefined") _Read next:_ [_Will This Be America’s Next Economic Crisis?_](http://time.com/3908638/will-this-be-americas-next-economic-crisis/?iid=time%5Freadnext "undefined") [_Listen to the most important stories of the day._](http://time.com/newsletter/the-brief/autoplay/?xid=spl-fullbrief-article "undefined") ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"OpinionNewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3652236/why-successful-people/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3652236/why-successful-people/"},"headline":"These Types of People End Up More Successful and Make More Money","datePublished":"2015-01-07T05:01:57.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-31T08:06:48.108Z","description":"Self-discipline is a better predictor of success than IQ. 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