Stop Comparing Yourself To People That Don't Exist 

Although Los Angeles was big and scary when I got there, there's one thing that I saw within the first 4 months that actually gave me a nice bit of confidence.

If you live in or around the "coolest" (or "hottest") part of Los Angeles (Hollywood, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Century City, Westwood, etc.) you'll eventually see some celebrities.

While it might be neat to see your favorite childhood celebrities that are in their 40's (Mario Lopez, Pamela Anderson, Julia Roberts) or musicians that you listen to, there's something that happens when a guy or girl in their 20's sees a actor or model that is in or around that same age.

They IMMEDIATELY compare themselves.

I know I did do.

I know that my friends do.

I know the girls I live with do.

I know girls that I've been out with do.

What's interesting, is, on average - is the average Los Angeles "hot person" in their 20's matches up quite favorably with the untouchable celebrity in REAL LIFE.

I'm serious.

On average, me, my friends, my roomies, my girls and most attractive people in their 20's in Los Angeles are both BETTER (or equal) LOOKING and TALLER than any random celebrity in their 20's.

What's more, the average celebrity generally isn't spotted with "whoa, who's that cool guy???" "whoa, who's that hot girl???" until someone actually recognizes them.

If they weren't famous, they probably wouldn't get picked out a crowd.*

The average 20-something, pretty-attractive Los Angeles scenster, generally but not always, stands out as much or more than the 20-something celebrity that is the same age.
*in their defense, a lot of celebrities are underdressed during the day so they don't get spotted.

This is one of the reasons that I never recognize celebrities. They don't look like "themselves" (and I don't wear my contacts too often).

But while I kinda knew this, it's another thing to SEE IT and BELIEVE IT.

Obviously there are exceptions.

I used to see Fabio at Equinox fitness all the time. He looks fantastic, he is 215lbs and maybe 7% BF. That's as big or bigger than I am.

Ironically, that "Matador" guy (Mystery's right-hand man) was built like a NFL free safety too. (no joke)
Hypnotica was jacked and could wreck someone, but I think we knew that. He's a decent and good guy in my book.

By and large, however, when people see their favorite celebrity- they are usually underwhelmed if they can get over the "OMG OMG OMG" factor.

But How Can This Be?

At this point you are thinking one of two things-

1. Chris, you are a just liar/hater, and you finally have dug your own grave.
   You've said some controversial stuff before (looks matter, being boyfriend material isn't sexy, it's possible to enlarge your dick) but now you have gone too far. I quit. You're a douchebag.
2. Chris, you aren't telling me anything I don't know.
   People incorrectly think that celebrities are superhuman freaks that literally look like their photoshopped, airbrushed photos and have "Brad Pitt Fight Club" body language so they radiate presence and swag factor wherever they go.

#2 is the right train of thought.

That is the secret that I know (and now you know) that the rest of the world doesn't.

Although it may seem like "everyone knows that Hollywood isn't real," very few people BELIEVE IT.

The vast majority of girls willingly allow themselves to get intimidated by professional, Photoshopped photos where they are trying live up to a computer generated image of an airbrushed celebrity in perfect lighting that is wearing $100 of makeup , $300 of hair and $1000 of clothing shot by a camera crew that costs $5000 a day.

It's not just girls though. We do it too.
(Guys do too, even though we generally have slightly better perspective)

Bodybuilders that "read" muscle magazine or mindlessly surf the internet look at professional photos of their heros are often disconnected from reality.

The more you care about your looks, the more likely that you are guilty as well.

Members of PUAHate, a forum thats critical of "pick up artists"/everyone, are smart enough to know that "Looks" are the primary element of sexual attraction between men and women - constantly compare themselves to professional photos of male celebrities that they have never seen.

Even in our forum, I think we sometimes have a skewed version of what "hot" is.

We tend to underrate the people around us, especially ourselves.

We compare self-photos taken on webcams in poor lighting or from cellphone taken inches from our face to professional pictures.

Remember - you ONLY NEED to pass the looks threshold, which is to be every girl's "7".

Be above-average, like I always say, play the numbers game and you'll NEVER be without sex for more than a week or two.

When you compare your to airbrushed pictures or people with makeup on. You are going to lose.

Channing Tatum

Channing Tatum, by all means, a totally photogenic heartthrob who was even awarded "Sexiest Man Alive", got caught on a bad day, at a bad angle looking out of shape.

Only his signature tattoo on his right arm suggests that it's even the same person.

Justin Timberlake

You can say what you want about Justin Timberlake.

Even I remember trying to convince girls that he wasn't "that good looking" when I was a jealous little 6th grader. I remember on TRL when one wanna-be groupie said that Justin Timblerlake was so strong that he should play professional football.

Regardless.

But he was Justin Bieber, before Justin Bieber.

The girls that a lot of you guys hook up with now (18-25) - had a crush on him when they were in 4th or 5th grade.

The girls that masturbated at that age - touched themselves and thought of him.

These pictures below date all the way back to when Justin Timberlake was considered a full-on sex symbol in his prime with the tale-end of the band NSync, rivaled ONLY his female counterpart- Britney Jean Spears.
(give me a break, I live in LA much of the year, I know this stuff)

Unlike some of the others pictures, professional editing gives Justin Timberlake an extreme upgrade in edge and masculinity, instead of making him look smoother and younger.

Matthew Mcconaughey

Matthew Mcconaughey is often thought of as an good example of guy that has aged gracefully and looks flawless [for his age (44)].

In my opinion, he looks good, even when the paparazzi caught him at the wrong time.

The guy on the right doesn't look like the guy on the left though.

The guy on the left can sleep with girls in their 20s, the guy on the right would get the police called on him.

Jonathan Goldsmith
(Most Interesting Man in the World)

Is there a more handsome man in the world? I don't think so.

Anytime I see a Dos Equis commercial, I think to myself-

Damn, I hope I look that way when I reach my 60s and 70s.

Turns out professional videography and makeup do quite a bit for Jonathan Goldsmith.

He is still quite a fine, handsome man though. Nice teeth too.

Even I can't compete with myself.

The picture on the left is from August of 2013, the photo on the right is from August of 2012.

All it took was a little professional photography and a little supplement I use to kill bloat.

These are only a handful of examples that show what Hollywood can do to trick you.

There are HUNDREDS more - just Google any celebrity and you'll see what I mean.

Celebrities, especially women, have specific photo, media and public relations specialists that show them and remind them HUNDREDS of times a year to be "camera ready" so the unexpected photo-ops don't land them on the cover of some shitty tabloid magazine with the title, "Is _____ addicted to Meth?" "Does _____ have an eating disorder like Lindsey Lohan?"

There's reason they don't tweet photos of themselves from less-than-perfect angles or "no makeup selfie pictures" without wearing AT LEAST SOME coverage concealer.

There's a reason that celebrities try to avoid the daily spotlight and alert the media when they are making "surprise appearances" at some nightclub, party or movie premier.

It is very much a game.

But You already knew this.

Right?

My Point

My main point is that you need to to stop comparing yourself to ideals and people that don't even exist.

Having high standards for yourself is one thing, developing an inferiority complex from chasing rainbows is another.

How you look in random photos or on a webcam is not how you'd look if Hollywood wanted to promote you or even if you were on television.

It might not even be how you look in person.

If you are better looking than 80-90% of people at any given moment, wherever you live, than you probably look as good as any guy in Hollywood. Try to look your best; but you certainly have NOTHING TO WORRY ABOUT. If you don't look better than 8 or 9 out of 10 guys, cut your body fat until you face has full features. Generally once you get visible a 6-pack - your facial aesthetics are close to maxed out and you are better looking than just about everyone.

Take before and after pictures, use our Fat Loss Diet if you don't know where to start -  you might not even recognize yourself in a couple of months.

Most male celebrities, even the models and sex symbols, are generally only above-average looking and make sure their team makes them look as good as possible for when the cameras are flashing. There are obviously some exceptions, but you CANNOT judge from their professional pictures. You'd have to see them in person, I have seen more names than I can think of.
(supposedly, I'm usually  just going by what the others I was with say if they recognize a celebrity)

The reality is, even celebrities that have supposedly "lost their looks" or "gone crazy" might still look exactly the same and you are just recently seeing their unedited pictures. They might have gained a couple of pounds or just got caught looking less than their six-figure photo-op team demands. A picture is worth 1000 words and bad pictures can create ridiculous stories and assumptions.

A lot of people seem to think that celebrities are untouchable "genetic freaks" that hit the .00001% genetic lottery. While that is true in some cases, that is definitely not the case for every guy that hits a magazine cover. Many male celebrities are shorter than advertised and have a very thin frames. By thin, I mean weak not just "lean".

NFL athletes are genetic freaks, not celebrities.

In the 2nd part of "Hollywood Loves Your Inferiority Complex" we'll talk about how the issue is even worse for girls, how they are sometimes made more insecure by their own shots of perfection and how that "sorta hot" girl you talked to with ease at the book store is a perfect 10 that you are scared of when she dresses up to go party at night.