When people hear the word status, they usually think of flashy status symbols such a big house and car. Which is fine. But behavioral and social status within groups and demographics is another neglected aspect of attractiveness.

Pre-covid I used to play volleyball at my university. My decent looks and my skill got me respect among other guys. Women took notice and their attention started to shift towards me, actively engaging with me constantly. . There was one better looking, jacked guy who really didn't have any athletic skill which made him look silly from the outside as in a "wow, all these muscles and still no talent" kind of thing. The interest towards him died off quickly.

In the past, when interacting in a group (non-related to the example above), I could feel attraction towards me growing me if I was knowledgeable in a certain topic others were interested in. If I had stories to tell. Meanwhile I remember the attraction towards a very good-looking guy dying fast as soon as he opened his mouth. Really fast. He sit there awkwardly. I've experienced both situations as I've been both that guy at least a couple of times. And this is why, personality is important. It was very telling about the flexible nature of attractiveness.

A yoga instructor will be much more attractive among a demographic of women who are into that lifestyle than a guy who's better looking than him. Not even a chance. I've seen these things happen.

As attraction is dynamic, a man will lose respect among his peers if he's too "dumb" or not competent. This holds true especially true as you get older. Women watch how you treat other men and how other men treat you. It should be said that you probably shoudn't try to achieve status for this reason but rather just enjoy what you do because walking status zombies who constantly try to put themselves above others are insufferable.

Respect among amoung your peers also increases your attractiveness, dependent on the demographic you're interested in.

TLDR : You can't skate by only your looks unless you're fine dating "problematc" demographics all the time. If you achieve competence within a field, you open up a new demographic of people and potential partners. Some people don't even meet because of demographics. So if you want an interesting partner, there's no way around being interesting yourself.