Living in San Diego, I sometimes find myself getting close to blonde beauties who stand out at first glance.

Parties with friends, birthday celebrations with friends of friends.

However, there's a strange pattern. Many of them casually drop their SAT scores into conversation. Or they bring up graduate school.

They also feel the need to share what books they are reading or information related to AI.

At first, I thought it was just bragging, but after a few years, I realized it was something else. It was their complex.

Someone who has heard "you're pretty" their whole life starts to doubt at some point.

Do people like me for who I really am, or just because of my looks?

When they receive good evaluations at work, they aren't sure if it's due to their skills.

When a man engages in serious conversation, they wonder if he is genuinely interested in their opinions.

So they obsessively collect evidence that they are smart. Quotes from TED talks, podcast recommendations, comments on current issues.

The problem is that collecting evidence is easier than actual studying. Watching a summary video of a book and posting it on social media is much quicker than reading the entire book.

And it's socially more effective. Because of their looks, even the same statement seems deeper and more insightful.

Someone who has received this bonus their whole life has no reason to sit at a desk and memorize physics formulas or solve calculus problems.

On top of this, there's the issue of temptation. Attractive people receive new opportunities every day.

Date proposals, influencer offers, free hotel invitations, weddings of friends of friends.

It takes immense willpower to refuse all of that and choose to read books in the library.

So most don't. As a result, by their mid-30s, a strange crack appears.

The person in the mirror is still attractive, but they are unsure of what's in their own head.

However, feeling a bit superior while observing this is honestly hypocritical.

Koreans also have their own types of complexes. The obsession with attending good schools, the pressure to send children to prestigious universities, all stem from the same root.

When you are evaluated your whole life based on one thing you possess, you lose confidence in all other areas.

The bragging of a blonde beauty about her SAT scores and a Korean mother about her child's academic achievements are actually two sides of the same coin.

What's truly interesting is that the smartest blonde beauties never boast about their intelligence.

They already have confidence in their own minds, so they don't feel the need to prove it. In fact, they sometimes pretend to be a bit less smart.

They know it's socially more convenient.

I've met that type too, and they can be just as challenging to deal with, haha.