What Makes People Attractive?

 I don't know. It could be anything, and our perceptions are different. 

Some like famous people- celebrities, from sports, film, TV or other spheres. But I am talking of mere mortals here. What makes the guy/girl next door, or those from the Ordinary Mortals class attractive?

There are probably many things. These might also be surprising in some cases.

Sincerity or honesty in my view, is one major factor that makes a guy/girl attractive.

Intelligence, in some cases, if it's not tinged with arrogance.

Sense of humour.

Politeness of demeanour. 

A good smile helps, in all the above..

The opposite, what makes people unattractive, in my view at least -

Arrogance

A tendency to show off.. 

Zero respect for other people's time.

Inability to smile. 

Inability to laugh at oneself.

On Politeness

Continuing my observations about the Japanese, they are polite to a fault. We can probably learn this quality from them, if not how to run bullet trains and other trains-on time.

Being on time is also a sign of politeness, in my view. It indicates to others you are meeting that you value their time, and therefore, them. Indians are on the contrary, known for an Indian Standard Time that varies from 30 minutes to an hour or more after the announced time. It penalises the people who actually show up on time, and causes all sorts of problems.

But back to general politeness. It costs nothing, like a smile, and generates returns that may be manifold. It reduces tension, promotes flow of good feeling, and am sure, has health benefits to the one who is being polite. I am exempting situations where you may have to shed it in extreme circumstances, for good reasons.

Try it, for a day or two. We can then add it to our Swachchata Abhiyan (Cleanliness Drive). As soon as we find a Hindi word for it, of course.