A whiff of success: Fragrance makes all the difference when searching for a job or a mate

By MERRIE LEININGER - McClatchy-Tribune (MCT)

It's going on a couple of months since you've been looking for a job with barely a nibble - and your dating life isn't any better. Relationship expert Whitney Casey says you have to boost your self-confidence with a little spritz.

"At the University of Liverpool, they did a study that your scent influences your behavior; there's scientific significance to this," she said. "If someone is wearing fragrance, we're attracted to that smell, but the wearer of the scent is also more attractive because they are more self-confident and are judged more attractive by others."

Casey, the author of "The Man Plan," and "Drive Men Wild, Not Away," is a mouthpiece for Axe Body Spray, so she's getting paid to say these things, but, hey, she's got a job - and a boyfriend - so she's doing something right.

And she's right about that study. It was published in the 2008 summer issue of the International Journal of Cosmetic Science. Researchers asked a group of men to spray themselves with a body spray; they asked a second group to spray themselves with a can than didn't have any fragrance in it. Women who watched video of those men said that the first group - who used the fragrance -was more attractive.

Casey said fragrance is even more effective on men. She interviewed 250 men and 150 experts for her latest book.

"Men are so sensory loaded; They see it, they smell it, they touch it, they take it - it's that easy," she said. "Scents really affect the guy. They want you to smell like a fresh-baked cookie. Axe has a chocolate spray that I tell women to spray on their sheets, it smells like room spray."

She said she uses that chocolate spray on her sheets, and uses a vanilla scent on herself.

Casey said that self-confidence can also be a major factor in landing a job. The latest unemployment numbers came out Sept. 4, and showed that 9.7 percent of Americans are out of a job right now; that's an increase over July's figures.

"You're a spray away from self-confidence. Put on a little bit of self-confidence and walk out the door and know it's going to happen," she said. "You can't go out to Botox now, but you can go exercise more - you have two legs and the outdoors. There are things you can do to affect your attractiveness to men and to possible employers."

Of course, as with anything, too much of a good thing is just too much.

Here are some tips from howtodothings.com about applying perfume:

1. Less is more; you want to bring people to your attention, not clear the room. Real perfumes usually have a stronger power than colognes.

2. Unscrew the cap from the vial/bottle. Holding the bottle in one hand with your finger over the bottle opening, tip the bottle until the fluid moistens your fingertip. Apply the fragrance by dabbing the perfume to the pulse points of your body, i.e, on your neck just below your ear lobes, behind your knees, at your ankles, between your breasts, and at your wrists. Do not dab your wrists together after applying perfume--- this breaks down the scent.

3. If you have fair or dry skin, your perfume is going to wear off faster than those with oily or darker skin. This simply means that you might need to give yourself one or two sprays of your favorite scent during your lunch break.

4. Vary the fragrance that you use from time to time. Don't feel inhibited about trying new and different perfumes every 3-4 months, or along with the changes of the seasons.

5. To keep your scent as true as the first day you bought it, place it in an airtight plastic container and store it in the fridge between uses. By doing so, you slow the process of oxidation, which breaks down the scent. This is especially useful during those hot, bright and humid months.

6. Using an atomizer to apply your fragrance can be tricky. Many atomizers distribute too much fragrance to a specific point. To avoid "overdose," squirt the fragrance into the air above or directly in front of you and "walk" into the falling mist.