Forget quotas. There’s one must-have accessory for any woman wanting to make it in the political arena: ‘a pob’.
The pob, short for political bob, is the powerful haircut du jour for female leaders the world over, apparently.
Think Britain’s new prime minister Theresa May made it on merit? Think again. Pob.
“But what about Hillary Clinton’s decades in politics?” you bleat. Nuh-uh. Pob.
According to the Daily Mail, “the feathery, usually blonde, swept back look” is being used by female pollies to prove they “mean business”.
Clearly they’re onto something, which got us thinking — what is it that gives the powerful men their gravitas?
And then we realised: They all have the exact same haircut.
Don’t believe us? Just look at our last three (male) Prime Ministers.
The political comb over is the chosen haircut for powerful men.
Not unlike the pob, the 'poco' — that's the political comb over — is your one-way ticket to the top.
International celebrity hairdresser [insert totally made up name here] says, "The first thing people think about at the ballot box is a candidate's hair."
"Having too much on top gives off an air of inexperience. Curls are a no-no. You want a neat side sweep to say, 'Hey, I'm in control', and a creeping widow's peak to say, 'I've been here for a while'. Silver is preferable.
"It's hard enough to be taken seriously as a man in politics. A hairdo can make or break a career."
We weren't quite convinced. I mean, could a carefully curated hairstyle really be the key to kicking career goals?
So we took a look around the world and, sure enough, it's not just Aussies harnessing the power of poco.
The UK's Jeremy Corbyn has one (channelling our own opposition leader Bill Shorten, perhaps?).
Could a hairspray shortage be behind Corbyn's loose hold on the leadership?
American Vice President Joe Biden's was on full display when he visited our shores last week, while Republican presidential hopeful Donald Trump was so committed to the poco he bought a fake one and glued it to his head.
"I never graduated high school..." - Joe Biden, probably.
Trump: "What do you mean they know it's a fake?"
Uncanny, isn't it.
Another mystery solved.
Mia Freedman's hairdresser shares the trick that'll get you a great haircut (a 'pob', even) every time.