I think most people can lighten their hair. What helps is finding the right tone for your complexion, so it will be flattering to you. I think that some form of red suits most people. My own preference is a red tone, rather than blonde for people with rich complexions. For those who do go blonde, most of the people I see would look better with a darker tone of blonde than that super bright yellow so many choose. Just my 2% of a dollar.