Haircut: Professional or Personality?

Gentlemen, the hairstyle you choose is key to your success as a young professional so I had to include it in the “Controlled Externalities” series. Though the business world is becoming more and more progressive, there are still glass ceilings that can be placed above those of us who opt out the traditional hairstyles.  It might not be fair but it is reality.

This week I took the time to catch up with one of my two my personal barbers, Vince Jamael, and pick his brain on making sure that your hair looks the very best that it can.

While in college, I got a haircut at least once a week and a trim on the night that I went out for social gatherings.  That was right when Vince Jamael was getting comfortable with his clippers and sheers and his prices were right in line with my undergraduate student budget.  But, as I aged and relocated, I found that my haircuts were becoming more and more expensive.  Whereas I was paying between $30 and $60 per month in Greensboro, where I attended college, Charlotte haircuts were costing me $80 before I even pulled out a tip.  But I am a firm believer that your appearance is something you invest in and, if you want quality, you have to pay for it.  I asked Vince Jamael how often he believes an image conscious young professional should get his hair cut and he recommends “an actual haircut every other week and a trim or shape up in between.”

But, if you’re anything like me, you travel a couple times a month and may be away from your barber for a week or longer.  At that point what do you do?  I know that I won’t go to just any barber but I do know how to follow a line so I asked Vince what product he suggests to keep that hairline looking as clean as possible.  “The Andis T-Outliner is what I would recommend.  It is barber-quality but easy to work with and not very expensive.”  I looked it up online and the outliners are about $50 but that’s 3-5 trims at a regular barbershop so definitely not a bad investment in my eyes.

Now for the hardest question:  What do you do in the age of the beard?  Men both in and out of the office are sporting them now.  But, more often than not, the president of the United States sets the for what is professionally acceptable in America and what is not.  The last president to be elected with any facial hair was William Taft in 1913.  When I asked Vince Jamael his opinion on professional facial hair stylings, he said “It’s always safe to go all the way close shaven but if you want to keep the beard, make sure it’s close and neatly trimmed. You can never go wrong w/ the goatee.  It’s the best of both worlds.”

I am always one for playing it safe but your hair speaks to your personality.  So, whether you decide you want to wear your hair longer or shorter, bearded or shaven, it is imperative that you keep it clean if you want to get (or keep) the job.

If you have any questions about hairstyles, I definitely recommend you follow @VinceJamael and @NoGreaseBarbershop on Instagram.  As of now, they are the only two brands I trust to take my hair as seriously as I take my professionalism and that is saying volumes.

Let’s Clear a Few Things Up

Good morning and welcome to another Well-Dressed Wednesday.  As I said last week, I will be spending the next few weeks on a series titled “Controlled Externalities” which focuses on those aspects of your appearance that you have control over but aren’t apart of your actual wardrobe.

I want to start the series off by focusing on your skin.  No, not in terms of race, but instead in terms of clarity.  In a perfect world, you would never be judged on your externals and instead on the quality of work you produce but that’s not reality and, within the first minute of meeting you, most people can decide whether or not they want to develop a relationship with you, be it business or personal.  So you should do all you can to enhance your chances of giving off a favorable impression to those persons with whom you want to do business and/or work for.

Of course, there are issues that impact your skin that you have no control over but there are some things that you can affect for the better.  One of those things is the amount of oil that is visible in your face.  A standard facial cleanser such as a Neutrogena or Clearasil is sufficient when hoping to reduce that oil factor.  In addition to a basic cleanser, I have also found that using an exfoliating cream has been effective for clearing out any other undesirables that I may find occasionally.

More often than not though, the old adage “You are what you eat” comes into play when discussing skincare.  You cannot eat pizza everyday and expect to have skin that does not reflect that.  The oil will come out of your pores.  Or worse, you’ll have a huge pimple on a morning when you really don’t need one.  Maintaining a diet that follows the  food pyramid we learned about as kids is imperative to keeping your skin as clear and healthy as possible.

Lastly, I will say you must protect your skin with a moisturizer of some type.  Not all moisturizers are for everyone and not all moisturizers that are for you are for everywhere on your body.  I have facial, hand, and body lotions/creams that I use.  I strongly recommend trying a few different ones out and seeing which works best for the different areas on your body.  And let’s not forget the moisturizer for your lips.  Whether you use ChapStick, Burt’s Bees, or some other form of lip balm, you need to make sure your lips don’t look like you just ate a powdered doughnut right before the meeting that can make or break your career.

Best of luck when looking for the right cleansers, lotions, creams, and balms for you.  And, if you have found something that has worked well for you, please leave your comment below so that your fellow readers can benefit from it.  Thanks for reading and have a great rest of your hump day.

Controlled Externalities Series: Introduction

Over the next few Well-Dressed Wednesdays, I will be posting on the topic of . It is of the utmost importance because, when thinking about your personal brand, you not only need to take your outfit into account when examining your appearance but also the physical aspects of your body that you can control, ranging from skincare to your haircut to your style of facial hair to your workout regiment to the fragrance you choose to associate yourself with. All of these things play major role in how you are perceived by (potential) recruiters, superiors, and clients.

Though this series will be based on my knowledge of how image impacts branding, I will be reaching out to experts in various fields to get their inputs and build my knowledge base as well. Please feel free to chime in with comments and let me and the rest of the Daniels Daily Readership know your take on the different topics.