(ThyBlackMan.com) Ever wonder if Shakespeare asked this of himself while writing Hamlet? Do you hop out of the shower and look at yourself in the mirror and ask yourself? When you’re young, it’s more a personal choice question; but many places the world over want their adult men clean shaven in their workforce. So, is it really personal choice anymore?
Granted, there are quite a few employment opportunities that won’t frown on facial hair, but there is always going to be some measure of a limit imposed. So the choice goes back into your ball court, do you shave, or don’t you? Well here are 7 tips that might just help make up your mind.
Makes you appear younger
Yes, it really does make you look younger. The fresh look of your facial skin is almost as the same as your preteen self, even more a little refined. But this means shaving yourself clean, which can be a huge time sink depending on how quickly and thickly your facial hair comes in.
However, the shaving tool of choice is varied. You can use an electric razor if you’re not a fan of the razor blades. You can also use the many of the many multi-bladed shavers like the Mach 3 or ProGlide from Gillette. And then again, perhaps you really want the manly man’s tool of choice, a straight razor; which has been the go to tool for all shaving for almost as long as men have been shaving.
Not really time intensive
When you think about it, spending 5 minutes shaving isn’t really all that long to look as young as possible. Then it depends on your genes, in terms of how quickly your hair grows in and how thickly it does. If it grows slowly, you can probably get away with rocking a 5 o’clock shadow for a couple of days.
But this does come with practice and a good razor. There are proper techniques for each type of razor, and they are restricted to that type of razor. You won’t be using circular motions with a straight razor or a regular shaver, but you will be with an electric razor; for example.
Socially acceptable
The sad truth is that it is more acceptable for men to be clean shaven than it is to have a beard. Just look at the workforce regulations regarding hair in general. They detail how both men and women are allowed to wear their hair, from length to colour, and how the facial hairs may be worn; if at all.
But the upside of this is that this also depends on the type of job you will have. While the clean-shaven look is more directed at public facing jobs, a lot of behind the scenes jobs or dirty jobs will allow facial hair. Make sure you read your employee handbooks before committing to a stringent control over your facial hair.
Shaving irritates the skin
Think about it for a moment. Not every guy is overly sensitive that they break out in a really bad case of acne after a shave, but some really are that cursed. Razor burn is a painful matter. There are remedies to that, such as witch hazel, sensitive shaving cream, and a sensitive aftershave are all viable ways to minimize razor burn. But if you could avoid it completely avoid it in the first place; wouldn’t that be the better way to go?
However, it may not be possible to quit shaving completely and disregarding any maintenance on your whiskers. If you are able to do without completely shaving it off, then you will want to spend time cultivating a good look for yourself. You don’t want to look like a cave man do you?
Trimming is not really shaving
Cultivating a great beard is not as easy as just letting it grow. A man must care for his beard. Just like the mop on top, you have to brush it regularly, trim along the edges to keep a defined look, and apply a beard balm or beard oil to help keep it nice and soft.
While the time spent grooming and cultivating is quite possibly longer in duration than shaving; the frequency is exponentially infrequent. If you can find yourself a nice barbershop they can do all your grooming requests leaving you feeling like a million.
Shows your age and masculinity
It’s rather hard to picture a man without some kind of beard or facial hair. While Hollywood may have almost every man act clean shaven, there are some actors like Bruce Willis that just pulls off the trimmed and ragged look quite well.
Then the colors that make up your facial hair can make your look that much more dignified. Just take a gander at how the grey accentuates Idris Elba’s face, or perhaps Colin Farrell is more your cup of tea? There is absolutely nothing wrong with showing off your natural masculinity.
Your Partner’s Preference
Finally, take into consideration your partner’s preference. While you may love the idea of having a bear, bear in mind that growing one can be a huge change in your physical appearance. If your partner feels strongly against beards, you may want to approach this topic before suddenly showing up with a full-grown beard.
If on the other hand, your partner cannot stand the clean-shaven look, perhaps a five o’clock shadow could be a nice compromise provided your boss doesn’t mind too much.
It Comes Down To Choice
At the end of the day, men must weigh what they are allowed to do regarding employment requirements and how they wish to upkeep it in accordance to their personal and religious views. There are reasons both personal and societal to make you want to shave, and the same could be said for not shaving.
It’s quite alright to try out both aspects and find your personal look. Be it with just a moustache, perhaps a chin strap, or something else. It may be quite possible that you get tired of shaving and want a new look, or tired of having a forest of hair on your face and just want to cut it down.
In Conclusion
These were 7 tips to help you decide on whether or not shaving is right for you. They all revolve around how much choice and effort you will be putting into maintaining facial hair or the lack thereof. How did you decide whether to shave or not? What is your biggest reason for the change? Let us know in the comments below!
Staff Writer; Donald Carter