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Hello, this is my first time posting, I'm sorry if this is a frequently asked question. I didn't see any really recent posts asking the same thing, but I didn't try that hard either.
Moving on to my question, I am an electronically savvy person. I used to be a surface mount tech for Intel. But now I'm thinking I want to do something else, I'm just 22, and I'm deciding if it's worth it to keep my hair or be boring but with a job, like most people. Honestly I've never gotten as much attention from the ladies like I do with long hair. So anybody have any suggestions? I even did computer programming for a little while and I liked it, I think if I pursued that direction I would make virtual reality games.
Contrary to what folks will tell you, there are jobs that you can get that will allow you to keep your long hair.
If they want you to cut your hair, just decline the job, and keep looking. There are jobs out there where you can keep your long hair.
Back years ago I had a number of jobs where they insisted I had to cut my hair. I flatly refused their request and quit. Shortly after those jobs new opportunities presented themselves
with jobs that were more enjoyable, allowed me to keep my long hair, and allowed me to wear what I wanted to. Each time the new job was a thousand times better than the awful job that they wanted me to cut my hair for.
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Thanks for the response, it gives me some hope. I consider long hair and especially facial hair to be natural for men and i think it should be more widespread. I saw something in Oregon in the pearl district of Portland, called rewild Oregon. They encourage long hair as natural. What drew me in was the idea of causing certain genes to be expressed by "rewilding". Which is just feralizing (also a poor choice of words I suppose) humans. Because currently we are domesticated as a species.
Anything with coding really. There's sometimes tension between the ponytails and the suits, but it won't keep you from getting or keeping a job. I was in IT for decades.
Government work. I work for the city at the public library. There are dozens of ponytails here, some even in management. And at least for now, and at least in NYS, we still have an incredible pension. (And always government holidays off!)
Academia--what's tolerated on students is generally also tolerated on staff.
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Hey thanks for the reply, yours is the most relevant to my situation. I think I'm going to delve into some c++ and c#, maybe try out some game engines. I have some experience with valves game engine, but I think I'll try unity or unreal.
Nice pic of yourself there, Wolf, and your hair looks TERRIFIC!!!
As far as job-hunting while having your hair already long goes: just tie it back as neatly and as conservative-looking as possible whenever going out on a job interview. A good employer is more interested in how well you will DO THE JOB, rather than how long or short your hair is (or other shallow-minded concerns).
If worried about fly-away hairs, a small amount of gel is understandable -- or my own preference is a small amount of beneficial oil massaged into my hair ends and lower half of my mane (Jojoba oil, Kukui nut oil, pure Almond oil, or even Olive oil are all beneficial hair oils).
Just do NOT cut your hair!!!!! Even though in the past (like when I was young), the old advise was to go out on job interviews with a short men's hair style (and THEN trying to grow it back long after landing a job), there is no need for that sort of non-sense nowadays. Seriously. Be willing to just "be yourself" -- and the right employer will gladly accept the way you look, exactly as you are now!!
My best to you!!
- Ken in San Francisco
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Hey thanks for the reply Ken, and the complement. I can see from your avatar, you have quite the mane. Good advice too, I hadn't thought about gelling the stray hairs to seem more clean.
Go West, Young Man!
If you are in tech, and on the West Coast, chances are, noone is really going to care, so long as you can do the job. In fact, in general, the West Coast is pretty relaxed about well kept hair. As others have mentioned, civil service can be good...that's what I do, they don't give a damn about my hair, so long as I do the job.
Ken can support this...in San Francisco, where diversity is embraced, and there isn't so much general discrimination, there is a greater emphasis on What You Can Do, instead of How You Look. Refreshing, that!
I am a social worker and I have shoulder length hair. I just accepted a position with a new company. I was pretty pleased to think I was offered this job after an interview where my hair was pulled back in a pony tail.
Hey Wolf-
I am also in the job search. I am figuring that the way to go here is to just go in with hair tied back as neat as you can get it. The pony tail is the easiest way to go (as long as you can get it to go back). Mine is about long enough to have it all tie back in the pony tail. I am going to try the jojoba oil stuff for interviews. Just make sure you are not putting it on too thick, it is a very thick oil and a little goes a long long way. Jojoba will do the job in small amounts. Large amounts make the hair look greasy, not exactly the ideal look for an interview. Kempt looks are probably the key here.
I thoroughly agree with you that if your genetics will give you a beard (in my case due to my ethnic make-up mine will never be thick, but I wear it any way) and long hair as a man are the way to go. As long as your hair looks clean, shiny, healthy and out of the face, you should probably be ok. I have had bosses get the most antsy with me about my hair when in the front it has not been long enough to put behind the ears yet. Most of them have probably been too Lilllie-livered to try it themselves. Hopefully we are approaching a new era when it comes to personal appearance expression. I find generally that people who are more conservative have a more ignorant look at hair. They often site St. Paul incorrectly. The Orthodox Church has never forbade long hair on men, St. Paul merely asks the men to allow the women to express themselves by beautifying their hair with jewels and tiaras. He does not tell the men that they must cut their hair in short styles. If the people who cited the St. Paul reference were aware of the true meaning, they would be astounded. I live in Pennsylvania. Unfortunately that means that we have ultra-conservatives (Amish, Mennonite, Brethren, and other Ana-baptists) around us most of the time. It also seems to rub off on the Lutherans in large part. Since these groups form the majority in the region where I live, and I am not part of these groups it presents something of a problem.
Unfortunately, in some cases there is no getting through to people because they desire to remain thick-headed. Regions of the U.S. where you should probably not look for work are: the South outside of Atlanta (it is a Northern City in the South) and Washington D.C., Pennsylvania, the Mid-west except Minnesota, and avoid Texas. The key to having long hair as a man in the South, is that you are part of Southern culture and are a good old boy or have connections to them. At that point you should be safe, unless you are dealing with Southern Gentry. In that case, go to Atlanta or possibly Palm Beach, Florida. If you are traveling outside of Atlanta and Palm Beach but are employed and living there, and traveling for business you should be safe enough having long-hair.
That kind of leaves the Northen Plains, Inter-Mountain West, West Coast and Hawai'i and Alaska. I have a family member who moved out to Colorado because they could not stand Pennsylvania any more (I cannot at all blame them) and they like Colorado much better. They told me in work ethic it is somewhat between the insanely rat-race East Coast and lax West Coast without the kind of stupid that one finds in Pennsylvania regarding ultra-conservatism.
Hope it goes well for you. I appreciated your post and the responses it got.
Best Wishes,
Native Carolinian
Jobs are out there, and employers who don't care about long hair are out there. I've successfully interviewed and been hired three times in the recent past, and the only one of the employers that said anything at all about my hair was the job in a factory that had a requirement for me to keep it up in a bun while working, but that was a safety issue, not a discrimination problem.
The real trick is to figure out what you want to do. I've spent too many years doing jobs that paid the bills, but that didn't provide the job satisfaction and quality of work life that I'd like to have. If you have to do a job just to pay the bills for a while, do what you have to do (like I did). But try to find a job that you won't be waking up every morning thinking "Oh, no!!! Why do I have to go there again??"
Frodo