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At forty-one, I am trying a longer style. The back of my hair is now slightly below the bottom of my collar and either rubs against or gets caught in my collar all day. I have to wear dress shirts with a tie during the week a find myself flipping the hair out of the collar whenever possible. Weekends are never an issue and I like the extra length. I am having a hard time getting use to the back during the week. Any suggestions to get over this?
Sure; just leave it alone for a month or so and it will have grown beyond that point. You might also want to step down a neck size on your shirts. As long as it's not so tight that it strangles you, a snugger fitting collar should end the "getting caught" problem.
At my company, we're pretty casual, but probably twice a week I feel the need to wear a dress shirt and tie. My hair is a little longer than shoulder-length, and before I put my tie on in the morning, I always pull my hair up out of the way and secure it with a long clip. Then, with the tie in place and collar turned down, I drop my hair down, brush it a bit, and tie it back into a conservative pony tail. Believe me, the annoyance is temporary and wearing your hair the way you've always wanted is worth the wait.
. . . jp in san diego
Definitely grow it man! It's never too late to do so I started myself last month and I'm 42. My hair is naturally curly so I am anticipating some of the same kind of adjustment issues and concerns you mentioned. Everyone tells me that because of the curls, the growing out will be a little bit longer But with your straight hair I imagine that in a couple weeks or a month the problem you mention will have grown itself out. Is your growth full or thinning? Are you planning on doing a ponytail? I'm just curious be cause I'm still trying to decide how to style my locks as they develop. And tell me, how did you come to decide to grow it out?
Good luck! I think that I decided to grow it out partially because I wanted something different and thought I would give it a try. You don't see many guys my age with long hair in corporate America. Unfortunately, I am thinning, but not badly, yet. I have thought about a ponytail, but am not sure of the reaction of my employer, as the company is pretty conservative. I think it would be a pretty cool look.
Ye ah, I know what you mean. I thought, what the H, if I want to do it, why not and when else would I grow it? Then I'd get concerned about what eople would think. Finally, I figured, who cares what they think if I want to have longer hair, it's my head.
I think most people's fears of the employer's reactions are generally overblown. If it looks good, people actaually welcome it. I own my own small business and I always worried what clients would think. But when those same customers recently have positively noted the fuller curls by saying something positive, like Your hair's lookin good, or some say "Something's different, It looks good. Have you changed your hair," etc. I think most folks adjust pretty well to change, if it makes who they're looking at look better!
If you're in a corporate setting it probably couldn't hurt to involve a stylist who can advise you how best to manage the growing out phase. Once you start growing your own hair out, you notice what other guys out thewre have done the same and I have seen a lot of great, well groomed pony-tails on older guys with straight hair. Just a thought...
By the way, what's you significant other think of your Growth Spurt?
The positive reinforcement you are getting from your clients lets you know that you made a good decision to grow it out. Keep it up. I feel that I've been getting a lot of 'second looks' from those I work with, but no one has asked about the extra length. I am planning on a trim next week to keep it as clean as possible. My stylist is pretty cool. Once we joked about a ponytail and he thought I had good hair for it. Maybe I'll bounce the idea off him again. My wife is not crazy about the idea, but knows I'll probably do what I want.
Gil, saw a nice, discreet ponytail on a guy yesterday that made me think of our exchange. Basically, he must have been our age, with his thin, jet black hair just starting to gray. When I saw him from front his hair just looked slicked back, nothing special. When I saw him from the side I saw the slicked back hair was actually tightly pulled back into a little ponytail he'd meticulously fashioned. To avoid the problem you're describing of unkempt over the collar growth and all, he had undercut the hair on the back of his neck and buzz cut the hairs behind his ears at the very bottom of the sides. The ponytail was short and kinda curled up, like a pigs' tail. Kinda weird, but actually kinda cool. When I got to talking to him, he told me that his stylist had suggested this look after he told her he wanted to keep it neat and under control as it grew out over the summer.
As for what the wife thinks, I stopped listening when I let my beard develop this past winter. In fact, I think part of the reason I'm growing my hair out is because I know she dislikes it. Call me passive agressive, I don't mind!
Depending on exactly where the hair is hitting you on the collar, this sounds like it maybe the grin and bear it stage. Your hair is too long to be short and too short to be long. I agree with the others about trying a pony tail if you can manage it. You should also definitely consult with a stylist. If you decide to keep your hair full (No or minimal thinning out on the sides) you may notice that your short hairs (generally near the front of your face) won't stretch back to be in a pony tail and you may need some kind of hair control (moose sp?, pomade, or something) to keep the short hairs from standing on end. If I remember correctly for me this uncomfortable stage was from anywhere between 1 and 4 months for the hair to grow out.
Good Luck
Daremo
go for it........i am older than you am 46 and I started growing my hair out 3 years ago now its mid shoulder blade lenth and i realy like it ..........I were a ponytail most of the time you will like it.......am going longer to my waist I hope
Sounds good! What color is your hair? Is it still full on the top and do you also where a beard?