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i'm just fed up with it. i'm seriously thinking about cutting
heres this thing, i have NO money and an uncountable amount of bills to pay and i need a job VERY bad.
EVERY single place i go to they tell me i need to get a haircut
now because i have no money i'm stuck living with my family who arent very supportive of me in anything and constntly harass me about the way i look. especially the hair issue
i've been so depressed lately just from everything in genral. i just can't take it anymore
i was going to get a haircut today but i just coulden't do it, i REALLY don't want to because it's mid-back now and took me 3 years to grow but i'm stuck in a no-win situation
i've been having panic attacts because i'm so stressed over the money problems. i'm just stressed out beyond belief
Get a job at a Starbucks. It's where I work. It's a very longhair friendly company.
If you don't mind me asking, what do you make their per hour? Oh, by the way, great hair, Redleader! You are my mentor right now.
Thanks for the complement. I make $7 plus an average of $1.75 in tips.
I commend you Redleader for the inspiration needed for a fellow Longhair. That is what this board is all about.
BRAVO!
Starbucks is a great idea! I frequent them almost daily, and they have been, wherever I visit, apparently friendly to various "looks" on their employees--hair length, color, piercings, tatoos, etc, and a very high quality place that I enjoy going to.
Also, check out the Home Depot in your area. Not only have I seen long hair on employees, but I think they have a program that aids in college tuition for employees. Don't take my word for it--check it out, but depending on what your plans are, they could be a kind of work-study job, too.
Good luck!
Robert
Look for jobs at musically oriented stores. Such as FYE or Guitar Center. Lots of longhairs there. Also you could travel around the country with the Renaissance Faires. They are loaded with longhairs and many vendors actually prefer their employees to have long hair. A plus is that it would get you out of the house!
I have put a great link to the faires below.
Some decisions are hard to make. But yours isn't very difficult, bro--if you need a job (and it sounds like you do) and the only way to get a job is to cut your hair, then the decision is made! Hair grows day and night. Yeah, it's been a trophy of sorts, but priorities count man, and you need a job more than you need cool, kick-ass hair, right? Get the haircut, cry a little, and move on. You'll be happy and so will the world around you. Then, when it's safe, let it grow man. Most of us guys on this site who are responsible working people have had to make sacrifices like this more than once, trust me.
I didn't begin growing mine until age 35. Why? For my job and career. Once I had my Master's degree and was tenured, that's when I began growing it. I had already proven myself. Would I had even been given a chance to prove myself with long hair? Probably not.
Get it cut. Buy some nice clothes. Smile. You will eventually find a job.
Grow your hair back once you're established :-)
Don't do it. What if you cut if all off and didn't get a job? Then you'll be even more fed up.
Try some new strategies in your job search. Think about what jobs you have been applying for and what else you could do.
If you cut it for a job, and the employers realize you cut it for a job, you are not being honest with yourself. IF you truly feel like you must have long hair to be yourself, than don't cut it for anyone. But if long hair is just a style for you than I guess it is ok to cut it for a job.
The economy is terrible now. Many people aren't finding jobs even if they have short hair. You could cut off your three years of growth and still not find a job. Often, employers will mention your hair as a convenient way for them to say "no". Don't think for a minute that if you go back shorn that you will most assuredly be offered a job with them.
Over the years we've seen many posts where a man cut off his hair for a job and didn't then get it. We've also seen many posts where a man who already had a job got a request out of the blue to cut, he'd cut, and within a couple of weeks they'd fire him anyway. They were just hoping they could get him to leave.
Your family has been very abusive of you - you've posted to that effect on here already. What you need is to get away from them. Do you have any local longhair friends who would feel your pain and help you out with a place to crash until you can get on your feet? Or who would help you get a job where they work?
You need to get on your own two feet more than anything at a time like this, and if your identity is strongly infused with being a longhair, cutting is going to be counter-productive. Why? Because it is going to make you feel cowered and ashamed of yourself, and successful people need to exude self-confidence to get to be such. A born longhair isn't going to feel self-confident without his hair.
Discrimination happens. But the majority of people are not bigots. What you do in the face of discrimination is look elsewhere. If you are getting "no" everywhere, then the problem is the market for people with your experience. It is not your hair.
Bill
To Cactus Jack: I know your parents and step brother has been abusive to you. WHat you don't need is to lose your hair and identity, what you need to do is get the hell out of there! Serious, just get out of there. You may regret it if you dont. Don't let people force you into cutting your hair. They've tried pulling and left you with a few scars on your head, wouldn't you want the satisfaction of keeping your hair long no matter what anyone else thinks! If they are being ***holes to you, you don't need them, they are not your friends, you should not depend on them.
Best of luck.
I would tell you to cut it. Your priorities should come first, but if you still want to look for an acceptable job post, try local bookstores or electronics stores.
Music stores usually seem to be friendly to long hair, piercings, and tatoos. My local Walmart has a longhair working, although I'm sure they vary by location. Also, if you kind find a third shift/overnight job at such places, they generally dont care what you look like if you're not around to be seen by customers.
Have you tried pulling it back and hiding in a tail down your shirt?
looks like i'm gonna follow the 2 week rule and see what happens, if i can't find anything in 2 weeks and its because of the hair as much as i truly hate to i'm gonna go ahead and cut :-(
i just pray something happens soon to get me out of this situation
2 weeks might be too short. Patience is a virtue my good man. Like Bill said, it might not be your hair at all. I have alot of knowledge, about Jobs. I was in a program in High School called Career Prep. Do you go to interviews looking professianal? If you just go in their with your street clothes, a very good chance they won't hire you. Stress shows through your hair and your face too. Try coming with a smile, and be perfectly groomed. Don't let the stress get to you. Think of something positive like "I am getting this job no matter what it takes" as long as you don't have to throw away what is apart of you. Give your interviewer a firm handshake (They usually love these kind of manners) Only use words that are intelligent, and no slang lol. There are alot of bad places to work, and only work at a job you admire. You don't want a job you hate even if you need it. (Most people in America work in a job they hate, and they usually end up getting fired) So my "Best" advice is for you to keep your faith, and don't let "anyone" get you down.
I'd agree. The two week rule was chosen to cover the usual cycle of mind-changes about hair. The average amount of time it takes to land a job in today's market is "several months".
About once in everyone's lifetime one experiences a "Great Depression". The last one was in the 1930s, and now, 70 years later, it's our time for one. During a Great Depression, a lot of people never find any work at all. They have to rely on friends and family and perhaps get on welfare. A lot of young guys are now living with their folks - well, in general families are pulling together to minimize living costs, and one of the best ways to do that is to share a roof.
Your family has not been there for you. They can blame the ills of the depressed economy on your hair if they want to, but that won't make the depression go away. They should instead be supportive of you, but they are not. So in effect, you are going to have to do what people who don't have families do. You are going to have to face the Great Depression alone.
The Great Depression will end. They always do. Someday you will have work and you will have your health in relative youth, while they will be old, helpless, and feeble. Guess they've decided they can make it without you, when the chips are down for them.
The most important thing at this time is to keep your mental and physical health. With those two things you will always survive. You will always be able to feed yourself, clothe yourself, and shelter yourself, if you have the mind to figure out how, and the body to carry out your will. Don't let them drive you crazy by threatening your hair. Don't let them bring down your mind. If there's one thing we've learned on here, it's that many longhairs mentally need their hair.
The two-week rule is irrelevant, because it is only designed to get the answer to the question, "Do I want long hair?" Hell, from what you've written we all know the answer to that.
Bill
Right on, Bill!
The job market is still very deeply depressed. Never mind the pollyanna attitude of the media, who keep saying that there is a recovery. Depressing as it is, you have to put that in perspective and realise it doesn't yet amount to much. Whilst it's true that jobs are beginning to recover, the size of the recovery is still less than 5% of the jobs that have already been lost, AFAIK, and the lost jobs are in the millions.
In these conditions, many very highly qualified people can't get jobs. It's hard, but you have to keep plugging away.
Hey Jack
That's not what the two week rule is for. I think Bill already explained why... he's right finding a job can take months not weeks.
And Dwayne is totally on top of what he's saying - if you want a job you have to go into an interview BELIEVING you are going to get the job.
I've recently been interviewing for a secretarial position, (its the first set of formal interviews I've been involved in whereby I haven't been the only person involved in conducting the interviews. By having an interview buddy I learned a lot about his reactions to applicants and my own. In fact I've actually realised what makes me hire people:
"Motivation, intellect and confidence."
Sorted
I'm very sorry to hear this :-( well...for me its hard to imagine that you only get a job with short hair and what if you have the short hair and still no job?? That would be even harder for you....
Big decision - cutting off 3 years' growth. If it was 3 MONTHS', I'd cut it and start again, but 3 YEARS!!!!
Just imagine getting youself a neat short back-n'sides before going for an interview, only to find the boss has long hair and gives the job to another candidate who also has long hair. Not beyond the bounds of possibility in some sectors!
In your situation, I think I'd tie my hair back with a plain black band so it looks like a conventional men's swept back style apart from the ponytail!
I'd compensate for the long hair by looking smart and conventional in all other respects - i.e. dark suit, polished black shoes, white shirt and a tie.
Cheers, B55
I agree with you, that's exactly how I would go into an interview like. Ponytail, groomed, clean styled hair, well mannered being polite and considerate, firm handshake, and always look my best. Infact, I think men with long hair can look much more professional if they are dressed nicely than short haired men. I would not cut my hair for a job. Perhaps trim it a little AT THE MOST. You are quite unlikely to get a job either way, with short or long hair. As more people apply, your chance of getting a job is lower. So if the boss discriminates, he clearly doesn't care about your CV, and man, I would not work for that guy!
