Why Do You Want To Join Our Team?

Let me start with a statement that I almost find hard to believe: I have not paid for a haircut in about 5 years.  This is a true statement in the sense that I have not paid any money to an individual to cut my hair (Great Clips, etc.).  I have simply either let my hair grow (sometimes for a year at a time) or shaved it using clippers that I had purchased in the past (here is the first self haircut blog).  I suppose you could make a point that I paid for the clippers but I paid for them over 5 years ago.  Now, the wife did buy a better set to use on the dogs and I have used that set from time to time.  No matter.

Recently I have cut my hair shorter and shorter.  I went from a “4” (1/2”) blade guard to a “3” and worked my way down to a “1” (1/8”).  The “1” was a bit short for my taste and eventually the “1” broke so I simply used a “2” on my hair once a month.  A few weeks ago though I went with a “0” (no blade guard at all).  Now, that is a bit of a stretch as the Wahl trimmer that I use does have a built in guard and it has 2 heights.  I started with the longest height (definitely shorter than a “1”).  Then I began to think about the next step.

I talked with several guys that I work with who happen to cut their hair very short or even shave their head.  I would stop by their cubicle and ask if they had a moment for a non work related question.  The first person I spoke to used a trimmer with a built in guard on the lowest setting.  I was curious as to how much work it was going to be to keep my hair looking OK. Once a month had been my norm but he indicated that he needed to trim his hair every 4 days or so otherwise it began to look bad (some hairs do grow at different speeds I guess).  I thought about this for a few days and then put the guard at its lowest setting and cut my hair as short as it had ever been (I think I had hair when I was born so to the best of my knowledge, this is a true statement).

For the next few days my head felt strange.  The wind felt very different and I found myself stroking my head all over uncontrollably.  I got used to it though.  I then stopped by the cubicle of a co-worker who began shaving his head sometime in the past few years.  I asked about the time commitment and he indicated that he shaved his whole head every day and it took 8 to 10 minutes (including beard) per day.  I asked how much he spend in razors and he did not have an exact number but did admit that he did consider that but no matter what he spent, it was still cheaper than paying someone else to do it.  After that talk, I began to consider shaving my head, if only once, just to see what it felt and looked like.  But there was another piece of information that both co-workers shared with me.

As I spoke with each person, they had this subtle look and even attitude (probably not the correct word) as they were giving me advice.  You see, both of these people decided to cut their hair very short only after they started losing their hair.  They arrived at this hair style as a “least worst” solution given their limited choices.  As they would each talk to me I would notice them look at the top of my head and my obviously dense, thick hair up there.  It was as if they were confused as to why I would consider their hair style when I had other options.  They were asking me, “Why do you want to join our team when you can be on the other team?”  They each seem to suggest that, if given the choice, they would not have the haircut that they had chosen but would rather have longer hair if they had a head of hair like mine.  If they were in my shoes, they would not play on their team.

I was sharing this thought with another co-worker (a younger one with more hair).  He did seem to understand and after I showed him a picture of me from 2006, he suggested I let my hair grow a few months, maybe even until Christmas, and then actually pay for a haircut and come back to the team that not only has hair but also pays for its upkeep.

I am not sure what I am going to do really.  I did decide against shaving my head (even once, just to see what it looked and felt like) but I am not sure about just letting it grown months on end.  It is very short right now (maybe 1/8”) so it will take some time to get it long enough that it even needs to be brushed or combed (probably 6 weeks).  I will have to keep you posted.

Jon