Welcome to Edition #30 of Ask Gorick Anything. This AMA is part of Gorick's Newsletter, where Harvard career advisor and Wall Street Journal bestselling author Gorick Ng shares what they don't teach you in school about how to succeed in your career.
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ASK GORICK ANYTHING
“Does my appearance affect my job prospects?”
Have a career question? Ask me here.
Subscriber’s question:
“Hi Gorick, is a buzz cut and beard a potential turn off for hiring managers? Does it really matter?”
—Ben D. from Salt Lake City, UT
Gorick’s response:
Hi Ben, thanks for reaching out! Great question about appearance and hiring.
Firstly, a well-groomed buzz cut and beard seem pretty normal to me, so ideally it wouldn't and shouldn't be a turnoff for most hiring managers.
But!
What's appropriate, frankly, entirely depends on where you work—and, specifically, the culture of the place.
Where a buzz cut and beard are unlikely to be questioned:
- A creative, youthful workplace
- People wearing all sorts of colors, patterns, tattoos, and jewelry
- People with all sorts of hair/beard styles
Where a buzz cut and beard could be questioned:
- An old-school, buttoned-down workplace
- People wearing a restrictive “uniform” (of, say, unpattered white/light blue shirts)
- People without any facial hair
My general rule of thumb (from The Unspoken Rules, pg. 69) is: How are other people around you dressed?
Chances are, there's an unspoken dress code—and the fastest way to figure it out is by observing others’ personal style choices. What patterns do you notice (at work or, if you’re not yet hired, from videos and photos posted online)?
If you’re thinking, But what other people are wearing isn’t what I would wear, hang tight!
Here’s how I navigate this dilemma in my book:
1. Reject the rules:
If your beard is part of your core identity, keep it! If there’s an issue, then maybe this is a sign that you won’t be happy working here.
2. Bend the rules:
If shaving your beard isn’t a dealbreaker, then consider sticking to a clean shaven look and whip out the beard only after you’ve already established your Three C’s.
3. Embrace the rules:
If you don’t really care about the beard and have bigger battles to fight (e.g., asking to work from home X days per week), then consider spending your political capital elsewhere.
Let me know what you end up deciding and if you have any other questions!
See you Tuesday for our next story and unspoken rule,
Gorick
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