What’s the secret to feeling more attractive, increasing your confidence, and coming across as more professional? According to a new survey from All Things Hair, it could all come down to facial hair.Â
The company surveyed more than 550 men, including over 300 beard wearers, about how their facial hair makes them feel. The biggest revelation by far was that beards make men feel more good-looking. 71% of the beard-wearing respondents reported feeling more attractive thanks to their facial hair.
So, if you’re feeling a little down you yourself this Movember, it could be time to ditch that razor and let your face show off what it can do!
Doing so could give you a confidence boost as well. 59% of the beard-wearers surveyed by All Things Hair reported that their facial hair made them feel more confident – as opposed to just 5% who said it made them feel less confident.
The opinion was a little more split when it came to beards and the workplace. While the majority of bearded respondents (54%) felt that a beard makes them look more professional, 16% argued that it made them look less so (and 30% felt that their beard had no effect on this). These varied views may well be down to the style of the beards in question – a well-kept goatee and a bush-like biker beard can create distinctly different impressions!
Beard-wearing in the UK has been on the rise for several years. Research by YouGov showed that 37% of men had some form of facial hair in 2011. By 2016, this figure had jumped to 42%. And it seems that men are shunning stubble in favour of full beards. Stubble-sporters dropped from 52% of men in 2011 to just 40% in 2016. However, full beard-wearers rose from 29% to 44% over the same period.
Researchgate figures, meanwhile, show that both men and women judge bearded faces to be older. They also ascribe a higher social status to bearded men than to clean-shaven versions of the same men.
The conclusion? Based on the All Things Hair data, if you want to feel more attractive, confident, and professional – as well as for others to see you as older and occupying a higher social stratum – it’s time to use Movember wisely!
