You might have noticed already, but I’m bald. I’m REALLY bald.
I’ve been balding for half my life, which at 41 years old means that most of my romantic endeavors including my 10-year marriage and all of my business career have been as a balding man.
I gave up on my hair more than 15 years ago. Since that time I moved from closely cropped Matt Lauer haircuts to a completely clean-shaven bald skull once a week.
It’s awesome! My best feeling self esteem day during any given week is almost invariably the one that I take shave my head.
That’s why Rogaine’s latest hair growth counselor ads on the radio are driving me nuts. The message is clear. If you are balding, you [probably] don’t feel good about yourself. You lack confidence. Therefore, your love and business life will suffer. The ad campaign goes on to say that only one third of you balding men feel a lack of confidence.
The ad infers if you are balding, then you are a loser.
As a marketer I am more sensitive to subliminal messaging. As a bald man I am seriously annoyed.
It was hard going bald. I had curly, curly hair and nothing was going to cover up the thinning.
Frankly, the best thing for me wasn’t fighting it. No, life got better when I accepted my baldness. Once I did, my confidence improved dramatically.
The current state of my crown.
If you embrace baldness, will you be as physically attractive? Surveys of women say no, BUT you will be more confident. And that may be all you need for many potential partners. There are so many famous bald men who are considered attractive, it’s not even funny.
I don’t like talking about my love life on my blog, but my experience is that women like confident men. I had enough quality experiences as a single BALD man that I don’t feel like I am missing anything being married for the past nine years. And my business life hasn’t been too shabby either.
In actuality, studies demonstrate that men who shave their heads are considered to be more masculine and dominant: “In some cases, [bald men are considered] to have greater leadership potential than those with longer locks or with thinning hair.”
That doesn’t because you’re bald you can go alpha male on everyone you know. It does mean the Rogaine ad, and its implied message designed to get you to desperately try to grow your hair back is wrong. You can be bald and live a damn good life.
That’s the message we need to send to young men who look in the mirror and find their hair is falling out, their hairlines are receding, and their scalps are visible on the back of their head. Embrace it.