Growing a beard can be a life-changing experience, and we MEAN it. Not only does a beard affect the way people view you, but more importantly, how you view yourself. So, today we want to help make your beard growing experience as smooth and awesome as possible by discussing the dos and don’ts of growing a kick-ass beard!
Here are just some benefits that growing a beard naturally has to incentivize you to do so, then we’ll talk about what you should and shouldn’t do when growing one.
Before we get into it, here’s a quick video of Scott Barnes telling us about some of these very benefits of growing a beard!
And remember to subscribe to the VOLT grooming channel by clicking the link HERE.
Beard Growing Benefits
Beards Are COOL
In the world, perception is everything. Having a beard gives men a sense of confidence and power that naturally draws people towards them. After all, studies done by St. Edwards University have proven that men in sales or service-based jobs who had beards were more successful and viewed as more experienced and trustworthy than those without beards. And this occurred despite age, race, or any other personal factor.
No More Shaving
Kiss your razor goodbye! But say hello to a good set of trimmers. Personally, I hate shaving, as do many men. It’s uncomfortable, results in razor burn and ingrown hairs, and causes dry skin, itchiness, and even acne. I think it’s fair to say that we enjoy none of these things.
No to mention that growing out your beard will save you money in the long term. An electric razor is re-usable, a one-time expense to replace the constant purchase of new shave heads or razors.
Your Beard Keeps You Healthy
Believe it or not, your beard acts as a rudimentary filter for allergens. So, not only does your skin remain moisturized and healthy, but a longer beard helps keep you from breathing too many allergenic particles.
Locks In Moisture
Like we mentioned above, your beard will actually help you lock in moisture. Consistent shaving will dry out your skin, as will having your skin constantly exposed to the elements. Wind, dust, and heat can dry your skin very quickly, but having a beard to block these elements keeps your skin safe, and clear. Just be sure to manage the moisture well with some high quality beard oil or beard balm!
Style
Beards give you an epic and diverse look to your style. But the best part I that you now have an outlet to mold and customize your style. Beards (as opposed to clean shaves) offer an amazing way to customize your look. Whether that’s with changing your beard color and rocking different looks, or molding your beard with wax or beard balm, you can rock any style you wish.
Now let’s get on to the good stuff!
The Do’s and Don’ts of Growing A Beard
Now that we’ve discussed the benefits of growing a beard, let’s start talking about the Do’s and Don’ts that you should follow when you grow out your beard!
Do: Wash Your Beard Often
Your beard is another part of your body after all. Would you go weeks without shampooing and conditioning your hair? Probably not. Your beard should be no different! Be sure to wash and hydrate your beard in the best way possible. Here’s how we at Volt recommend doing so.
Step 1: Use a dedicated beard wash/shampoo meant to strip oils away from your beard.
Step 2: Dry your beard thoroughly to ensure the excess water doesn’t reduce the moisturizing effect of step 3.
Step 3: Moisturize and replace the conditioning of your beard with high-quality beard oil or beard balm.
Don’t: Trim Too Soon
This sounds obvious. Obviously, we are growing a beard, right? Why do we need to make this point? Well…for a few reasons. Too many men decide to trim or reduce the length of their beards before letting the beard grow enough to decide what styles they can pull off. After all, you’ll never know how your beard hair behaves without letting it grow for at least a month.
This way, all the areas that, at first, appear patchy will have grown enough for you to recognize the potential of your beard, and you can then decide on the most appropriate style for you!
Do: Be Patient
A beard is an honest investment, and the best ones require patience and tact to grow out well! Don’t get discouraged by how your beard appears in the first few days or weeks, it often takes time to grow to fill our patches, or to make certain areas of your beard appear even with each other.
After all, the worst thing you can do is end up shaving too quickly.
Don’t: Believe in “Beard Growth Hype”
When growing a beard, and especially for the first time, don’t believe in all the “beard growth enhancement” supplements out there. The truth is that there have been no clinical studies done on whether beard oil actually causes your beard to grow faster, or that taking a certain supplement will affect your beard growth without affecting your body in some way either.
Although this is certainly clever marketing, we at VOLT want to tell you straight-up that there is no real data on this yet. Beard oil and beard balm are certainly helpful in maintaining a healthy beard, that much is certain. But don’t believe all the hearsay about growing your beard faster or thicker because of some special oil or pill!
We only say this because unrealistic expectations often set people up for failure and disappointment. And a beard should be a thing of joy, not disappointment.
Do: Invest In A Good Trimmer/Clipper
If you already know you are in love with the bearded lifestyle, then Investing in a good set of trimmers or clippers is likely one of the last purchases you may ever need to make for your facial-hair grooming needs. Whether you are trying different beard styles, clipping off split ends to end those pesky tangles, or simply trimming a mustache, a good set of trimmers will be your best friend. At Volt, here’s what we recommend.
- Adjustable Guards: An adjustable guard gives you the option to trim any length of beard you wish, it also helps keep your beard completely consistent and even every time your trim
- Removable Heads: Yes, certain trimmers have removable heads AND adjustable guards. Removable heads are great for doing different things such as detailing, trimming mustaches, or close razor-like shaves to clean up your neck.
- Battery Powered: The downfall of battery power is that the trimmer can die, but the benefit is that you can take your trimming ANYWHERE you need to. We feel that’s an even trade, especially considering you can use a trimmer while it’s plugged in anyways.
Don’t: Trim Underneath Your Chin
What most people will do when first growing their beard is trim all the hair that is underneath the chin around the jawline. This seems logical, because it feels clean and gets rid of what might seem like “excess” hair that doesn’t do anything. But this is a very common mistake!
Overall, the hair underneath your chin has a very unique purpose: to make your beard appear fuller and your chin appear sharper. by getting rid of the hair underneath your chin, the excess skin that naturally hangs under your chin will appear more prominent in contrast with your beard hair, and make it appear as though you have a double-chin, even when you don’t.
Overall, just trim your beard’s neckline straight across.
So there you have it, the do’s and don’ts of growing a beard as well as some of the bearded benefits you can receive in the process!
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