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The times are changing, working with a full beard used to be a nono. Now I have lumbersexuals fixing my computer in it.
just keep it neat and no neon hair dye

It depends on the job.

And most jobs shouldn't care but people are people and can't help sometimes being influenced by it.

Also, sometimes it's not the company you work for but the company's customers / clients.

A friend with a disaster of a mop worked for a company that didn't care but he never managed to close any deals.

You might also want to consider straighting it and putting It in a ponytail.
Or shave it, US Berkeley did a study, shaved headstart look more dominant and you are likely to get hired more if you look dominant
Just an idea

You could always rock a bun

But really the haircut depends on the job and who you work for.

But preference is probably on clean cut and short.

depends on the job, the culture...also be warned, alot of employers will ask to view your social networking accounts or they will look you up. I hope you don't present pot themed photos on your crackbook page, pot may be legal in some places but it is not 100% socially accepted and often results as you being labeled in a bad light.

Crimson Heretic wrote:
depends on the job, the culture...also be warned, alot of employers will ask to view your social networking accounts or they will look you up. I hope you don't present pot themed photos on your crackbook page, pot may be legal in some places but it is not 100% socially accepted and often results as you being labeled in a bad light.

That is why I conduct my way on Facebook like my boss is always looking at it.

I would argue yes. Professionals jobs are becoming more accepting, but I still wouldn't take my chances.

I am actually cutting my hair today (it's about 7" long), I took out my earrings, and all my tattoos are in places I can hide. I'm going to be submitting applications for engineering positions, so I need to look semi-professional.

Job interviews are like a first date: It has to go perfect, this is being at your best, it will only get worse from here.

You need every advantage you can get, you can always grow your hair back at any point, you only get one shot at a particular business.

Unfortunately all manner of prejudice and preferences are at play with the possible employer, it is better to try to avoid running afoul of them.

Dress better than them, look better than them, know specific information about the job, you MUST be better than all the other applicants to be hired.

It really is a date, if everyone else is into the short hair look, you with the long may not fit into their tribe's "culture" and be passed-up on something as silly as that.

Good luck, it is not an easy thing to promote yourself like a desired product:
I will make you money!
I will innovate!
Everyone will like me and work well with me!
I will make/do/sell/save/organize all the things you needed for this job!
I know EVERYTHING needed, no further training required: good out of the box!
Offer is limited, many others are interested in me! Commit now or lose this great opportunity!

I remember feeling dirty when all was said and done on the job finding campaign trail.

I would hire the guy in the blue if both of you showed up for interviews.

Play safe
Get hair cut
Let it grow out again

Once you get the job, you can slowly grow it back, if the job doesn't like it and you are a good worker they will tell you to cut it.

Dress better than them, look better than them, know specific information about the job, you MUST be better than all the other applicants to be hired.

Depending on the job and the interviewer(s), this can also do nothing for your chances. I turned up for a part-time Christmas position interview at Argos, smartly-dressed in the usual suit, tie, and clean shoes, hair recently cut, on time, with all the relevant documents to hand and knowledgeable. Got through the team challenges well, and the 1-on-1. Didn't get the position, for <insert reason here> (they never bothered getting back to me when I asked). I was easily the most presentable person there (i.e. the only guy in a bloody suit), and from chatting with the applicants before the interview, easily the most qualified--we were all job centre applicants who got first dibs on a few allotted positions as part of the Job Centre's optional mandatory scheme, where it was perfectly optional to take part, but you'd be penalised if you didn't. I didn't bother going to see who had been hired, if anyone. I wouldn't have minded as much if I'd known why, all I got was a metaphorical shoulder-shrug.

Previous to that, I was at a Tesco interview, and lost out to someone with huge boobs. The interviewer was male. You can probably guess the rest. Was also not graced with a reason for being turned down.

Sometimes the odds can be stacked against you for reasons beyond your control, even if you've made all the effort you can. Try not to get disheartened too much by being repeatedly shot down for bad reasons ("you're overqualified for this position") or no reason at all.

I mean, I was told I wasn't qualified for a crossing guard position at my school. I was literally no qualified to stand and tell college students when they can cross the road. Why? The job went to freshmen because the school doesn't want freshmen working outside of campus if they can help it.

For context, these are the places I'm looking at:

The hospital, Home Depot, traffic person, bus sweeper, government jobs, Sun Peaks, Canadian Tire, Ajax, saw mill, BC Liquor, pulp mill, gold mine, Acres, Lafarge, streamline enterprises, CN and CP railway, John Deere, Labour Ready, Highland Copper Valley Mine, BC Hydro, Sperry Rail

service, carnival, Afton mine, NRI, Logan’s Truck Brite, New Gold Mine, construction worker, etc.

Do some research,

check out their web sites and see if you can find their dress codes. Or just wander by and see how the people there are dressed.

the best thing to do is list them in the order of preferred job. This is my first pick, this is my 10th pick. Then try to interview from 10 to 1, get your mistakes out early and incorporate their feed back into your next interview on the way up your list.

from a hospital to carnival? that's quite the diverse job search.

sirlynchmob wrote:
Do some research,

check out their web sites and see if you can find their dress codes. Or just wander by and see how the people there are dressed.

the best thing to do is list them in the order of preferred job. This is my first pick, this is my 10th pick. Then try to interview from 10 to 1, get your mistakes out early and incorporate their feed back into your next interview on the way up your list.

from a hospital to carnival? that's quite the diverse job search.

I'm basically looking for any place that pays better and gives me more hours (I want at least 4 shifts a week) than my previous job (Triple-O's). Also no more restaurant jobs.

Honestly, I'd say a ponytail should be sufficient. If you go in in an appropriate suit, it can look dashing. I wouldn't recommend going as your hair looks in the picture. While not "wild", you could keep your current length and still make it look more groomed.

Also, unlikely, but on the offchance they check out your Dakka Dakka profile, maybe take down the pot leaf flag

 jreilly89 wrote:
Also, unlikely, but on the offchance they check out your Dakka Dakka profile, maybe take down the pot leaf flag

that's a good point, if you facebook make a "professional" account and point any job that wants the info to that one.

 hotsauceman1 wrote:

Crimson Heretic wrote:
depends on the job, the culture...also be warned, alot of employers will ask to view your social networking accounts or they will look you up. I hope you don't present pot themed photos on your crackbook page, pot may be legal in some places but it is not 100% socially accepted and often results as you being labeled in a bad light.

That is why I conduct my way on Facebook like my boss is always looking at it.

My job hires out a third party company to look at employee's facebooks. I took mine down and made another one under an alternate name


On the note of the OP - with your avatar and cut.... I would try and clean up a bit if the job is paying over 25k+ / or is full time. Depends on the field, the initial impression, and how you conduct yourself. If you're charismatic enough - the hair might add to your personality. The guy sitting in the cubicle next to me has a pony tail and is wearing a suit. I'm under the impression he spends quite a bit of time shaving and grooming his beard and hair - on top of dressing sharp!

My job out of college was a front desk job (As I was trying to apply within the company) as a temp. My previous boss later told me it was from my "Initial impression and clean cut professional look" and "I was the only one who wore a fitted suit, the others had polos or terribly fitted suits". I've shadowed interviews where a neckbeard in khaki / ill fitting polo shirt that hangs awkwardly.


Good luck OP

Honestly, if someone you're looking to work for is trying to track you down on something like Facebook you probably don't want to work for that person unless you're really desperate. That's a clear sign of a boss who is willing to invade your personal life.

As to hair length: its all a matter of overall image. As a pretty stocky, muscular guy I've had as many potential employers turn me down due to looking like a "thug" when I had short hair as potential employers who turned me down for looking like a "hippie" after I grew my hair out. Just make yourself appear well groomed, and don't stress about biases.

It might not be fair, but it's always best to be as presentable as possible in an interview.

1) A good first step would be to see if you can do some research and find the dress code for every position you apply for. I wouldn't want to show up to an interview not meeting their requirements, I think at the very minimum you should always show up looking like you would be ready to walk out of that office and ready to work. If your job would require you to cut your hair if you got it, then go ahead and cut it.

2) Aside from grooming requirements I am a believer of the "dress code +1 level" approach. If the business has a casual dress code, then show up in business casual. If the dress code is business casual, then show up in a suit. Of course you can never go wrong in a suit.

I am pretty lucky and my job doesn't really have a lot of rules as far as the dress code is concerned. We have rules about nails and clothes, and that is pretty much it. No rules regarding tattoos, no rules regarding beards, no rules regarding hair. I have to wear a giant respirator hood instead of a nice compact N95 respirator due to my beard, but I'm allowed to have it. But I did have an interview for a promotion last week and decided to cut and style the hair, trim the beard down from lumbersexual to metro-sexual, and wear my suit and tie instead of scrubs.

I agree that it depends wildly on what field you're going into. If you're going into (for example) IT and it's not management, it won't matter if it's neat in my experience. if you're going into sales or something customer facing, you might want want to shorten it up.

You could never go wrong with getting a short neat haircut, though, if getting the job is more important than your hair.

Crop circles are the new thing.



The bigger the dollar signs, the bigger your salary.

 hotsauceman1 wrote:
The times are changing, working with a full beard used to be a nono. Now I have lumbersexuals fixing my computer in it.
just keep it neat and no neon hair dye

No piercings is very important as well.

"Dress for the job you want, not the job you have" my supervisor told me.

That's why I'm sat in HR dressed like Batman.....

All joking aside, cutting the hair won't kill you, and you can always grow it back later.
Short term sacrifice for long term gain.

 Cheesecat wrote:
I'm going to be sending out resumes to various companies but I have longish hair and I'm wondering if I should get a haircut. Does hair have much impact on job opportunities?

I have a picture so people have a better idea of what my hair is like, I'm the one on the right doing a really forced smile.

Spoiler:

Think about how many times you've inadvertently judged someone based on their appearance, even if you didn't mean to.

Now imagine you're a guy who has to skim through 50 some odd resumes, has probably had to deal with multiple slackers in the past, and is basing everything he knows about you to hire you for something in the time frame of 15-45 minutes.

I've talked to managers in charge of interviews who have dismissed people solely because of their posture, the way they spoke, how they entered the room, and all sorts of other things that we would consider petty. Thing is, they have very little to build an impression on you, so they have to take every little clue they get from meeting you into account. Stuff that we consider insignificant, like a little stain on a shirt, can be a big red flag to them (Well if he didn't take the time to show up to this interview at his best, how do I know he's not going to be a slob on the job? etc.) Haircut plays a big part in that. A simple, no nonsense hair cut implies you keep yourself taken care of and value your appearance. It also helps if you work in a position where you're a "face" of the company. While the average 20 something won't care, an older person in their 40's or 50's is going to look down on you and be less likely to take you seriously than if you had a cleaner haircut

Of course, it also depends on the job in question. For example, a guy covered in tattoos is still very likely to get a job in live production, because that's considered common there, whereas the odds of him getting a job as a teacher is much worse. If you're applying to stuff like Walmart or McDonalds, you should be fine as long as your credentials are good and you do well in the interview.

Think about it this way, you have to interview for a position. Now, pretending every other credential is exactly the same on these two applicant's resumes, who are you gonna hire? (apologies for the pics being two completely different people, but they were the best examples I could find on a quick search, just pretend it'd be a similar looking guy with only the hair different)

Applicant number one


Or applicant number two?


Honestly I don't have a ton of room to speak here myself, as I keep a beard, but I keep it well kept and keep a clean haircut as well to make up for that. If it wasn't for the fact that the jobs I work at tend to have far crazier looking people in their ranks to make me look good by comparison, and the fact that I look 16 without it, I would shave it in a heartbeat for a job interview.

Oh yeah and a little tip I found was really helpful, and it's going to sound really stupid.

A nice firm handshake.

At least, that's how it works in the southeast. A nice firm handshake is considered an essential part of "being a man", and I've had multiple interviews where that alone immediately put me in good graces with the interviewer before I had even sat down. Maybe Canada is different, but it works down here.

 dogma wrote:
Honestly, if someone you're looking to work for is trying to track you down on something like Facebook you probably don't want to work for that person unless you're really desperate. That's a clear sign of a boss who is willing to invade your personal life.

Enjoy being unemployed. Virtually every company now does a google search and social media search of every prospective candidate before interview and most do personal investigations/background checks after hiring at a minimum to verify college credentials and criminal records. It is easy, cheap and almost every professional company does it to some extent.

If you think having a prospective employer check out your social media existence is invading your personal life, then you are best suited for selling hotdogs on the beach boardwalk or oranges on the side of a highway if you must have your private personal freedom from your employer.

nkelsch wrote:

 dogma wrote:
Honestly, if someone you're looking to work for is trying to track you down on something like Facebook you probably don't want to work for that person unless you're really desperate. That's a clear sign of a boss who is willing to invade your personal life.

Enjoy being unemployed. Virtually every company now does a google search and social media search of every prospective candidate before interview and most do personal investigations/background checks after hiring at a minimum to verify college credentials and criminal records. It is easy, cheap and almost every professional company does it to some extent.

Which is why everybody is pretty wise to make all their settings private to at least attempt to minimize what is out there.

Of course you also have jobs asking for your account passwords, and I would always decline a job that has that requirement.

nkelsch wrote:

Enjoy being unemployed. Virtually every company now does a google search and social media search of every prospective candidate before interview and most do personal investigations/background checks after hiring at a minimum to verify college credentials and criminal records. It is easy, cheap and almost every professional company does it to some extent.

I've been employed whenever I tried to be since my Facebook account was created in 2004, without any attempt at sterilization. This is why I stated that, absent desperation, any employer that attempts to track you down on social networks like Facebook is probably not an employer you want to work for.

nkelsch wrote:

If you think having a prospective employer check out your social media existence is invading your personal life, then you are best suited for selling hotdogs on the beach boardwalk or oranges on the side of a highway if you must have your private personal freedom from your employer.

I think checking out certain types of social media is acceptable (LinkedIn being the best example), just not the types of social media that resemble Facebook (Google+ and Myspace being the most prominent examples) as I believe personal and professional lives should be considered separate. I also dispute the notion that people who believe what I do are only fit for "...selling hotdogs on the beach boardwalk...". I don't mean to toot my own horn but I probably make more than you do, and in large part because I don't hide from flaws brought up during interviews related to internet searches.

 dogma wrote:

nkelsch wrote:

Enjoy being unemployed. Virtually every company now does a google search and social media search of every prospective candidate before interview and most do personal investigations/background checks after hiring at a minimum to verify college credentials and criminal records. It is easy, cheap and almost every professional company does it to some extent.

I've been employed whenever I tried to be since my Facebook account was created in 2004, without any attempt at sterilization. This is why I stated that, absent desperation, any employer that attempts to track you down on social networks like Facebook is probably not an employer you want to work for.

nkelsch wrote:

If you think having a prospective employer check out your social media existence is invading your personal life, then you are best suited for selling hotdogs on the beach boardwalk or oranges on the side of a highway if you must have your private personal freedom from your employer.

I think checking out certain types of social media is acceptable (LinkedIn being the best example), just not the types of social media that resemble Facebook (Google+ and Myspace being the most prominent examples) as I believe personal and professional lives should be considered separate. I also dispute the notion that people who believe what I do are only fit for "...selling hotdogs on the beach boardwalk...". I don't mean to toot my own horn but I probably make more than you do, and in large part because I don't hide from flaws brought up during interviews related to internet searches.

I knew there was a reason I had him on ignore. What a crock of gak

Your employer buys your skill set and your time, not your soul.