Mane character
Has working from home changed the way we feel about gray hair?
Like many people across the country reacting to the pandemic, Chance has gone months without visiting her hairstylist. “My husband is a cancer survivor, I have children who are 14 and 12 and my mother-in-law, who is 70, lives above us and we have her over all the time, so there is no way I am going to take any chances getting my hair done,” says Chance. “I just figured I would let it go natural. It’s a little hard when you first start because you literally see it spreading downward, every day a little more, but it’s fine.”
Chance says her co-workers have been going through similar experiences. “Three people on my team are gray now,” she says. “We have a guy growing a COVID beard and it’s completely gray and it’s awesome.”
Sarah Franklin, a Seattle-based career coach who specializes in executive training, says she has changed her position on gray hair, especially on women. “I’m embarrassed to admit I’d advise my clients to color their hair,” she says. “It’s tough to find a job as you get older so you want to go in with every advantage you can. But now? I think gray hair is a badge of honor.”
While Franklin acknowledges that some men and women go gray in their 30s or earlier, she says older workers have faced “unsaid scrutiny” when they show up for an interview in their natural gray state. Now, she thinks that perception is fading. “You’re always going to have managers who are ignorant, who think they can judge someone by what’s on the surface but think of how much experience companies would miss out on if they avoided hiring anyone in their 40s, 50s and 60s? A strong company puts a lot of value in experience and knowledge, not the color of your hair,” Franklin says.
Screen test
In today’s video-dependent, work-from-home environment, Franklin says appearance, while still important, has taken on new importance. “People are putting less thought into their wardrobe and makeup,” she says. “They wake up, shower, put on a presentable shirt and begin their workday. And they probably save 30 minutes, if not more, because they’re not as focused on getting that perfect look.”
That approach, Chance says, has made her transition to her natural hair color much easier. “I save 60 minutes on my commute and maybe 20 minutes on hair and makeup,” she says. “I pull my hair back, spend a little time on my face and I’m working. It’s made my life so much easier.”
Chance says her workgroup all takes a similar approach. “We’ve worked together for a while so we have a comfort level with each other but that doesn’t mean people look like slobs,” Chance says. “Some of the guys say they need to shave more often because their five-o’clock-shadow looks like a full beard on screen.” ‘No-stress hair’
A few years ago, Lorenzo Musso says he shaved his head when embarking on a new job search. “I’ve had gray hair since I was 25 and I figured I didn’t want to be the old guy when I was interviewing for a job,” says Musso, who at 48 admits he’s not that old at all. “But perception is reality, right? If I’m competing with a bunch of 20- and 30-somethings, I don’t want to look like their fathers. I want to fit in.”
Today, Musso, a Chicago-based transportation manager, says learning to shave his own head was one of his better decisions. “I love going to my barber but I haven’t been there since February,” he says. “I shave my own head every 10 days. There’s a bit of a learning curve. I’ve had days where I have a giant patch in the back of my head that I miss and there are other days when I cut myself pretty good. But it’s no-stress hair. I love it. And for Zoom, it’s perfect.”
Pre-shave, Musso says his hair is gray. “And not the good George Clooney gray,” Musso says. “It’s the Albert Einstein gray, and for me, that’s not a good look.”
Everyone’s a critic
Both Musso and Chance say they never had any issues with their co-workers. Instead, they had to win over members of their family when after deciding to change their appearance. “My wife complained about it at first but she’s into it now,” he says. “She wanted me to dye it or figure out a way to do a salt-and-pepper thing, but I don’t have time for that. She gets it now, though, since her gray is coming in, and she’s in no hurry to change it.”
Chance says her husband “never said one word” about her decision to go gray unless she brought it up because “he would never be that stupid.” Her kids, though, were another story. “They were like ‘what’s up, grandma?’ My oldest was calling me ‘American Gothic,’ like that painting,” she says. “But they’re coming around. I mean, it’s hair. What’s the big deal?”
Franklin, 59, says today’s employees should never have to apologize for going gray. “It’s part of who we are, like a sign that says ‘hey, I’ve already been through it. I’ve already learned from it,’” she says. “I actually think it helps me when dealing with some people online, especially men. They don’t question what I say as much because they figure ‘hey, this old broad must know what she’s talking about,” she says.