I'm balding and overall ashamed of my front hair line, is it bad to wear a fedora or any type of hat to an interview?

Just be yourself, Never wear a hat or cap to an interview.

You can’t hide it forever.

Best thing to do is to shave it all off. There was a question about that here recently. People seem to like the total bald look. If you can’t do that, just get it all cut off very short.

The hat is not kosher at an interview, unless you are auditioning for a part in a play that calls for a hat.

@john65pennington Say I style it up with a slick back. Do you think the interviewer would be turned off?

Also, what if the interviewer said: “Wear what you would normally wear outside of work to the interview.” (This wasn’t my case, but I know some fashion departments like Urban Outfitters ask that. Is that a trick question? I’m so bad at real life, I wish I could just get hired on who I am and my skills and not how I look. =./

What’s the job?

I too would not obsess about what nature is doing. Millions of attractive men with little or no hair have wonderful jobs and successful lives.

On the other hand, unless you are working at tattoo parlor or a sex toy shop, you don’t want to look too outré.

Wasting energy and feeling ashamed of your hairline is counterproductive, useless, will leave you exhausted and depressed and will never grow new follicles.

Its also generally considered inappropriate to wear a hat of any kind indoors by a gentleman. While these social standards are not universally applied in the case of a job interview I would generally err to the side of general acceptability

I wouldn’t wear a hat to an interview. I know this is ancient tradition, but it used to be that a man always took his hat off when he went indoors. If I were interviewing someone with a hat on, it would be hard to stop thinking, “He’s wearing a hat indoors. How rude!”

Never a hat indoors, it’s bad manners, which is somehitng you don’t want to display during an interview. If you’re that ashamed just shave at that point.

Unless the job is “Fedora Hat Model”, you should go sans headpiece

Time to get a clean cut. For an interview you need to look as professional as possible.

Do not wear a hat. And embrace your hairline! A man who is confident about his hairline is attractive. One who shows shame about it is not.

Don’t wear a hat to a job interview. Just be yourself!

I’m sure they won’t be looking at your hair unless it’s really dirty or messy. Just comb it neatly.

Better to concentrate on the interview itself .. that is what’s going to get you the job or not.

Good Luck.

Like I said, be yourself. Sooner or later the truth will expose itself and you will find that you have been playing hide and seek,with yourself, for too many years.

DO not wear the hat indoors for an interview. It will be viewed as rude.

@john65pennington I’m not afraid to be myself, if I were to completely be myself, I’d choose to wear a beanie or a fedora because that’s part of my facade, it looks good and makes me feel good. But how can I make not wearing a hat look good at an interview? Should I just do a slick back? For me personally, I go for more of a feel when I dress up the way I do. So I have no clue what an interviewer wants to see. I can kind of imagine that they’d want a clean cut short haired person, but with who I am, there’s no way I’m cutting my hair to meet someone else’s liking. I’ll do anything else but cut my hair. (Just posted a new question regarding hair!)

@whitecarnations First, I just want to point out that when you say “part of my facade”, you are saying that you are not being yourself. To have a facade is to put effort into not being yourself.

But regarding the hair – if your job interview really is for a military position, they will probably not appreciate the length regardless of what you do – so don’t sweat it.

Personally, I don’t like the sound of “slicked back”, which doesn’t say “cleaner and neater” to me at all. I would just make sure it is clean and combed. Let it otherwise do what it will. I think that’s the best thing to do if you’re not planning to have it cut. And above all, do not fidget with it during the interview. Pretend you are not worried about it.

You could slick your hair back with a pomade or mousse – something with hold but will not give you the wet look – then secure it at your nape with a men’s concho or ponytail holder. These are very handsome imo : )

You won’t be declined for the job because you’re losing your hair. You probably will for wearing a hat.

Maybe time to go short and class up your look. Balding men can be very sexy, but, the Bozo the clown look is not. lol
I have a male friend in his 50’s who wears his hair longer but is bald on top and does the baseball cap thing, that’s fine for camouflage but, when the hat comes off he looks like a mad scientist.
As men get older they usually look better with shorter hair, bald or otherwise.
The Einstein look only works on a rare few. haha

^ Agree.

P.S. Don’t neglect the old dude ear & nose hair management either. lol

@dappled_leaves Do you cut or maintain your hair?

@whitecarnations Both. But I am a woman, which I suspect might influence your question. :)

@dappled_leaves So how is me wearing a hat not being myself, but someone can cut their hair and that is being true and genuine. Or is that also part of ones facade in your opinion?

I just think it’s preference, even if I shaved my hair off, I still like the look of hats. I don’t wear the hat to cover my hairline. But I am ashamed to be balding and go to an interview with my current hairstyle in a professional environment is what I mean. I don’t know how this works out haha. I’m guessing I have to go one way or the other unless it’s a job like Vans or any counter culture type of place?

@whitecarnations I’m not saying that to wear a hat is not being yourself. I was pointing out that you were misusing the word facade – and that the result was confusing to read. No big deal.

I realize that you are more comfortable wearing the hat. However, I think that you can see from the several negative responses above that it is not appropriate to wear the hat to the interview. The interviewers will probably see it as rude behaviour, even if it doesn’t feel at all rude to you. Best not to wear it.

@dappled_leaves That’s true. I guess either I’m a dumbass with no sense of how to look in front of someone or I’m just so California in the mind. It’s really hard for me to fathom how someone else would want someone to look a certain way. It’s like just pure oppression. It’s not to say that I don’t understand that it happens though.

Don’t wear a hat, or comb over.
If you don’t want to cut it all off, just slick it back, but own it!

I’ve interviewed plenty of people for jobs and never once thought about hairline as a qualification.

But if someone kept a hat on after coming through the door, I’d think he didn’t have basic good manners, and I would have low expectations for his ability to fit in well with a work group.

I’m relatively young (under 40) and generally give the middle finger to societal expectations, and even I wouldn’t dream of wearing a hat to an interview. It doesn’t matter how classy it looks. A hat is a hat. You don’t wear hats in formal situations, and a job interview is a formal situation. Even if you’re interviewing at McDonalds – no hats!

@FutureMemory What if the interviewer says, “Wear what you would normally wear outside of the work place.” Like for Urban Outfitters for instance.

Honestly I don’t think that extends to head gear.

I think that you are so embarrassed about balding that you wear a hat to an interview would go against you. It would make you look trite, silly and superficial. What will you say if they ask you why you are wearing a hat?

I think (without going back and double checking) every person so far has said don’t do it. All of the people above me are different ages and have different philosophies and some of them (seem to me) are pretty damn cool. If they are all saying no, what do you think the interviewer will think.

Don’t wear a hat to your interview.

@whitecarnations: Can I ask what job you were interviewing for, now that there are 32 answers already in place?

I agree with ditching the hat in the interview for sure.
Besides, you can only hide your pate for just so long. Better to just be yourself, which includes your balding head. The longer you attempt to hide it the more shocking the unveiling will be. lol

It’s just your head, nobody else has any preconceived notion about the state of your scalp
Truly, I think that you need to approach this with humor. Let me help.
Here is a poem I wrote for my ex husband once upon a time when his forehead was rising like an iceberg at sea. I just shared this in a poetry thread, and it is SO appropriate here. ;-)

The bad haircut

Thinning hairs upon my head
some cling to life and some are dead

She cut my fragile fronds so wrong
some too short and some too long

She set the blades to shear too short
and lopped the tower off my fort

A mule and plow might be preferred
to trample ‘cross my wispy herd

What evil scissors did she wield
to kill my sparsely planted field

Silky stalks and tender shoots
torn from my scalp with dying roots

A seasons growth, without a trace
harvested above my face :-P

@gailcalled I’ve applied to a variety of places. From Cafe Barista positions, to dishwashing, to Whole Foods Market, pretty much anything on CraigsList that is food related and for the most part private businesses in San Diego. I’ve only applied to places where it is alternative lifestyle approved.

What about wearing your long hair in a pony tail?

If you are around food, you can’t have hair flying around, and I wouldn’t think you would be permitted to wear a hat, particularly if you are on the floor and dealing with customers.

In food service, most people wear hats. Starbucks folks wear Starbucks hats. Chefs wear chef’s hats. But usually it is the corporate hat that you wear.

I would still take my hat off to greet the interviewer. Maybe I would hold it in my hand until they gave me permission to put it on. But I would explain that normally I wear a hat, if dress is an issue for the interview, but that you were taking it off as a sign of respect.

Go ahead. Wear the hat. Let’s see if you get hired, lol.

I’m taking @dappled_leaves advice. I just really didn’t know how to style it.

I’m sorry about your father, @whitecarnations. I said that bit about my dad could beat up your dad as a little bit of humor, because of how over-the-top your original reply was to me. My dad is actually in a wheel chair. He couldn’t beat up an infant.

I’m curious what you’re talking about when you say your culture is different? I’m born and bred SoCal. I guarantee you I dress more casual than you do, day to day. I don’t even own a pair of pants right now other than jeans or sweats. I wear one pair of shoes – Vans skateboard sneakers. I have a big tattoo on the back of my neck. My appearance is far from conservative.

As this thread indicated, it’s just common sense to not wear a hat to an interview. We’re all trying to convince you of that. When I made the “lol” post I admit it was in frustration that you don’t seem to realize this. Please note that I made two helpful posts before the “lol” post.

@FutureMemory I’m from San Diego, Ca. Applying on the coast is totally different than applying indoors at a mall wouldn’t you say, atmosphere wise? And no you don’t dress more casual than me. I have a beard, long hair, tattoos all over my arms and Chuck Taylors for the base. I’d say we’d were in the same boat if anything. See but why the frustration? Anyhow thanks for admitting that because I really thought your original responses were perfect. Anyways I’ve over this place.

The hat or not, your attitude going in to an interview will need to be welcoming and open @whitecarnations.

@FutureMemory

Maybe just chalk it up to miscommunication, people interpret words and humor differently. It’s always good to try and remember to ask for clarification, easier said than done at times.Everyone knows you are a solid member here, give the new kid a break maybe and start over.

P.S. I was called a “trolling, ignorant MONSTER” by a well known member the other day….just gotta laugh it off, shit happens. ;-)

Pass the peace pipe. ;-)

Receding hairline + long hair = Ugh. But that’s my personal opinion. Society’s opinion says no hats indoors, therefore no hats during interviews.

I have to say from witnessing it—if you have a receding hairline, when your hair is long, the weight of it will pull the hair down and back on your head. You will look more bald than if you cut it short.

There was this guy that I worked with years ago who I thought looked really like a frumpy hipster with his hairline and ponytail. He got it cut off one day and DAMN he looked hot. Slightly messy bangs covered up his hairline and he looked way younger too. I was shocked because I didn’t think it was possible for him to look at all hot.

I usually like long hair but if you are losing it, that look won’t suit.

^ Yes.

That’s so true. When I cut my ponytail off I instantly looked 10 years younger.

@keobooks reality TV has made a fortune making people look younger just by cutting their hair.

I agree with @keobooks , but if you don’t want to cut it, I would make sure that it is impeccably clean and put it back in a ponytail for the interview.

It’s hard to make thin hair look great, long or short, whether you’re male or female. If a guy likes how he looks to himself with long hair, and how it feels, I think he should wear it to please himself.

As for long hair when you’re balding in front, how about these guys? And these?

The question here is about the hat, and we seem to have come down pretty solidly against it. The truth, I think, is that no one but you cares about your hairline. It’s within the normal range of appearances and entirely unremarkable, however self-conscious you may be about it. My son started showing my father’s receding pattern (like Jude’s and yours) when he was about 24 and covered it up with long hair for a few years. Now he’s just candid about it with a very short cut and that’s simply the way it is.

I would add that making a drastic change to your appearance right before an interview seems like a bad idea to me. I would think you’d want your inner and outer manner to be in harmony and not be getting used to a “new you” while trying to put your best foot forward.