Spencer Edwards for AskMen

How To Get A Good Haircut

Don't Let Your Next Trip To The Barbershop Be A Horror Story -- Here's How To Get A Good Cut

July 1, 2015

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Growing up, my older sister cut my hair. It was always the same haircut, no frills, more functional than fashionable. But when I was sixteen, she moved away for school — and for the first time I had to figure out what to do with my overgrown hair.

A barbershop had just opened up down the street from my house, and when I walked in one day after school, the barber’s eyes lit up. He said business hadn’t been going too well since he moved into the neighbourhood; that I was one of his first customers. I should’ve taken that as a bad sign.

He started by combing my hair, by which I mean he yanked at it like he was ripping weeds from a garden. Then he brought out the buzzer, zigzagging it across my head without any discernible pattern, chatting a blue streak all the while. When he finished I didn’t know what to say. He’d cut it so short on the sides and back, but left it long and uneven on top. I think he was trying to give me flat top, but it ended up making me look like a decaying pineapple. I wore a baseball hat for a few weeks until my sister came home for winter vacation and fixed it.

When I tell this story to my guy friends, most of them nod knowingly or share similar anecdotes. Why is it that most guys have had at least one terrible haircut? The standard for women’s haircuts is high — professional skill and competency is the norm. The standard for men’s haircuts is pretty low by comparison. A lot of guys come back from the barber with hair that’s mundane at best and laughably awkward at worst. What accounts for these differences between men and women’s haircuts, and how can you make sure that your next trip to the barber doesn’t end in disappointment?

Talk To Them About What You Want

The key to a good haircut is knowing what you want and making sure you get exactly that. A lot of guys wind up with bad haircuts because they don’t know how to direct their hairdressers. Perhaps there’s a bigger culture of discussion in women’s hairstyling compared to men's hairstyles. A friend of mine works at a salon in which clients have a brief five-to-10-minute consultation with a stylist before the haircut even begins.

I’ve been to many barbers who start cutting right away, after only a few short explanatory sentences on my part. I try to take the time now to make sure hairdressers understand exactly what I’m looking for before they touch my head.

Show Them The Look

A few years ago I traveled through Europe and after a few weeks of hostel-hopping I desperately needed a haircut. I was in Spain at this point and couldn’t speak the language, so I brought a picture of the look I was going for into a local barbershop. I felt a bit dorky about doing it, but the visual reference really helped — it ended up being one of the best haircuts I’ve ever had. A lot of barbershops have magazines you can flip through, or you can do your research beforehand and come in with a picture. I don’t really know how to talk about hair in technical terms, so I’ve found that visual aids help me to better explain myself to hairdressers. It’s a lot clearer than making vague statements like “short, but not too short.” Even just pulling up an image on your phone can give your hairdresser a better idea of what you have in mind.

Get To Know Them

Often, it’s easier to talk candidly about what you’re looking for in a haircut if you’re with a barber who knows you well. That’s always been my issue — I’ve never been loyal to one barber long enough for them to understand what I like and what I don’t like. My dad went to the same barber for over 30 years. They were so close that if my dad wanted a cut on his barber’s day off, he would go over to his apartment to get one.

Their longstanding friendship enabled my dad to get be very open about what he wanted. A couple of times, I even remember them fighting about certain things, like whether or not my dad should dye his greys. They could engage in petty squabbles without jeopardizing their professional relationship. Once you build a rapport with a barber, you’ll be more likely to trust their opinion and feel more free to express your own.

Or... Don't

Conversely, some people who are close with their hairdressers feel an obligation not to offend them. This leads them to agree to have certain things done to their hair that they don’t really want, all in an effort to protect their barber’s feelings. For instance, a friend of mine spent years with Bieber-like bangs because he didn’t have the heart to tell his barber that he didn’t want them anymore.

Even if you’re good buds with your barber, it’s a professional relationship and some boundaries need to be respected. You’re paying them for a service and if they’re not giving you what you paid for, you have every right to tell them. Many awful haircuts stem from people who put the emotional well-being of their hairdressers above the quality of service that those hairdressers provide. It may be uncomfortable to tell a barber when he’s made a mistake, but better to stomach that initial awkwardness than be stuck with a busted new ‘do.

Shop Around

Part of me wishes that my sister could still cut my hair every time I need a trim, but part of being an adult human is figuring out how to best deal with your hair on your own.

I’ve been going to a new barbershop for the past few months. It’s a tiny storefront down the block from my apartment, so small that I passed it a million times before realizing it was there. I’ve become congenial with the one old woman who works there. I explain to her what I want and she offers her own suggestions, some of which I accept and others I politely decline. She knows how I like my hair now, so we usually do the same cut every time, but I’m not afraid to give her corrections when necessary. It’s not the fanciest hairdo in the world, but it’s clean and even — and I always leave her barbershop feeling like a whole new man. At the very least, I no longer have to hide my hair under a baseball cap until my sister fixes it for me.

I had to put up with my share of terrible haircuts before finding this place. Don’t be afraid to try new hairdressers. Think of barbers like restaurants—try a new one out and if you don’t like it or the service is bad, don’t go back. Keep trying different places until you find a barbershop that gives you a cut you like. Sure, it seem like a gamble, but if they do a poor job, all you have to do is wait a few a months and then try someplace else.

Men's Hairstyles