What I learned from Shaving for 7 Days Straight

Swan
Swan
Aug 28, 2017 · 3 min read

I’ve spent the majority of the last five years with some sort of facial hair, starting with a beard, throwing in the occasional mustache (which is much easier to approach from the bearded direction as opposed to growing it from scratch), a goatee, the hogan ‘stache, and at one point the van dyke. It’s easy, you can get away with leaving it be, even let your neck get a bit scruffy under the auspice of, it’s not noticeable. It ain’t bad, also, I’m not too shabby looking with a beard, I have references. Also, this is solely my opinion, the closest thing I have to a degree in psychology or psychiatry is years of bartending, so take what I say with a grain of salt.

  1. It makes you pay better attention to how you look. If your face is looking fresh daily, you’re more likely to start being aware of what you’re wearing. Also, due to the fact it takes a few minutes, you’re more likely to put a little thought into what you’re wearing the night before, so you don’t have to take the time searching for close in the morning.
  2. It Shaves a Few Years Off Your Look. You have a clean shaven face, of course you look younger. It’s science…don’t check me on that.
  3. It Creates a Ritual. The picture above is what I shave with, I actually put on a pre-shave oil before I lather up. It’s a time in the morning, when you look in the mirror, and have to be focused in the moment, because you have a razor against your face, and you don’t want any knick knack patty wacks, troubling you throughout the day. It’s a moment in the day, when you’re quite mindful of what you’re doing, and because of that…
  4. It Holds You Accountable to Yourself. Like Michael Jackson said, “If you want to make a change, start with the Man in the Mirror.” (I Paraphrase) When you’re looking in the mirror carefully, it’s pretty hard not to notice your face; are you looking a bit worn down, do you look bright eyed & bushy tailed, something look off, etc. After a few days, you begin to notice these things, and if you’re looking a bit worn down, you want to do something to fix it. If you’re unfulfilled, you’ll try and figure out what to do to complete that in your life.

I’m not saying that I’m permanently going to be clean shaven, but I’m going to try and do it for at least a month, and possibly, eventually, once I see some changes, I’ll start with the beard again, but with a modified daily shave, because I honestly do like checking in with myself.

Prologue (Yeah, there’s a prologue): I’ve been shaving almost everyday for a few weeks now, and since I’ve started, I’ve been moving forward, but there were 2 days in a row that I didn’t shave. Let myself get a little bit more loose, than I had been, and the next day was a recovery day. I shaved the following day, and could tell, some changes were needed.

)

Swan

Written by

Swan

Cleveland Born & Raised, LA cured & braised, comic, omnivore, Host of Grubbing with Swan available at https://feed.pippa.io/public/shows/swangrubs

Welcome to a place where words matter. On Medium, smart voices and original ideas take center stage - with no ads in sight. Watch
Follow all the topics you care about, and we’ll deliver the best stories for you to your homepage and inbox. Explore
Get unlimited access to the best stories on Medium — and support writers while you’re at it. Just $5/month. Upgrade