Haircuts and Tradeoffs
Philosophy 4 Comments »Last fall I rounded the corner of 30-years with nary a gray hair and no signs of thinning (unlike a few of my older brothers…). When it’s done properly, my hair looks pretty good. Yet for the past couple of years I’ve kept it cropped short.
You see, I can roll out of bed in the morning, throw on a shirt, and look ready to go. When it’s late and I’m tired, my head can hit the pillow without leaving a trail of American Crew. I can give myself a haircut at 4 am, in less than 10 minutes. I can wear a tuke (that’s a snow-hat for you Yankees) without needing to primp in front of a mirror upon arriving at my destination. It takes me months to get through a bottle of shampoo.
In short, it’s practical.
But it doesn’t come without its tradeoffs. Luckily my head has a normal shape so it looks okay, but it doesn’t look nearly as fabulous as when it’s longer– when a little pomade gives me that oh-so-hottie messed-up look. My wife will be the first to tell you she doesn’t care much for it when it’s short. Maybe next year I’ll grow it out again, but not right now. There are too many things I’d rather spend my time and effort on.
Eliminating the obvious time- and space-wasters is a great first step. After you get those out of the way, it’s time to start making the tougher decisions. Your homework is to find a new “haircut.” Pay attention to your daily and weekly routines and carefully consider how much you’re getting in return from the time you put in to your rituals, routines, and habits. Maybe you can drop one of your least-favorite TV shows. Better yet, kill the cable entirely and just grab your favorite shows online or on DVD. Buy more wrinkle-free shirts. Eat Tasty Bites a couple times a week instead of cooking or eating out. Prune your RSS feeds.
Bonus points if you share your success with the rest of us!
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