The interview with Anne Kreamer, author of “Going Gray,” yesterday was lively and generated a lot of pertinent comments. Both poles were well represented – all the way from I color my hair because it makes me feel younger, looks better, keeps me competitive in the marketplace, my husband loves it – to it costs less, is who I am, saves time, makes me feel good, attracts attention.
Anne Kreamer, in reply, said…
I appreciate all of your comments and find the exchange interesting. I have to say, Fran, that I am not at all surprised that you feel the competitive need to dye your hair. Ageism is real and even though my research revealed that we don’t actually fool anyone about our biological age by using hair dye, as a society we have collectively agreed to pretend to believe the illusion. And work is the place where the rubber really does hit the road. Until lots of senior executive women keep their natural hair color, it will be a challenge to anyone in a high visibility position to buck convention.
As for advice for a man who is losing his hair. I’d suggest doing what Bruce Willis and Michael Jordan did — shave it. I imagine the first few days would be shocking but then I bet you’d like it. And worst case scenario — you grow it back and keep what you’ve got short.
Finally, I think that all women of every skin and hair type can look fabulous with gray hair, but it requires thinking about clothing colors and make-up differently — you might need to brighten a lipstick or pick a more vibrant color closer to your face to offset the pale hair color.
So no matter whether you color your hair or go au natural, we send very special wishes and celebrate all of you on Mother’s Day.
