We are thrilled to present a blog post from our REAL Women Charles County and Young Adult real women team member, Moanne Joseph. Moanne walks us through the emotions of getting that first big haircut. Even if you’ve never experienced that, trust me, you will still relate. Experience it here and share your thoughts by leaving us a comment or emailing us at info@realwomenrock.org.
My word for this year is FEARLESS. I could not go through this year of living out this word without doing something I feared so much which is to cut my hair. I’m not talking about a trim. I’m talking about cutting most of my hair off. I’ve wanted a cute tapered haircut for about 2 1/2 years now, but I was too scared
to do it. I feared what people might think.
Would they like it? What if they didn’t like it? What if they hated it?
Well, let me give you the back story. I’ve always heard comments about my hair (among other things, but I’ll have to tell more about that soon). From family members telling me how long it took my hair to grow, to a “friend” telling me I had “better” hair than her own, to a childhood boyfriend telling that I should never cut my hair, I’ve heard it all. I couldn’t understand why hair was so important at the time but somewhere along the way, their opinions about my hair or more accurately, if I’m honest, their opinions about me became valuable to me. I cared what they thought of my hair and I cared what they thought of me. If they loved me, I was happy, but if they didn’t, I would be crushed. Although I knew my history, I still did not understand why it was so important for me to get my new haircut, but keep reading.
I decided to cut my hair without telling many people. I remember sitting in the salon and being terrified. I truly didn’t know how I was going to go through with it. Thankfully, I have a wonderful stylist who understood that this was a big deal for me. We discussed the haircut and she went to work. The outcome was pure magic. I love it! I love it even more because I conquered a huge fear. However, the story didn’t end there. I still didn’t understand why it was so important for me to get this haircut.
In the days and weeks following my hair transformation, I received nothing but positive feedback. It seemed like everyone loved my hair. I was happy. Then I got my first negative comment. Someone told me straight to my face that they didn’t like my haircut. This was the moment of truth and the moment I realized why it was so imperative for me to get this haircut. Was I going to be crushed because the person did not like my haircut? I was NOT crushed! When they told me that they didn’t like it, I mustered up the courage to say, “Well, I like it!”
This haircut was not about my hair at all. It was about setting myself free. I set myself free from others’ opinions about me. I set myself free from their judgment. I set myself free from their expectations. I set myself free from fear!
I’m becoming FEARLESS and I like it!
