The New Year is mere days away. While we may reflect back on the glory of 2018, we also pause to ponder what the new year will bring. The future is uncertain, but something that isn’t is your new outlook. Many people have great intentions as they feel the symbolic switching from one year to the next is cause for a new rebirth of ideals and goals. New Year's resolutions don’t have to turn out to be empty promises like they often are. Perhaps you’d like to get healthier this year, or get fit. The usual round of pursuits that fall short after week one or two of the new year. Instead of the tried and trued resolutions we’re going to focus on growing and maintaining our beards. Something we can easily control by doing just a little bit each day. [embed height = 800 width = 800]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HHPP4UvBBu0[/embed]

Resolutions for Beard growth

Our beardless removed cousins may have stumbled upon our lifestyle and wished to join in our heavenly fun. One of the easiest ways to keep track of your beard growth is to start at ground zero – day one. Mark your calendars and start the growth. It’ll be easy to backtrack throughout the year. Not only will you be celebrating New Year’s Day the next year but you’ll also be celebrating the annual birthday of your Yeard. Everyone starts the new year off with good intentions, but that's usually the extent of their resolutions. Frequently, nothing materializes out of their goals. That's why it is important to develop a beard routine and stay focused. Not surprisingly, the same dedication and patience required to grow a beard can be applied to embracing many other healthy routines.

Making a Decision

The first step of any lifestyle change comes from deciding to do something new or different, much like the conscious decision to grow a beard. In everyone's life, change is a constant, and a beard is a good example of how a conscious action can develop into a passive, habitual one, and ultimately harbor meaningful change. Once a decision has been made to grow and the practices of grooming and staying healthy have been implemented, then the rest of the process becomes habitual. It just happens.

Habitual Work

The "work" of growing a beard comes from daily grooming and paying attention to the aesthetic; and when a new beardsman starts to see positive results from growing his beard the maintenance will no longer feel like a chore. This is how new habits are born. It's important to remember that the first few weeks (even months) may take some getting used to, and just because a habit has been formed doesn't mean it can't fall the wayside. This is especially important for our brothers on our beard growth oils and products. It takes some patience for these to fully do their magic. There have been many beards that have grown to incredible lengths only to be shrugged off and neglected. Let the beard be an important reminder of habitual work.

Staying Consistent

Imagine if a beard just decided to stop growing. There would be no progression to look forward to and you'd stall. Stagnancy is the death of growth. The beard has to keep moving. No matter if it's long, short or neatly trimmed. The same thing can be said for developing a routine. The importance is not just in making the decision and developing new habits to follow, but actually following through on a consistent basis. These three simple steps are at the foundation of successful beard growth and subsequent routines for the New Year Man.

Change Your Beard Style

No matter how hard you will it or try to push it off, the New Year will be upon you before you know it. The constant of change is embodied within our beards. There is no defeating the entropy of a vibrant beard style. Many of our brothers have stayed true to their closely cropped businessman beards over the years. Maybe you’ve always had the mustache or the goatee as well. Whatever it may be, then it may be time for a change. The same goes for our beards that have been at a relatively long length for some time as well. If your goal is to hit a Peak Beard, then by all means keep going. The variety of beard styles are only limited to your imagination. While you’re growing out try to see if you’re ready for a beard braid.

Advice for new beards and new beard styles

Get ready to go on an adventure for a new grandiose beard style brother and a new discipline.

Patience

Growing a full starter beard is going to take some time. It’s that simple. Your rate of growth is dependent on a number of factors: genetics, testosterone, health and beard care. We can help take care of the latter two. A tentative time frame of one month is more than enough time to see what you’re working with. Ah the birth pangs of a new era have begun. Patience is a virtue and will allow you to set the standard foundation for the beard.

Perseverance

It is important not to get discouraged. There are going to be awkward phases that have to fought through. It is all worth it in the end. Don’t let any lackluster growth get you down or disapproving stares.   In order to persevere, you’re going to need the right tools at your disposal. That means have a set goal in mind that will keep you on the path of growth. Always have goals so that you can check off beard milestones. It might be a few inches of growth, or some qualitative thickness rating. Whatever it may be, don’t quit and keep on the path.  

Acceptance

Accept that at times it is going to take some work. While we’re eliminating time spent shaving, we still need to be conscious of our appearance. Also know that there is going to be minimal itch before applying your beard oil. It helps to brush the hair in the same direction to train it as well. Knowing that these habits need to be put in place right away will give your beard less beard ache later on in its life.

Cleanliness

Develop some kind of habitual cleaning practice, no matter how small it may be. It helps a lot to have something to work with. This could be keeping your comb with you at all times and combing out the hair after a windy day, or just putting on oil anytime you wake up in the morning.

Success

Once you’ve got all of these qualities bundled together there is no stopping you young Beardawan. You can begin to learn about shaping your beard, the many different styles out there for you and so on. The journey has only begun.