A good beard is a very special thing.  Like a properly tailored suit, it can make a man really look like a man, and worn correctly it can be one of the most effective parts of your style arsenal.  Best of all, it’s a gift from nature, and it comes for free.

Starting at about the age of 15, most young men are told by their parents that they must shave their faces clean in order to look proper and respectable in society.  Oh how wrong they were.

About 6 months ago, I threw out my shaving cream and razors and began letting my beard grow as it naturally does on a true man (also trying the no-shampoo challenge).  The results of my beard experiment are in, and it has been a tremendous success.  I have no intention of shaving, and I will now tell you some of the reasons why growing your beard is something every man needs to try.

1. Women Love It

This is one of the biggest immediate upsides to growing out your beard.  Women simply love it.  Even the ones who claim they ‘don’t like men with beards,’ or they ‘think it looks gross,’ will be lined up around the block for a chance to pet it once it starts really filling in.  When I go out to a bar with friends, or especially if I’m playing music somewhere, the women in the place will walk up to me and touch it.  Sometimes petting it, squeezing it, running their fingers through it, and often times without even asking.

I get opened by women with so many different lines, almost all related to my beard.  ‘Oh my gawd, is that real?’ ‘Wow, how long have you been growing that?’ ‘Omigosh I haven’t seen a beard like that in years!’ But they all end up wanting to touch it, no matter how they start the conversation.

It also works wonders when I’m opening on a girl.  After a very short opener, she is sure to ask about my beard, which gives me an excellent excuse to initiate physical contact.  I can take her hand and lead it to the beard, or if the setting is right and interest level is high enough, I can wrap my arms around her and gently rub it against her cheek.  This is especially effective for getting her all tingly between the legs because it makes her think of how it will feel being in bed with me and my beard.  Bottom line: it works.

2. It Makes You Feel Masculine

There’s something special about the feeling of having a full beard.  Even though I’m nearly thirty years old, I still feel more like a full-grown man when I look in the mirror and see my beard.  It’s as if the man hiding within the boy for all the years before has just recently been allowed to grow out.  There’s a natural ruggedness and toughness that’s associated with men who have full beards, and when you see your face without the oppression of razors, you develop a new appreciation for your own manliness. (Bonus: No more worry of razor burn or five o’clock shadows!)

This internal development will also carry into a greater amount of confidence.  You’ll find yourself walking taller and standing stronger than you did with a little boy’s face.  You’ll find that you look at yourself differently in the mirror, that you look at other people differently, and that others look at you differently as well.  This leads me to the next point that…

3. It Demands Respect From Others

Men with full beards have a certain air about them; a respectable, authoritative air.  It’s not the look of a fresh up-and-comer.  It’s cultured and refined.  It’s the look of a man who’s seen the world and has more than a few tales to tell about it.  It’s the look of the well-traveled professor, of the doctor who’s saved more people than you’ve even met.  And more importantly, it’s the look of The Most Interesting Man In The World.

This style can be very intimidating in social situations, especially when paired with the right persona.  A man with a beard always seems to know where he’s going, always knows what he’s doing, and whenever questions arise he’s the one you turn to.  It commands respect from both men and women, of all ages.

I’ve found that even in the sprawling metropolis in which I currently live, simply walking down the street with my beard makes people move out of the way, as if I am parting the Red Sea (much like another famously bearded fellow).  People see you coming from a mile away.  A man with a beard never seems to be wandering aimlessly, using his face carpet as a natural GPS.

4. It Forces You To Buck Social Norms

Despite the amazing things that a beard does for one’s self-confidence and self-image, a full beard being worn well has become a relatively rare sight in today’s feminized world of bald faces.  Even presidents don’t have the balls necessary to sport a full beard any more.  The last one who dared to was in the 1800’s.

While people will respect your beard, many will not like it.  Akin to a scrawny man standing next to a ripped lifter, they don’t like being intimidated by your masculinity and being made to look like a woman next to you.  While they may come up with different reasons why you shouldn’t have one (homeless people have beards, terrorists have beards, etc.), it all boils down to one simple fact: they feel weak next to a man with a beard.

A man with a beard makes it very clear to the world that he goes his own way.  He eschews the modern style and trends of androgyny in favor of allowing his natural masculinity to be on display to the world.  This is seen in almost all aspects of life, as we are supposed to shave before any important event.  Shave for your first date.  Shave for your job interview.  Shave for your inauguration.  All blasphemy.

Once you grow your beard,  you must own it and continue to do so through all the naysayers and contrarians who demand that you capitulate and shave.  And if anyone has the gall to tell you to shave, a stern look and a grunt should be enough to put them back in their place.  Remember, their attitudes come from a feeling of weakness.

As I’ve mentioned before, wearing a beard will significantly change your personal interactions with other men and women, as well as with the general public around you.  Throughout that time, especially while it’s growing in and isn’t yet strong enough to speak for itself, you will have to endure bullshit and pressure from many different sources around you, whether it’s work, friends, or family.

You will also experience more success, albeit sometimes harder won, in your many aspects of life.  You will learn to appreciate yourself more as a strong man, as a decision maker, as someone who makes their own way and their own destiny.  You will find your decisions and actions further emboldened by your mindset, which cyclically increases your self-determination and discipline.

In other words, it creates a strong alpha mentality.  A man who owns his beard also appears to own the world around him.  He makes his decisions and sticks with them, he is not one to be second-guessed.  To all who see it, a beard is a sign of strength and masculinity.  It is a reminder of how nature intended man to be: powerful, confident, and self-assured.  Because a man with a beard is a man to be feared.

Read More: How To Wear A Beard Without Looking Like An Ax Murderer