I recently polled my friends on Facebook about advice I had received to not wear my hair braided to my upcoming interview. A dear friend passed along advice she had received from her mother who is an African-American business woman. She believes the corporate world does not respond well to ethnic hair styles. Since I have been searching for a job I have worn my hair both braided and unbraided. I usually alternate as in the spring and summer it is much easier to maintain a neater hairstyle in the humidity if it is braided.
In my professional career I have followed this pattern for years. It is time to rebraid my hair and this time my appointment is the day before a corporate interview. I am going to be me. I am going to braid my hair and then put it up in a professional, yet “ethnic looking” bun. I will wear a business suit and I will be well prepared. I figure they should know who they are getting up front. A professional Black woman.
What do you think? Am I decreasing my chances of being hired?
Hillery Smith Shay Consulting 