Gentlemen, look in the mirror for a minute. Do you believe you can grow a massive beard in only a few months? The truth lies in the genetics. For some, growing a beard might take longer than expected. However, if you're one of the lucky men who can grow a beard in a few months like I can, and you haven't tried just letting it grow out, then this is for you.

When I was a Freshman last year, I grew my beard out for nine months, from October 27th, to around August 14th, so it was almost nine months. The reason for growing it out was to see people's reaction to it and to get a different look. Most of my friends and many strangers really liked it, while some members of my family didn't because you know, family likes to judge. I had to shave it off eventually because I worked when I returned to ISU.

Anyways, growing out the beard was really cool because you get treated way differently. You get treated with the utmost respect and people will take you seriously. When I worked in Security over the summer, my favorite part of last season was the look on people's faces when I was angry, that was the best part. As I said, the respect factor changes a lot. Granted, you look like you're 40, but that's the only downside to having an awesome beard.

How did I keep it looking great? I invested in some products from the Dollar Beard Club, mostly the oils, I didn't need the growth supplements because puberty hit me like a truck when I was in high school, so I don't need them.

Some information about Dollar Beard Club, they have very inexpensive products, the oils are $5 because of tax, but it's totally worth it. You'll get addicted to the smell so fast, it might be a little musky at first, but I swear, it's so good!

That being said, sometimes you have to learn when to trim your beard down. The beard is no different than your hair. To keep it looking nice, you have to regularly trim it, not to the point of it being the same length as two months ago, but just looking better than split ends.

As far as beards go, there are many combinations that you can use to make your beard even more amazing. My combination was the undercut with a sideburn fade leading up to the beard. It's an amazing style, however, I'm not really digging the undercut anymore. Still a good style if you're not bored with it.

There's a reason why I'm not going to say man bun because personally, it's a little much. Unless you're Brock O'Hurn and you're perfection, I wouldn't try that, believe me, I wasn't going to try that either.

My favorite style is the completely bald head and beard style. I call it my favorite because that screams biker, and when I'm 40 I'm probably going to pull that off so well.

Gentlemen, I could go on forever about this, but I highly encourage you to grow out your beard and find a new style that you could probably like. You never know, maybe you'll grow to love your new beard, but don't get frustrated! Keep growing it out and be patient, a masterpiece takes time.