If you are a woman with naturally dark hair or are over 40, you have a mustache.

Not might.  Not maybe.  You have a woman mustache.

If you were a man, you might be able to pull off that fu manchu.  But, you have a woman mustache, and both professionally and personally, your female facial hair is working against you.   As I was plucking my own excess facial hair today (I’m a brunette, there is no denying it exists), I couldn’t help but ponder why so many women – even professional women, are boasting a ‘stache.  If it were November, one could hope so many woman with female facial hair were letting it grow in support of the Movember Movement to promote men’s cancer awareness.  But, alas, even that was a stretch.  We are into December and the lady lip fur is still among us.

Poor Grooming Could Cost You A Job

Like it or not, attention to detail is critical in a competitive work environment.  Could your unintentional ‘mo cost you a job?  A promotion?  If the person interviewing you is annoyed or distracted by your crumb catcher, you might not see interview number two even if you are the best person for the job.  Interviewers expect professionalism.  Like it or not, the second you walk into an interview, you are being judged.  While some interviewers might not notice you paired black shoes with a brown belt, HR professionals take note of what you might consider minor details. Attention to grooming, fashion and small details can be a tell-tale sign of your attention to detail in the workplace.

Women sporting mo’s are not just an age thing even though the likelihood of darker, courses facial hair increases with hormonal changes for women over 40.  I see young women sporting facial fuzz.  It’s not about poor hygiene or a lack of grooming either.  Top executive power women, decked out head to toe in the latest fashions are walking around seemingly unaware of what’s lurking just below their noses.

Why so many women have a mustache:

•  Vision:  It is hard to see the glistening dark hairs when one looks straight on in a mirror.  Most people look at you from an angle.  We see the whiskers; you don’t.

• Denial:  It’s customary to get your eye brows waxed.  Women don’t want to lose that feeling of femininity by asking for the upper lip while they are at it.  HINT: If the stylist asks you if you are also getting your lip waxed, you should say YES.   And, if you are still too embarrassed, just use some tweezers after the shower.  Takes 2 minutes.

• No One Tells You:  If your tag is sticking out, your friend will tuck it in.  If you have lipstick on your teeth, even a stranger will rescue you from embarrassment.  But, if you have a hairy upper lip, you might be hard pressed for anyone to tell you.  It’s just too embarrassing for you both.

My Female Mustache Confessions

I have watched good friends boast lip fuzz and not said a word.  I have witnessed powerful female executives navigate board meetings, negotiations and the finest of business details – never to realize the extra detail they needed to pay to their own faces.    I did tell a bride before her wedding to wax.  And, my husband let me know once that I needed to reacquaint myself with my tweezers.  The truth is, being truthful about facial hair is hard and makes us all uncomfortable.  So, instead of discomfort, if everyone waxed and tweezed, none of us would be in this hairy predicament.

In a world of professionalism where putting your best self forward can be the difference between winning and losing, details matter.  The first step in defeating the mo is admitting the mo exists.