Doing the right things for your beard is important, BUT more important is avoiding the wrong things. And while you might think a shorter beard is easier to groom and maintain, it can be just as hard to get right.

Today, we are going to discuss the top 5 mistakes to avoid when maintaining a short beard.

Mistake #1: Trimming Trouble

One of the most common mistakes we see when perfecting a short beard is improper trimming. With a short beard, your trimmer guards will be your best friend as they'll help give you the exact length and look you want.

I always recommend grabbing the guards before you put them on the trimmer, and doing a dry run to gauge how much hair it will trim off.  

Always start with a longer guard as you can always take more off, and work to find the length you like best in different areas of your beard. 

Once you get your beard dialed in, write down the lengths used for each section so you know exactly what to use next time. 

Mistake #2: Hydration Neglect

Many guys with short beards don't think they need beard oil, and that couldn't be further from the truth. 

Beard oil is designed for the skin, not the beard, so regardless of how long your beard is, you should be applying oil daily to avoid itch and irritation, and promote healthier growth.

Work it into your morning grooming routine just as you brush your teeth and apply deodorant. 

Dab a few drops into your hands and massage it into the skin under the beard for best results. 

Mistake #3: Undefined Borders

The smallest little difference in positioning of your beard lines can make or break your beard. And not setting the borders of your beard will just tell the world you're lazy and don't give a damn. 

It's important you get this one right. 

There are three lines you need to trim in to shape your beard: 1) your top line, 2) your back line, and 3) your neckline. 

The top line should be trimmed in as high as naturally possible. The idea is to trim away any rogue hairs growing above the bulk of your beard. 

If you have thinner growth on your cheeks, then work with what you have but still try to keep these lines high.

Chin straps may have been cool sometime in the past...No, actually, I don't think they were... And they're still not a good look today, so keep this line high.
For the back line, you want to run this line off the back of your sideburn, down to the corner of your jaw with a slight angle to the back of your neck.

Oftentimes we see guys take this line too far forward, so really try to keep it natural and curved slightly to the back. 

Lastly, is the neckline. This one is often gone wrong and taken much too high by trimming it on the jawline. You want to trim it under the jaw, where the head connects to the neck. 

A good rule of thumb is a finger or so above the Adams' apple.

For shorter beards, you can take this slightly higher than if you are planning on growing it long, but you still want to avoid taking it all the way up on the jawline.

Mistake #4: Neglecting Maintenance

In order to maintain a consistently good look when your beard is short, you need to trim much more often and here's why. 

A week or two may not be noticeable to someone with a long beard because the added length is negligible in comparison to the overall existing beard length. But with a short beard - that week or two is often very noticeable because the beard is short to begin with.

This means you need to trim regularly to avoid your beard looking noticeably different over time. 

So I recommend you create a grooming routine where you set a weekly time to trim your beard using your standard settings. 

Grab your trimmer and the known guards you use for each section of your beard, and knock the new growth back to baseline. 

Creating that weekly routine will be super helpful to avoiding missing a week that may quickly turn into two or three… 

Mistake #5: Impatience & Growth Rush

This last mistake is something I think we all struggle with while growing a beard, regardless of the desired length. Your beard only grows about a half inch per month, so those first few weeks may be slower than expected.

Don't give up on growing your beard and finding the length you want, just make sure to set your expectations that it might take a little longer than you hope. 

Any thin spots may come in later as your hair often grows at different rates in different parts of your beard. 

And depending on the short beard style you are after, you may need the chin to be significantly longer than the sideburn areas so have some patience when you're growing it out. 

Alright guys, that's all I have for you today. I hope you found this post helpful!

It's our mission to help beadsmen look, feel, and be their best, so if you have any questions about this or anything at all, drop a comment or email us at support@livebearded.com.

And as always, Live Bearded!